The Head Of The Charles Regatta (HOCR) today announced that the field is set for the 2018 Regatta – a highly anticipated competition with more than 11,000 athletes representing 2,300 entries from 23 countries around the world.
Headlining the 54th annual Regatta competition is the United States Women’s National team, the recent winners of the 2018 World Rowing Championship in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The U.S. Men and Women took home a total of 10 medals—including three golds—marking the team’s best performance in 16 years. The U.S. Men will be looking to challenge Germany and the Netherlands who are all set to compete in the men’s eights.
“We are thrilled by the depth of this year’s field that will compete on the Charles River,” said Fred Schoch, Executive Director of The Head Of The Charles Regatta. “Not only are the single sculls and eights sure to be exciting match-ups, but all of our events are over-subscribed and will be exceptionally competitive.”
The blue ribbon events at the HOCR, typically the Men’s and Women’s Championship Singles and the Championship Eights, are set to be electrifying races. At the recent World Championships last month, the U.S. women’s eight earned the top spot after their 10-year winning streak was broken in 2017. The U.S. Women, starting with bow number one, will face serious challenges not only from returning American university entries but also the German Women’s National team. In addition, the German Men’s Eight, who defended their title at the World Championships will start behind a determined University of California entry, winner in 2017 and two very fast U.S. Men’s Eight entries.
The Championship Single races will feature some of the most competitive names in the sport in both the men’s and women’s fields. Kara Kohler, fourth place finisher at the World Championship for the United States, will be a dark horse in the event as she tries to dethrone hometown favorite Gevvie Stone, who was the 2016 Olympic silver medalist for the United States and has won the Head Of The Charles a record eight times. Felice Mueller, who rowed in the eight that won gold at the World Championship, will also be competing in he single after finishing second in the event in 2017. Magdalena Lobnig, the 2016 Olympic bronze medalist from Austria and Carling Zeeman the 2016 Olympian from Canada should not be overlooked, as they will also press for the top spots.
For the men, Kiwi Robbie Mason, the 2016 Olympian and world record holder in the Men’s Single, along with four-time Olympian and two-time Olympic gold medalist Mahe Drysdale of New Zealand, will be competing for the men’s title. Along with Mason and Drysdale, the 2016 Olympic silver medalist Damir Martin of Croatia and newcomer Oliver Zeidler of Germany will take on the field. Several top lightweights will also add to the Championship single field, with Gary O’Donovan of the World Champion Irish Lightweight Double and Andrew Campbell who earned bronze for the U.S. in the lightweight single will look to take on the field of heavyweights. Campbell also holds the course record time of 17:11.6. Highlighting the Men’s Championship Doubles are Mark O’Donovan and Shane O’Driscall, the gold medalists in the 2017 World Championships in the Men’s Lightweight Pair.
The Head Of The Charles Regatta is one of the world’s most renowned rowing competitions, hosting a variety of events for local and international rowers. The Regatta engages rowers of diverse experience, including Juniors, Olympians, Para and Masters athletes and has become a signature sporting event in New England. It is free to the public and accessible to view from any bridge or shoreline along the three-mile Charles River course. For more information about the event, visit www.hocr.org.
ABOUT HEAD OF THE CHARLES REGATTA: Since its origin in 1965, the Head Of The Charles® Regatta has welcomed the world’s best crew teams to the banks of the Charles River for the ultimate two-day rowing competition. Preparing for an event that attracts over 11,000 athletes and thousands of spectators requires a great deal of preparation. The HOCR consists of a 15 member Board of Directors, six of which are in charge of race management and overseeing an eleven-member race committee (including two race co-chairs). The race committee meets year-round to discuss the operational and logistical details of the event. They are assisted by 115 leading volunteers on 30 separate committees that begin meeting weekly in the fall. A full-time, professional staff of four, headquartered in the Cambridge Boat Club, works year-round to plan the event, obtain sponsorship and communicate with the rowing community. Head Of The Charles® is a registered trademark of the Cambridge Boat Club, 2 Gerry’s Landing Road, Cambridge, MA. For more information, call Head Of The Charles at (617) 868-6200, email regatta@hocr.org
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