GW Returns to Famed Head of the Charles Regatta This Weekend

Members of the GW women's rowing team compete in a race.
Members of the GW women’s rowing team compete in a race.

The 49th annual Head of the Charles Regatta, a legendary rowing event, takes place this weekend (Oct. 19 -20) on the Charles River in Boston, MA—and GW rowing will be there!  

Founded in 1965, the Head of the Charles Regatta has evolved into the largest two-day rowing event in the world. This year’s event features more than 9,500 athletes from 23 countries and over 2,000 crews, all in front of a crowd that is expected to approach 300,000.

Our friends at GWsports checked in with members of both the men’s and women’s teams to find out how they feel about competing at the world-renowned event:

Megan Culberson – CCAS Senior
“I’m very excited for this upcoming weekend at the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston; it’s a great chance for our team to represent GW in a world-renowned regatta in front of thousands of rowers and spectators. We have an amazing opportunity to stack up against top-notch collegiate and international crews competing in the Championship 8+. We have a group of really dedicated and powerful athletes so this will be a great start to our season.”

 

Trofym Anderson – GWSB Senior
“The Head of the Charles is definitely a race I look forward to every year. This is my seventh season in a row racing at the Charles, making it the regatta I’ve competed at the most throughout my rowing career. After coming off of a great summer at the World Championships, I’m looking forward to racing down the course at the “World Championship” of head racing against some of the fastest crews in the world. This being my fourth and final Charles racing for GW, we’re definitely looking to make it our best appearance yet, in the history of the program. We’ve got some unreal talent, experience and determination in the boat this year and we’re ready to go crush it for ourselves, the alumni and our coaches.”

 

Sarah Pickus – SEAS Senior
“Head of the Charles is one of the largest and most recognized head races in the world. Being able to represent GW as a student-athlete at an event like this is an absolute honor and privilege. Although I’m excited to see how our program ranks up against some of the best collegiate and international crews in the world, I’m even more excited to see how our rowing program has progressed since the last time we raced at the event in 2010.”

 

James Stafford – SEAS Senior
“The Head of the Charles Regatta is the rowing festival of the world where teams from all over the globe come together and race down the Charles. With people all over the world racing, we get the opportunity to race the United States national team along with foreign crews. With all of these prestigious crews it is a great feeling to know that you are representing the Buff and Blue down the course.”

 

Hayley Dannehower – CCAS Senior
“Being able to compete in the Head of The Charles Regatta has been an aspiration of mine since the beginning of my high school rowing career. Knowing that this is my last fall racing season as a collegiate coxswain, there is no greater honor than to represent GW in the Women’s Championship Eight race. I’m excited for the opportunity to compete on the Charles against some of the top collegiate crews in the world, and can’t wait to see where we stack up among them. Our excitement continues to build each day as the nine of us work together to fine-tune for the upcoming weekend!”

For the second year in a row, GW’s Office of Alumni Relations, in conjunction with the GW Boston Alumni group, will host alumni gatherings at the Head of the Charles Regatta.  Events will be headquartered at a GW tent in “Reunion Village,” where snacks and soft drinks will be available throughout each day of competition.

On Saturday, Oct. 19, the alumni gathering will be held in Reunion Village from 12:00-3:00pm. The GW Women’s Alumni boat races at 12:51pm, and the men’s alumni boat races at 1:57 pm.

Sunday’s gathering will be held from 1:00-4:00pm during the Colonials’ varsity races. The women’s Varsity 8 launches at 3:16pm, followed by the men’s Varsity 8 (3:04 pm) and the men’s Varsity 4 (2:41 pm).

Alumni in Boston, don’t miss your chance to cheer on GW at this famed event  – register today!

Quotes from this article originally appeared on GWsports.com on Oct. 14, 2013.

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