Wadham College Boat Club

Back again in the quest for headship it’s W1. 💪

These rowers can certainly put the watts down and are raring to go with only one crew between them and the top. 📈

Bow: In bow, Scarlett brings the style, being known to change so quickly into heels after outings, you wouldn’t have known she’d just been rowing. Even quicker than her outfit changes however are her legs going down each stroke.

2: Cadence is a true rowing fanatic who dreams about rowing and would probably rather do an outing at 4am than 4pm if she could.

3: Absolutely jacked, Emma could lift the entire boat by herself… if only Lisa could get her to wake up on time.

4: Beth is a stealth ninja who crept up through the ranks into W1 as a novice. She also once cycled the whole way to Godstow behind her crewmates without them knowing she was there.

5: Lisa is affectionately known as the “boat grandma”, spending 5am coach journeys knitting, but she’ll be putting the knitting needles down for Eights and putting the young’uns to shame with her athleticism and aggression in the boat.

6: Having learnt to row on the other side of the world, Tig responds best to Australian accents and College boy’s motivational videos.

7: Iris was voted “most hench” at Torpid’s dinner but her greatest attribute is being the coolest, calmest and collected-est in the boat.

Stroke: With the internal rhythm of an anatomic clock we know we can trust Blue to keep W1 in time. She won’t let them rush the slide even if she is mid- asthma attack.

Cox: Giovanna is determined, aggressive, and focused… unless there’s a cool bird she wants to take a photo of. Her motivational speeches however put professional speakers to shame and she brings the fire to W1.

Is that an O1 shaped space in Div 1 we see? 👀

This crew have returned to VIIIs this year better than ever and ready to reclaim their rightful place in the top division. 🤝

Bow: Sam’s commitment to hitting his daily protein goals means he is often seen post-outing with a refec espresso topped up with protein shake, so you know he’ll commit hard during the racing.

2: Raising the bar for displays of commitment however is Tom who once forgot his own bike lock combination and sat at Godstow for an hour trying 10,000 combinations (only to have to watch a YouTube video on how to pick a lock).

3: Wise apparently believes that the best strategy for early mornings is to sleep in your unisuit. Is that efficient or concerning? We’re not sure.

4: The second Josh. JW squared. In four seat is Walker, Wise’s other half. Rumour has it he wears lifts in his shoes so Tim doesn’t find out he’s actually the shortest in the crew…

5: Seb is fuelled exclusively by Red Bull, polishing them off in one sip (and eating the can as well we think). His fondness of hydration also shone through when he put lives on the line to save Jacob’s water bottle at Dorney.

6: Jacob is so in sync with Hamish at 7 seat that they have been known to swap seats mid-outing without bow four noticing.

7: Hamish is sure to give it his all in racing as he once went so hard in a 2k that he vomited on himself and had to be carried out (he apparently doesn’t remember this). He also only recently learnt that his cox’s name is James and not just Rumsey.

Stroke: Dylan has returned from Blues to train with Wadham. Getting O1 back into Div I is arguably a far more honourable cause than the Boat Race.

Cox: James is another blue so is clearly already an excellent cox but, for even more experience, he has been practicing bumps with O1’s launch.

Potentially the most dapper crew on the river… it’s O2! 🤵‍♂️

These boys are ready to take on the heat (physically and metaphorically) and show us how speedy they can be. 🔥

Bow: Tobin
Tobin once barked the entire way up Iffley Road after Torpids. Proudly from Devon, he’s got that dog in him – unfortunately for everyone else, it’s off the leash.

2: Georg
Back home, Georg reportedly holds the prestigious title of ‘The Chud of Derbyshire’, though nobody knows what it means. Nevertheless, the legend rows with dangerous composure.

3: Theo
Theo is rarely seen without Georg nearby, leading some to suspect the two share a consciousness. Unnervingly composed, he does his best work in the last 500 metres.

4: Ryan
Ryan has logged erg metres across four countries and owns the best shades in the boat club. Straight out of Singapore, he rows like every outing ends on the podium.

5: Stephen
Stephen Sandford has no connection to Sandford the place, though both carry a certain reputation after dark. Unflappable and composed, he rows with a quiet confidence.

6: Olmo
Even collapsing in the MCR bathroom after Torpids Dinner only delayed Olmo briefly before he was up and ready for another 10 on the legs.

7: Luca
Mr. Abiani may have switched colleges but never abandoned WCBC. Built as if engineered in Milan, he rows with the confidence of a man convinced that 24 is the new 21.

Stroke: Sofus
At stroke seat sits Sophus, O2’s undisputed huddle coordinator. Part motivator, part ringmaster, he somehow makes every victory feel within reach.

Cox: Ellie
Who’s that calling across the water? None other than O2’s queen, Ellie. Armed with a voice that cuts through any headwind, she keeps her ducklings sharp and mostly in line.

We don’t think Wadham have ever seen a W2 so stacked 👀

You’re gonna have to keep a beady eye out for them on the river or you’re might miss them with how fast they are 💨

Bow: Luce once got told by Rod that she probably has the best weight to power ratio of anyone in the boat club (which is much nicer than some of the other height related comments she gets…)

2: Poppy has threatened to throw Luce (or her shoes) into the river so many times that she had to be moved to the opposite end of the boat at stroke. Unfortunately, that didn’t work out as she couldn’t wind to anything under 38…

3: Mattie consistently runs on zero hours of sleep and about ten cans of monster a day, so if she actually sleeps before VIIIs she’s going to be unstoppable.

4: Sarah is such a weapon that she casually ran a marathon last vac and spent Hilary training for that alongside rowing training.

5: It would be easier to count the sports that Stella hasn’t done than the ones she has and apparently she was almost on the Canadian Olympic team for one of them!

6: Katie is one of those unhinged med-student-rowers but manages to balance her degree with rowing by taking any opportunity to begin reciting muscles at debriefs and diagnosing her crewmates’ ailments.

7: Our wonderful, smiley welfare officer Annabelle is arguably the heart of the boat club but don’t let this fool you, she’s an absolute beast on the water.

8: Alice’s surname O’Halloran literally means “son of a pirate” which is pretty fitting for leading the effort to steal a spot in Div III

Cox: Lottie didn’t believe that ducks could fly until two years ago (and still isn’t convinced) but she sure believes in W2’s ability to fly across the water.

Look out for your sterns… W3’s about!! ⚠️🏎️

This speedy crew also took Rowing On by storm and with their muscles now warmed up they’re ready to go again this week!

Bow: Lucy is a renowned Ceilidh organiser and rumour has it there might even be one at the Summer VIII’s BBQ… Her quick feet and practice working in pairs make her the perfect rower.

2: I’ve been told that Beths can’t drink coffee before ergs and can only assume it’s because she’d just be too powerful if she did.

3: Devastatingly, Ida will be leaving us for a year abroad in Japan next year but we know that her rowing skills are so ingrained that it’ll all still be there when she gets back.

4: When Shay isn’t rowing, you’ll find her running. She’s currently training for her first 10k so rowing the 1.6ish km racecourse will feel like a breeze.

5: Jay is both rower and expert cox so they know the river like the back of their hand and will have no problem doing it facing backwards!

6: Zara is a veteran of WCBC who has returned to race this year and bless W3 with her experience.

7: Poppy’s dedication to rowing is so great that she even rowed on her birthday, celebrating with party hats and Collin the caterpillars.

Stroke: Another experienced rower, Issy is prepared to lead the crew to some swift bumps at stroke seat.

Cox: Annabelle only recently started coxing but clearly has a gift for it. She also has extra motivation for bumping as fast as possible because she’ll be rowing with W2 straight after!

Everyone watch out‼️

After smashing it out of the park in Rowing On, W4 are ready to show all the other crews on the river how it’s done with what is sure to be the blades campaign of the century 😤🤩

Bow: Elle is known to listen to Moves like Jagger before every exam so watch out for when she moves like jagger on the crew in front.

2: With Barbare’s background in economics and computer science, you can be sure she’ll be expertly calculating exactly how to move the boat most efficiently.

3: Tabby manages to fit rowing around her 4(+?) other sports and apparently only started rowing to annoy her tutor.

4: Emma was so committed to Eight’s that she offered to race 2 hours after her flight back to Oxford was meant to land! (She now has a sub for that day.)

5: Charlotte is another rower with too many other sport commitments and competed in netball cuppers right before rowing on.

6: Sophie is so chronically online that her favourite call in the boat is “six seven” and she wears minecraft merch to outings.

7: Liz’s time studying human science has been perfectly preparing her to understand her competitors and their weaknesses.

8: Kat told us she was retiring from rowing but we knew she’d come back and she even agreed to row stroke side for the first time ever in Rowing On!

Bedford regatta 2026 ☀️🤩 Race report below! ⬇️

Last weekend, four of our crews took on Bedford regatta which was many of our rowers first experience of side-by-side tournament racing. After successfully getting everyone on the 5:15am coach, we set off and were met with a beautiful, sunny morning in Bedford! W1 speedily rigged up and pushed off for their first race at 8:20. Despite getting attacked by swans on the row to the start, they managed to win the race by a length, starting the day strong. Their next race was won by two lengths progressing them to the semi-finals. Meanwhile, W2 put up a fantastic fight against LMH (who went on to win the division) finishing within just 2 lengths. O1 then had a close race with Trinity, unfortunately losing by 1 1/4 lengths. Shortly after, W1’s winning streak came to an end in a tight race with Selwyn college where they kept the overlap right until the end. Redemption for Wadham however came in the O2’s first race in the late afternoon where they won by a length and completed the course with a great time of 3:41! Their following race was sadly lost, but overall it was an excellent day for all crews with lots of racing experience and lovely weather. 💪☀️

WCBC’s statement on recent rule change

Looking for something to do this sunny weekend?! Come down to the boathouse to watch our crews race in CORC regatta!☀️😎

Get ready for another term of exciting socials ‼️🥳