HMC rowers secure seventh set of blades for College

A painting on a wall next to a plaque with the words 'Oxley Ching Hall', showing a College crest with oars in the background and the words: 'Torpids, Blades 2023, M2'

HMC's most recent set of blades, secured in 2023

This year’s Summer Eights, the University of Oxford’s annual four-day intercollegiate rowing competition, proved especially successful for Harris Manchester and culminated in the College winning only the seventh set of ‘blades’ in its history.   

As per tradition, the event, which took place on the River Thames from 28 to 31 May, saw a total of 13 HMC students line up in Wadham colours, meaning that Harris Manchester had representation in six of the seven boats fielded by Wadham College Boat Club. 

The action kicked off on Saturday 24 May, when qualifying for the week ahead took place. The Men’s/Open 3rd Boat, with Akshay Amesur, Gabriel Kaufmann and Muenda Drenkard, clinched a spot in the main event, while the Open 4th Boat, with Felix Waldmann, Hans Fredrik Ebne and Sadiq Soofi, just missed out on a spot. 

Come the final Saturday – after three action-packed days of racing – the Men’s 1st Boat  (with HMC students Jacob Shrubsall, Rob Murphy and Maxime Kayser), the Men’s 2nd Boat (with Kieren Marley and Luca Abbiani) and the Women’s 2nd Boat (with Alice O’Halloran) were no longer in contention, having been bumped (caught up) by other crews, or having failed to bump, in the previous days’ races.   

However, the Women’s 1st Boat, with HMC’s Lisa Lynn, went into the final day as the leading crew in the top division, with a real chance of securing the prestigious Head of the River title. The Men’s/Open 3rd Boat, meanwhile, was hoping to secure its fourth successive bump – and Akshay Amesur, Gabriel Kaufmann and Muenda Drenkard did just that in their race to secure blades for the College. Unfortunately, in the penultimate race of the day, the Women’s 1st Boat narrowly missed out on victory as they were bumped in the final stretch by Pembroke.  

Despite that disappointment, it remained a highly satisfying week for HMC’s rowers, with excitement mounting as the College prepares to add a well-earned seventh set of blades to its collection, the most recent of which are displayed on the walls of Oxley Ching Hall after they were secured in 2023.