British Coastal Championships 2026

Tees Juniors head to the coast

By Martha Anderson

Some of the Tees juniors recently competed at the British Coastal Rowing Championships 2026, hosted by Whitby Rowing Club. Although racing was delayed by several hours due to challenging winds and ferocious whitecaps, this didn’t stop the juniors from braving the sea and bringing home plenty of medals!

Firstly, Sophie Bentley and Martha Anderson competed in the U19 W2x, producing a fantastic performance throughout the race — especially after a rogue fishing boat decided to cut them off course! They quickly regained their rhythm and finished strongly to secure a gold medal.

Harry Morley then took on the Open U19 1x, where he faced some tough competition from older athletes over the 5k course. Despite the challenging conditions, Harry maintained a strong performance throughout and crossed the finish line to claim gold.

Harry also competed in the Mixed 2x alongside his teammate from the Beach Sprints Performance Academy, Elyssa. Together, they delivered an impressive performance in the difficult conditions, demonstrating great composure on the water to take home another gold medal.

On Sunday, Harry competed once again in the Mixed 4x, alongside Edwin, Maya and Sefi, who all represented the Beach Sprints Performance Academy. Facing crews with more experience, the young crew rose to the challenge and produced a strong performance to secure yet another gold medal.

Harry also coxed the Whitby Men’s 4x to victory, winning gold as well!

Finally, finishing the weekend off, Martha and Sophie were joined by Jack Holden, Henry Anderson and fabulous cox Julie Morley in the U19 Mixed 4x. Taking on the waves together, the crew battled through the challenging conditions and, despite taking on plenty of water, successfully defended their title as British Champions and brought home the gold!

Overall, it was a fantastic weekend filled with great fun, challenging conditions and some outstanding performances from the Tees juniors. A special thank you goes to Whitby CRC for hosting such a brilliant event!