That chain was broken painfully at Tokyo in 2021. At the time some interpreted this as symptomatic of a crisis in British rowing. Yet three years later that break seems to have liberated the team from a legacy that had become more of a burden than advantage and kickstarted some overdue modernisation. This summer it's difficult to say which is our "top boat" because there is a broader spread of talent across boat classes than there has ever been.
There are reigning world champions in the women's quadruple sculls, the men's eight and men's coxless four (old habits die hard). The lightweight women's double sculls of Imogen Grant and Emily Craig have an incredible unbeaten record since their race in Tokyo, where they finished fourth in a blanket finish and missed out on a medal by one-hundredth of a second. During this season's racing, which included the European championship and World Cup regattas, two crews have an unbeaten record: the men's pair of Tom George and Ollie Wynne-Griffith and the reconfigured women's coxless four with Rebecca Shorten, Sam Redgrave, Esme Booth and the double Olympic champion Helen Glover. The women's eight have a neat turn of speed too.
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