Kiwis set to put on a show in US college men’s biggest rowing weekend

Princeton, Harvard, Yale...you name it, there’s a former Maadi rower gearing up for intercollegiate glory.

You can’t read Daniel James Brown’s epic The Boys in the Boat and not be a little intrigued by the American college rowing scene.

The story of the University of Washington crew that won the right to represent the Unted States at the 1936 Olympics is beyond inspiring.

Last weekend, Kiwis Ella Cossill and Shakira Mirfin rowed in the famous UW singlet as part of the NCAA finals for heavyweight women.

Stanford took out the title with ex-Baradene student Lucy Burrell rowing in five seat.

This week it’s the Intercollegiate Rowing Association finals to decide the best college crew in America for heavyweight and lightweight men and lightweight women.

All this is set against the backdrop of Rowing New Zealand’s inaugural trial for US-based U23 rowers held in the US.

It only adds to the mystique of ‘College Crew’.

All six triallists for the men’s U23 boat, plus one coxswain will be on the water this weekend at Mercer Lake in New Jersey, the home to Princeton University.

Harry Fitzpatrick, Ben Shortt and cox Kieran Joyce are part of the University of Washington roster.

Joyce has the reins of the Washington 2V (2nd Varsity Eight), Fitzpatrick and Shortt are in the 3V.

They are part of a celebrated group at UW, returning to the East Coast exactly 100 years after Washington won its first IRA Championship on the Hudson River in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Max Cossill is in Northeastern's 2V, Seth Hope is in Yale’s 3V (while Olympic gold medallist Dan Williamson is in the 2V), Sean McHugh will sit in four seat of Syracuse’s 2V and Matthew Waddell will suit up for University of California, Berkeley’s 3V.