Lightweight quad earns early first place at King’s Head Regatta

The victorious quad at the King’s Head Regatta – Courtesy of Haverford rowing

On Sunday, September 25, the fall crew team kicked off their season with the King’s Head Regatta. The 2.8-mile race along the Schuylkill River can be challenging due to the two bridges rowers must navigate.

The team entered several boats, but only one was able to take first place in its event. The lightweight quad, consisting of Fourth Formers Charlie Gord and Sebastian Gillis, Fifth Former Ethan Lee, and Sixth Former Evan Wang secured a time of just under seventeen minutes in order to come out victorious. 

Gord, satisfied with the victory, is looking forward to improving.

“It felt good bringing the team a victory, but there is more work to do collectively.”

Charlie Gord ’25

“Winning the race felt good, but there is a lot of work to do,” Gord said. “It felt good bringing the team a victory, but there is more work to do collectively.”

Gord believes that the key to success on the water is synergy and dedication. 

Center City and University City as seen from the Schuylkill River – Courtesy of Wikimedia.jpeg

“It was exhausting, but to row hard you have to focus and stay in the zone,” Gord said. “All I could think about while rowing was being in unison and working with my boatmates to be the best on the water.” 

Head Rowing Coach Mr. Jonathan Stefanik viewed the Kings Head Regatta as a baseline to see where the team stood physically. He also considered it an opportunity to look at areas of improvement going into the fall season and assess the team’s skills.

“It’s good to see one or two boats do well, but we would like to see all the boats succeed.”

Mr. Jonathan Stefanik

Mr. Stefanik said. “The competition at King’s Head is relatively small, with only a few other teams, but it gives us a good idea of how we stack up against them overall.”