The Henley Royal Regatta The Henley Royal Regatta was established in Henley-on-Thames, England on March 26, 1839. It has been held annually ever since, with the exception of gaps created from 1914-18 and 1939-45, due to the two World Wars. Originally staged by the Mayor and people of Henley as a public attraction with a fair and other amusements, the emphasis rapidly changed so that competitive amateur rowing became its main purpose. The 1839 Regatta took place on a single afternoon but proved so popular with oarsmen that the racing lasted for two days the following year. In 1886 the Regatta was extended to three days and to four in 1906. Since 1928 its increased popularity meant entries exceeded the permitted numbers in several events, and so Qualifying Races are now held in the week before the Regatta to reduce the number of entries to the permitted maximum. In 1986 the Regatta was extended to five days, with an increase in the maximum entry for certain events. As the Regatta was instituted long before national or international rowing federations were established, it occupies a unique position in the world of rowing. It has its own rules and is not subject to the jurisdiction either of the governing body of rowing in England (the Amateur Rowing Association) or of the International Rowing Federation (F.I.S.A.), but is proud of the distinction of being officially recognized by both these bodies.

The Thames Challenge Cup (Prior to 1995) The Thames Challenge Cup was instituted for eight-oars in 1868, and attracted entries from home and overseas crews of “club”, rather than “Grand”, standard. From 1985 there were a number of rule changes for the “Thames”, each attempting to ensure that the best club and student crews entered the higher event, the “Ladies”. After a two year review the Stewards, in December 1995, made fundamental changes to the rules of the “Thames” and excluded all student crews. In addition the event now has a number of other exclusions, with the intention of ensuring that the “Thames” is an event for “genuine” club crews.

The Temple Challenge Cup (Established in 1990) As part of the search to find the right formula for the eights events at the Regatta, an additional event was instituted in 1990 for the eights of single colleges, of smaller university boat clubs and of schools unable to enter for the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup by reason of age. This proved to be a very popular event and the Stewards quickly decided that it should become a permanent part of the Regatta program and provided a trophy, The Temple Challenge Cup.

Cornell Lightweights at Henley 1949: Despite winning the American lightweight championship and defeating Princeton twice during the season, Cornell was refused entry into the Royal Henley Regatta’s Thames Cup race because its entry form was received one day late. 1961: The Big Red makes its first Henley appearance for a lightweight crew when it competes for the Thames Cup on July 5-8, 1961. In the opening round, Cornell defeats the Tideway Scullers School of London, one of the best British crews at the event. In the second round, the Big Red falls to Eliot House of Harvard, a crew that outweighs Cornell by eight pounds per man. 1963: In the trial heats of the Henley, Cornell goes 2-1, defeating Queen’s University of Belfast and the Kingston Rowing Club before falling in the third heat to Queen’s College of Cambridge. 1965: The Big Red goes 3-1 in the trial heats of the Henley, defeating the Thames Rowing Club, Northeastern University and the Derby Rowing Club of England before losing to the Nottingham Britannia Club of England in the semifinals.

1967: Cornell wins the Thames Challenge Cup by defeating Nottingham Union Rowing Club in the finals. Along the way, the Big Red defeats the Kingston Rowing Club, Durham University, Crowland Rowing Club and the Molesey Boat Club.

1968: The Big Red makes it back to the finals of the Thames Challenge Cup by defeating Harvard, the Quintin Boat Club and the Siochana Boat Club of Ireland. In the final race, Cornell loses the Leander Boat Club. 1992: For the first time in nearly a quarter century, the Big Red returns to the Henley and makes its final appearance in the Thames Challenge Cup. Cornell receives a bye in the first round before defeating the Thames Rowing Club and the Rob Roy Rowing Club. Unfortunately, the Big Red falls in the quarterfinals to the Upper Thames Rowing Club. 2005: Cornell defeats the University College of Dublin by 1 ¾ lengths before beating Abingdon School of England by a 1 length in the first round. The Big Red sees its quest for the Temple Challenge Cup come to an end when it falls to Oxford Brookes in the quarterfinals. 2006: The Big Red defeats Pembrok and Christ Church of Oxford in the first round and advances to the round of 16 by beating the Imperial College of London. Cornell advances to the finals by beating Cal, but for the second year in a row, it falls to Oxford Brookes. 2007: For the second straight year, the Big Red places second at the Henley, falling to Cal in the final race of the Temple Challenge Cup. Cornell earns the trip to the finals by defeating Durham University, Bath University, University of Bristol and Colgate. 2008: The Big Red defeats D.S.R. Proteus-Eretes and the Imperial College of London in the opening rounds of the Temple Challenge Cup before falling to an impressive Stanford freshman heavyweight crew in the semifinals. 2014: At the 175th Henley Royal Regatta, Cornell easily won its first three races before falling to Oxford Brookes by a half-length in the Temple Challenge Cup semifinal race. 2015: The Big Red saw its season come to an end in the semifinal race of the Temple Challenge Cup, as it fell to an extremely talented A.S.R. Nereus crew that set a new course record in the previous day’s quarterfinals. In the opening round, Cornell defeated the Oxford Brookes B crew. The following day, the Big Red defeated Trinity College Dublin by two-thirds length, and then defeated the University of London A crew by two-thirds length in the qaurterfinals. 2016: Cornell earned a victory in the opening round of the Temple Challenge Cup at the 177th edition of the Henley Royal Regatta by defeating the Oxford Brookes C boat by nearly 3/4-length, before falling to the University of London A. 2017: The Big Red varsity eight posted back-to-back dominating wire-to-wire wins over Exeter and the University of London B Crew in the first two rounds of the Temple Challenge Cup at the 2017 Henley Royal Regatta, before falling to the eventual runner-up University of London A in the quarterfinals. Cornell also raced a lightweight developmental boat at the event, a crew that fell to one of the favorites, A.S.R. Nereus (Netherlands), on the first day of competition.