Women

Carrying the Legacy Forward: A Call to Support from Gemma King, 2026 President

To our alumni and supporters,

This year, the openweight women’s squad is raising funds for our new Filippi Eight, with a goal of securing £60,000 to make this possible.

This shell will serve the 2026-2028 Blue Boats and the subsequent three Blondie crews. With the 2027 Boat Race marking the Centenary of the Women’s Boat Race, we are particularly excited to introduce this new boat at such a significant moment.

We are honoured to name the shell Roger, in memory of the legendary CUWBC coach and LMBC boatman Roger Silk, whose life and legacy continue to inspire generations of Cambridge rowers.

We are sincerely grateful to everyone who has already supported this project. Thanks to your generosity, we are now just over halfway towards our funding target. For those who may still wish to contribute in Roger’s memory, there remains a meaningful opportunity to do so, helping us celebrate his legacy in a lasting and thoughtful way.

We would be hugely appreciative of any support—large or small—and we thank you for everything you have already done to bring us this far. Many of you will remember your own time at Cambridge, and we would love to hear your stories.

We are also grateful to the donor whose generosity has underwritten the 2026 Fixture Series, as well as to our supporters in the United States who have already pledged to help bring us back to HOCR in 2026.

We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible on 4th April in Putney, and we hope to make you proud.

With warmest thanks,

Gemma