Saints Rowing Celebrate Major Wins at Scottish Rowing Championships
A large University of St Andrews Boat Club squad delivered an impressive set of results at the annual Scottish Rowing Championships, the premier domestic rowing event in Scotland, held at Strathclyde Park in Glasgow on 6–7 June 2026. Competing against high-calibre opposition from across the UK and beyond, St Andrews athletes produced standout performances across multiple events, underlining the depth and strength of the programme.
In the Men’s Open Single Sculls (O 1x), Harris Bissett produced a highly competitive performance to finish third overall. In a field featuring international-standard athletes, Bissett was the fastest student competitor of the day, finishing behind only Ben Partridge and Philip Wilson, an Olympic gold medallist with the New Zealand men’s eight at Tokyo 2021. His result marks a significant achievement and highlights his continued progress on the national stage.
The Women’s Squad enjoyed a particularly successful weekend, delivering several headline performances. In the Women’s Open Single Sculls (W 1x), Hansine Marshall secured an outstanding victory, the first time in many years that a St Andrews athlete has won Gold in this prestigious event. Marshall performed consistently across both the time trial and the final, demonstrating composure and race control to claim gold.
Teammate Tash Phillips also impressed in the same event, finishing fourth overall. After a strong time trial, Phillips produced an excellent final to move up the standings, narrowly missing out on a medal in a tightly contested race.
Phillips went on to combine with Natacha Searson in the Women’s Double Sculls (W 2x), where the pair delivered a superb performance to win Silver. In a close race, they narrowly missed out on Gold, but their result underlined their growing strength as a crew.
The following day, Phillips and Searson joined Hansine Marshall and Sophia Issberner in the Women’s Open Quad Sculls (W 4x). In one of the most competitive races of the regatta, the crew produced an exceptional performance over 2000 metres to take Gold, an outstanding collective achievement and one of the highlights of the weekend for the club.
Further success came in the Women’s Novice Single Sculls (W Nov 1x), where Alexia Shynkevich delivered a dominant display to win Gold. Leading from the start, she controlled the race throughout to secure a convincing victory. Shynkevich later teamed up with Layla McKinlay, Charlotte Mickelborough, and Grace Davidson in the Women’s Open Coxless four, where the crew battled challenging conditions to claim bronze following a determined and resilient performance.
Across the remainder of the regatta, St Andrews athletes added a host of additional Silver and Bronze medals in intermediate and novice categories. Many members of the squad rounded off their racing season with strong and encouraging performances, reflecting a positive trajectory across the club.
Attention now turns to the season’s finale, with a group of 20 athletes set to compete at Henley Women’s Regatta and Henley Royal Regatta in the coming weeks. With momentum building following a highly successful Scottish Championships, St Andrews will look to carry this form onto the national and international stage.