A successful season came to a triumphant end this July at the National Rowing Championships in Cork for the Trinity Women’s Rowing team (DULBC) – ending with the club bringing in three national titles, accompanied by podium finishes all around. This marks not only a successful regatta for the team, but also a historical one, as it becomes the first national championship win in a decade.
The team, alongside 1,200 rowers and 904 other crews, kicked off the weekend on July 11th in Cork, unaware of the success to come, but reassured by the hours of training and mental preparation through their work both on and off the water. Success came quickly as the women’s Senior 4 crew of Addy Telzrow, Maria Mezquita Garcia-Poggio, Imogen Cooney, and Grace Healey beat The University of Galway’s Boat Club that Friday, claiming the first senior win in ten years at the National Championships. The Intermediate 2 boat with Addy Telzrow as stroke seat and Maria Mezquita Garcia-Poggio as bow seat went head-to-head with the University of Galway again the following day, soaring quickly ahead and eventually winning the race by eight seconds – another long-awaited championship win, with this time twelve years separating this win from the last. Sunday concluded the regatta on a high note. The Senior 4 crew raced again, steadily guided to victory with the help of their coxswain, Jane Prendergast, marking the third and final championship win of the weekend.
Celebration was not limited to the first-place finishes of the weekend, as success was seen in every single event entered, with the Senior 8+ and Club 2 8+ boats swiftly achieving second place in their races and the Club 2 4+, Novice 4x+, and Novice 8+ boats all reaching third place. Although this regatta may match the success of the crew in 2023 and 2013, with three wins, the DULBC has never before seen such overarching strength to obtain podium finishes across the entire crew. For this reason, it is undoubtedly safe to say that through the 2025 Irish Rowing Championships, the Trinity Women’s Rowing team has established itself as one of the strongest crews in team history, a title which has been undoubtedly earned.
The National Championships ended the season in a very fitting manner with strength, relentlessness, and accomplishment as hallmarks of what had already been an overwhelmingly successful season. The regatta season kicked off in Cork this past April at the 2025 University Rowing Championships. The crew again showed their remarkable depth as a team, as yet again, a large number of their competing boats earned places on the podium, with one first-place finish, six silver medals, and two bronze medals. May continued their winning streak at the Trinity Regatta in Islandbridge. Another large-scale regatta, offering 150 races with crews coming to compete from all across Ireland, the UK, and the Netherlands, the DULBC was duly prepared for their competition, and saw a continuation of the success throughout many boats as they had seen previously. This time around, the Novice 4x+, Club 2 8+, Intermediate 4+, and Senior 4+ all placed first within their events. The Novice 8+, Club 2 4+, and Intermediate 4+ also earned second-place finishes. This crew has built a culture where success is not only seen through the top crews but also echoes throughout the entire team, a remarkable achievement that demonstrates why the 2025 DULBC stands as one of the strongest teams in memory.
The commitment levels required by the members of the team in order to achieve such results are far from minimal. The season demands a year-round, every day commitment of attending intense workouts, and additional efforts are required by nearly half of the team who work on the club committee, help with coaching, or even volunteer at fundraising events. Addy Telzrow, an incoming third year who primarily races in the Senior 4 and Intermediate 2 boats notes that “the amount of time we spend together and the intensity of the training definitely creates a really strong bond across the squad”, and remarks that it is much easier to handle the rigorous schedule with a common goal in mind and when surrounded by close friends. As the team gets closer to the championship race, the focus shifts to fine-tuning of technique as a means to achieve the greatest efficiency – a greater mental challenge.
The success of the Trinity Women’s Rowing team and their continual strive for excellence not only mark the triumph of the current squad but also reflect on the progression of women’s role in the sport as a whole. The 2025 Irish Rowing Championships were celebratory for many reasons, one of them being the 50th anniversary of the inclusion of female crews within the regatta. This passage was commemorated through a luncheon event on Friday, called the “Finish Line” lunch. Here, an art piece was revealed to honor the trailblazing women of the sport who fought for inclusion and have paved the way for those who have only continued the legacy in the years that followed. Since then, the club has grown to dominate competitions throughout Ireland, earning 33 national titles, with three of those coming in 2025 alone. The continual success of the crews and the relationships built within them, showcased at an event with such an important historical marker, underscores how far the sport has come in these fifty years, with great thanks to the enduring spirit and perseverance of the women within it. The DULBC will also be celebrating their 50th anniversary in the upcoming year, which is a milestone for the team itself as well as the alumnas who enthusiastically cheer them on with each win and every record broken or matched. Though great strides have been made, there are still hurdles to be overcome, as the team continues to work against issues of inadequate funding, gaining the respect in a sport that has historically favored men. As the records continue to be broken, the DULBC not only carries on with the success of their current team, but also honors the legacy of the teams who came before them, overcoming any extra efforts required with grace.
The team’s mantra “Fear the Fuschia” has never been more on display than in this past season, with each race demonstrating the continued time and effort put into creating the greatest team, in every single aspect. Telzrow notes that within the club, “every year feeds into the next one: if you win, you want to have that feeling again the next year, and if you lose, that hunger to win is even stronger in the years after.” While Addy is one of two from her crew that will be returning again from the next season, she rests assured with the knowledge of the strength that the team has from seniors to novice and the remarkable grit everyone has displayed in their efforts to win.
