THERE was no stopping Wallingford’s lightweight GB scullers Ellie Piggott and Brianna Stubbs, who retained their national title in the British Senior Championships at Nottingham, writes John Wiggins.

They led from the start and won by five seconds – in the quickest women’s time of the day for all weights – only a little outside the record they set last year.

Of their 12 eights racing, Oxford Brookes’s top women’s boat finished fifth just behind the Oxford University A.

The top Brookes men’s crew, including Olympic gold medallist, Scott Durrant and fellow Olympian, Peter Chambers, and Matt Tarrant were second to Leander (with a new record time), while their B crew missed bronze by 0.4 secs.

Their C boat took the University Pennant in fifth.

Oxford University’s men raced in coxless fours, breaking a 26-year-old record to win with a crew containing Blues Michael DiSanto and Jorgen Tveit along with newcomers Oli Cook (GB world champion) and Dutch Olympic bronze medallist Olivier Seigelaar.

Their B crew took the bronze.

l There was a further success for Wallingford across the Atlantic in the the Head of the Charles Regatta in Cambridge, Massachussetts.

Competing against more than 50s Masters rowers from all over the world, the crew of Mike Edge, Pete King, Steve Pearson, stroke Richard Smith and cox Sara Ball won the day.

They took revenge over third-placed Tyrian BC, to whom they had lost at the Henley Masters Regatta.

Radley College won the youth fours event thanks to Max Senior, Freddie Elwes, Archie McChesney, Joshua Bowesman-Jones and cox Matthew Dawson.

They finished eight seconds clear of their 84 junior rivals

l Back in England, Wallingford’s Sean Morris secured two successes at the Weybridge Silver Sculls.

He raced the 3,300m Weybridge course twice and won both the over 70s Masters H age group – by 1 min 40secs – and the younger G category by 40 seconds.