WYE crew mates have raced to world and international success on the Tokyo Olympic course and in Italy.

Monmouth School Rowing Club’s Iwan Hadfield stroked the GB U18 eight to a brilliant bronze at the World Junior Championships on the 2020 Olympic course, while Jack Tottem steered the GB junior coxed four to gold and silver at the Coupe de La Jeunesse European team competition after carrying the Union Jack at the opening ceremony as GB came second overall.

Their school coach, Paul Williams, also guided the GB boys’ eight to the same shades of precious metal at the latter event.

Hadfield’s GB 8 won their worlds heat by clear water from Hungary, China and Croatia to to make the six-boat final.

They found themselves in fifth 500m into the medal race, but then stormed past Poland and the Hungarians before the half-way mark to sit third behind Germany and the US.

The front-runners already had too much in the bank, but GB progressively opened the gap in the second half on the other three, finishing 1 1/2L clear of China in 6.19.82, with the Germans taking gold in 6.12.10.

Schoolmate Tottem, who took class wins in this year’s Schools’ Head and National Schools’ Regatta with him, won gold and silver at the Coupe in Ireland in 2018, and matched the feat for the second year running in Corgeno.

The cox commanded his crew to a great win over France, Italy and the Netherlands on day one to collect GB’s first gold of the regatta.

And the following day saw them return to the podium with a silver medal in a nail-biting race which saw France edge them out by just 0.2 seconds.

It marks a great end to the serious regatta season for the school club, which this year celebrated its 150th anniversary with a dinner attended by nearly 200 rowers, including Olympic and world medallists, and a row past at Henley Royal Regatta, where the school crew had earlier beaten a seeded boat from America.