SARASOTA, Fla. – The Yale heavyweight crew team captured the Albert Cup in the team's season-opener at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota.
 
Yale has won every single Albert Cup race against Brown since its inception in 2014. This year, the University of Washington was added to the event, and the Bulldogs remained victorious.
 
Conditions on the Water
The temperature in the Sunshine State was a high of 84, but the winds on the waters were elevated. The strong tail wind presented challenges when trying to gain momentum and separation between boats.
 
"Our team was very aggressive, which they had to be in those tail wind conditions, said Steve Gladstone, Craig W. Johnson '68 Head Coach of Heavyweight Crew. "They were very poised, set into their base rhythm very well, and moved the boat. Overall, a great start to the season against really strong opponents. The first 1500 meters of the race was excellent. I was very happy to see our bow come across the finish line first."
 
How It Happened
Yale's first varsity squad and its fourth varsity squad captured two of the four race victories of the day. The V8 (05:27.90) defeated Washington in the final race by just over one second (05:29.01). The fourth varsity squad competed in the first race of the day and finished with a time of 05:45.19, while the second-place finishers in Brown finished at 5:50.32.
 
"It was a great first race for the varsity in a fast tail wind," said senior captain Fergus Hamilton. "We are very happy with how we performed as a boat and as a program. It is exciting to see the depth that we have with the 4V having a dominant victory over Brown and Washington as well. We are looking forward to getting back to training on Monday and improving as a squad."
 
Up Next
Yale will host Dartmouth in its home opener on Saturday, April 8 at Gilder Boathouse.