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The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup is a rowing event at Henley Royal Regatta open to school 1st VIIIs.
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History
The event was instituted in 1946 for public schools in the United Kingdom. It was opened to entries from overseas in 1964, and that year Washington-Lee High School (United States) became the first overseas crew to win the event.
The inauguration of this race coinciding, as it did, with the first visit to the regatta of Princess Elizabeth (now Queen Elizabeth II), permission was graciously given to name the trophy "The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup".
The PE (as it is usually abbreviated) is one of only a few races in the regatta which does not allow composite crews to be entered, and as such each race is a straight competition between one club and another. As the most prestigious race of the schoolboy rowing year, the event attracts strong competition both from the UK and abroad. For British crews, winning the PE can be the final victory needed to win the "treble", a prestigious achievement which comprises winning the Schools' Head of the River Race, The National Schools Regatta and finally the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup, all in the same year.
Eton College have won the event 12 times, Ridley College (Canada) and St Paul's School have won it 5 times and Abingdon School, Bedford School, Hampton School, Pangbourne College, Shrewsbury School and St. Edward's School have each won the event 4 times. Eton College and Radley College have been the most frequent losing finalists, each having done so on 5 occasions. The King's School Canterbury shares the record with Oundle School for most losses (4) in finals without having ever won the event. Hampton School and St. Edward's School have also both been the losing finalists on 4 occasions. The event was opened to foreign crews in 1964, since when American crews have won the event 14 times, Canadian crews 7 times and Australian crews twice.
The current record holder for the event is Abingdon School, having completed the course in 6 minutes 17 seconds in the final against St Edward's School, Oxford in 2013. Both crews beat the previous record for the event, also held by Abingdon School.
1946–1974
1975–1999
2000 onwards
Record times
The course record times for the event are: