ST Weonards rower Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne has put herself into the thoughts of the Great Britain selectors by excelling at trials in Reading.
Hodgkins-Byrne, from Hartpury College, lined up alongside four current senior squad members and one under-23 rower in the B final, but produced an outstanding row to finish third.
That gave her an overall ranking of ninth and second best under-23 female sculler - behind reigning World Junior Single Skulls champion Jess Leyden. The trial was used as a basis for the selection of GB crews and under-23 level for the summer regatta season and World Championships.
"While Mathilda's main aim was to get the highest possible under-23's ranking in the women's sculling category, she also acquitted herself fantastically in a really high quality field, beating a number of senior team rowers, despite being much younger and having far less experience than most of her fellow competitors," said Hartpury rowing coach Tom Pattichis.
Hodgkins-Byrne will now face further testing over the next few weeks to try and gain a place in the crew for the Under-23 World Championships in July.
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