Oxford Brookes University’s oarsmen came away from the World Under 23 Championships in Bulgaria with one silver and two bronze medals, writes JOHN WIGGINS.

Of the six medal-winning Great Britain crews, three featured Brookes rowers, with the top result coming from Joel Cassells and Jamie Copus, who bagged a silver in the lightweight quad scull.

Ben Reeves was another lightweight hitting the big time as his coxless four won bronze in Plovdiv.

Annie Withers was a key member of the women’s eight which won bronze – the third medal for a Brookes boat.

The men’s eight was laden with Brookes boys, but they just missed out on the podium.

In all, Brookes contributed ten team members, including Henry Bailhache-Webb as coach to the eight.

A further five of the university’s men’s squad were on duty at the Home International Regatta at Strathclyde Country Park, Glasgow.

Together with Joshua Bugajski, from Oxford University, they were the backbone of the Welsh men’s team, but despite four wins, they finished second to hosts Scotland for the team award.

Impressively the Isis man, Bugajski, enjoyed three wins, with an impressive victory in the single scull as well as taking gold in the coxless four with Brookes’ James Stanhope and Matthew Hantiw.

These two also won silver in the coxless pair, while they combined with Ollie Morgan, Nick Moseley and cox Charles Clarke for Bugajski’s third gold medal in the eight.

The next round of international racing is for the GB junior Coupe de la Jeunesse team that competes in Szeged, Hungary, this weekend when both Headington and St Edward’s School are represented.

Headington’s Lydia Currie races in the four, while Izzy Lingard is in the quad scull.

Teddies’ Tilly Catlin is in the pair and all three will combine in an eight, coxed by Headington’s Kate Little.

Domestically, City of Oxford and Abingdon clubs took their chances on the River Severn in the West Midlands at Bewdley Regatta.

City won four events, with their development squad taking the novice fours for men and women.

There was also a victory for the novice women’s double and the IM3 women’s eight.

Abingdon took the women’s IM3 double scull.