| Cygnet Rowing Club |
| Illustrated History |
Presidents
Cygnet has been fortunate to have had some very distinguished Presidents. Sir Charles Russell, QC, became the Club's first President in 1892, an office he held only briefly on account of his appointment as Lord Chief Justice of England in 1894, when he thought it proper to resign. He was succeeded by Sir James Whitehead, Bart., who served as President until 1902, when he resigned due to ill health. Although not a rowing man, so far as can be ascertained, Sir James was a very famous man in the City having served as Lord Mayor of London in 1889 and High Sheriff of the County of London in 1890.
The Club was not long in selecting a new President. Thus, in December 1902, Raymond Broadley Etherington-Smith, a figure of some standing in the rowing world and an eminent surgeon, was invited to take up the office, a post which he accepted. R.B.Etherington-Smith had enjoyed an outstanding rowing career. He rowed in the Cambridge crews of 1898, 1899 and 1900, losing on the first occasion, but winning in the two succeeding years. R.B.(Ethel) went on to win the Grand Challenge Cup at Henley on three occasions between 1901-5, rowing under Leander colours, and the Stewards Challenge Cup in 1905-6, when he rowed behind the renowned Guy Nickalls. However, his crowning glory came in 1908 when he rowed seven in the winning VIII at the Olympic Regatta held at Henley. Etherington-Smith was much in evidence as the President of Cygnet, attending regattas and races and frequently umpiring, until his untimely death in 1913 from blood poisoning.
Once again the Club turned to a rowing man to assume the mantle of President. This time it chose Rudolph Chambers Lehman, a first-class coach who had written two books called Rowing (1897) and the Complete Oarsman (1908), the latter having become the accepted rowing manual at Cygnet. As well as being a prodigious author (not just of rowing books), Rudy Lehman found time to be the Hon. Secretary of the ARA (1893-1901), Captain of Leander (1894-5) and member of Parliament for Leicester (1906-11).
Shortly after the First World War, the post of President became vacant and remained so until 1924, when it was filled by Herbert William Jelf. An Oxford Blue (1904) and a holder of high office in the legal world, it was Jelf who introduced Lewis Balfour to the Club. Jelf resigned in 1939 and Balfour, a distinguished oarsman and former Captain of London Rowing Club, succeeded to the Presidency in 1946. He will be remembered best for his efforts in obtaining the Club's first coxless IV and the Club regatta event to which he gave his name. Balfour also started the tradition of the President's supper, when he entertained crews at his home in Staines at the close of the regatta season. This tradition was maintained up until 1956, when he expressed a wish to resign and the post again fell vacant for some years.
In 1961, for the first time in its history, Cygnet elected a member from its own ranks as President, namely H.W.T.Sheppard. `Jack' Sheppard had joined the Club in 1919 and played a considerable part in steering its activities throughout the 1920s and 1930s. He was an early convert to the Steve Fairbairn or `Jesus' style of rowing and worked hard to instil it in Cygnet crews during his period as Captain (1929-31) and thereafter as coach. After his death in 1974, the Club presented the Jack Sheppard Cup to the Head of the River Race for the fastest Novice crew.
The Club did not have to look too far in its search for a successor to Jack Sheppard and in 1975 it invited P.A.S.Sly from its midst to be President. Peter Sly accepted the post, which he still holds today, and it is notable that he has now become the Club's longest serving President without a break. Peter surely qualifies as one of the Club's more flamboyant and one of its most generous presidents. It is a post which he has moulded to his own character and the two are now virtually indistinguishable. He takes a close interest in Club affairs, even to the point of attending committee meetings, and he is a well-known figure in the rowing community. The Club is unique in having a President who lives on the river at Henley, just above Remenham, from where he and his wife, Pat, dispense endless hospitality to club members during the regatta. His home has also become the scene of the President's supper, which he revived in the early 1980s. These occasions are normally preceded by a visit to his favourite hostelry, the Flower Pot at Aston. The Club extends its gratitude to him and Pat and is unanimous in the hope that he will continue on the bridge for many years to come.
