Stotesbury Cup

The Stotesbury Cup Regatta, sponsored by the Schuylkill Navy, is the world's oldest and one of the largest high school rowing competitions. It is held annually in mid-May over a two-day period along the Schuylkill River near Boathouse Row in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Competing crews come from schools all over North America, though most hail from the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States.

The regatta has many different events (30 in 2011) in which high school crews compete for various cups and trophies. Events vary by sex, age, weight category, number of rowers, and style of rowing (whether sweeping with one oar per rower or sculling with two oars per rower). The regatta takes its name from the main event, the Men's Senior Eight race, in which crews of eight oarsmen and one coxswain compete for the Stotesbury Cup. The Stotesbury Cup in turn is named for Edward T. Stotesbury of Philadelphia, a prominent partner at J.P. Morgan & Co. and its Philadelphia affiliate, Drexel & Co. The Women's Senior Eights compete for the Robert Engman Trophy. The regatta has been running men's races since 1927; women's events were added in the mid-1970s. Powerhouse schools in men's events include Episcopal Academy, Christian Brothers Academy, St. Augustine Prep, St. Andrew's School (Delaware), Chaminade High School, LaSalle High School, Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas, Holy Spirit, Atlantic City High School, St. Albans School (Washington, D.C.), St. Joseph's Prep, Thomas Jefferson, W-L, Gonzaga College High School, and Roman Catholic High School for Boys. Meanwhile, in women's events, Mount Saint Joseph Academy has emerged in recent years with strong showings in the Lightweight Eight and Senior Eight categories and Bishop Eustace Preparatory School won the Senior Eight category for three consecutive years (2007-2009).