ROWERS Kalen-Mae Waite and Kirstie Bicknell have had their first taste of life in the Great Britain Potential Camp.

The girls travelled up to Nottingham Water Sports Centre, where they received advice from some of the top coaches in the country.

They took singles with them, undergoing intense land and water training in the hope of following in the footsteps of former Gloucester juniors and 2008 Olympians Beth Rodford and Natasha Page.

The Gloucester girls had earlier raced at the Wallingford long distance sculls event with team-mates Josie Ashworth and Laura Springham.

The girls J18 coxless quad raced a strong field to finish second in their event to Lady Eleanor Holles School, beating two other crews from LEH – a strong rowing school – and from St George's College and Upper Thames.

The girls were thrilled with their race as all have only just turned 16 and are facing opposition two years older. The crew have trained hard since September, knowing that the races this year are going to be tough.

They were delighted with their performance and have benefited from the club, investing in a new coxless quad with funds raised by the junior squad over the last four years.

Also racing at Wallingford were the boys coxless J18 quad who, on clashing with the home club Wallingford, were awarded a time penalty.

They nonetheless finished well up the field in fourth place, behind crews from Pangbourne, Hampton and Abingdon. This gives them the confidence to move forward this season, with their sights set on Henley Royal Regatta in the summer.