TOKYO Olympian Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne showed motherhood hasn’t slowed her down one bit, as she stormed to the women’s singles title at London’s top regatta.

The St Weonards 2017 senior world medallist and 2015 world U23 champion Mathilda gave birth to son Freddie just 11 months ago.

But in her return to racing for the first time since Tokyo, she proved she still has what it takes on the water by heading a 38-strong field at the Metropolitan Regatta on Dorney Lake.

And the Great Britain star, who raced in the quadruple scull with sister Charlotte at the Tokyo Olympics, was rewarded with the presentation of a historic 150-year-old trophy, being awarded at the event for the first time.

Renamed the Sophie Hosking Cup after the 2012 Olympic gold medal former captain of host club London RC, Mathilda and son Freddie were delighted with the silverware.

“With this being my first race after having my son last summer, I had no idea what to expect," she said of racing.

"I remember watching Sophie race in 2012, so to be the first winner of this trophy named after her is a great honour.

"I can’t wait to see how the rest of this season goes, and return to full International racing soon.”

In 2020 the organising committee decided to introduce a similar prize for the women’s elite sculls and to dedicate it to Sophie Hosking MBE, who was 2012 Olympic Champion in the Lightweight Double Sculls with Kat Copeland, and is a former captain of London RC, with which the regatta is closely associated.

The committee of the 157-year-old regatta, part-founded by Charles Dickens and his son, began looking in 2020 for a suitable trophy for the championship women's singles to match that awarded for the men, and came across a beautiful 1874 trophy first presented to the winner of the elite sculls at the Metropolitan Regatta in Ireland.

In recent years it came into the possession of Cousins of Canterbury who generously donated it to ‘the Met’. The regatta has had it replated and mounted on a plinth containing a copy of the silver medal traditionally awarded, which now includes a design of the cup.

And the Sophie Hosking Cup was presented for the first time to Mathilda by Sophie’s dad, David Hosking, also a London RC member, who was World Champion in the Lightweight Eights in 1980.

Mathilda won it after coming home at the top of the tree in the opening time-trial, beating US Cambridge Boat Race winner Freya Keto by 1.2 seconds and GB World U23 medallist Vwairé Obukohwo by 4.7secs in the opening 1900m time-trial.

That put the local rower racing for Henley club Upper Thames into a middle lane in the eight-strong 2km A final.

And the 28-year-old mum, who has trained at Monmouth RC and Monmouth School RC in the past, took a firm grip on the final from the off, racing out to lead by nearly a length from Obukohwo at 500m, which she had stretched to 2L at half-way, where Keto was second.

The lead was nearly 3L at 1500m, and Mathilda continued to move away, crossing some 3 1/2L clear of Keto in seven minutes 57.60secs, with Twickenham RC’s Obukohwo in bronze another 1 1/4L back.

Wye 2022 World U23 champion Robbie Prosser was also back on the gold standard on the London 2012 Olympic lake, landing the men’s pairs and fours title on successive days.

Old Monmothian Prosser landed World U23 coxed fours gold in Italy last year in a new world best age-group time.

And racing for Thames club Molesey, his four raced home second on Saturday 2L behind Oxford Brookes, with London RC third and UC Dublin fourth.

Then in the afternoon 14-strong time-trial in the men’s pairs with George Stewart, he came home second to an Oxford University duo before reversing the result in the eight-lane final, winning by 1/2L in 7.06.90.

Just doing the four on day two, they won the time-trial by 1.3secs from London, before racing home 2L clear of the same boat in the final.

Monmouth RC also chanced their arm against the best club crews in Britain in the eights on Saturday and the fours on Sunday. The eight of George Knight, Sam Morgan, Sam Bainbridge, Olly Partridge, Mark Stewart-Woods, Tom Cookman, Matt Winters, Evan Whittal-Williams and cox Bonita Birkett came 68th in the time-trial in 6.25.4, which saw them ranked in final I.

And they then had a close race finishing fourth out of eight 2L down on winners Bath University, who just pipped Peterborough with Kingston just over 1L ahead, with Monmouth pipping Imperial College C by feet in 6.40.4, followed by Southampton University, Kew House School and Broxbourne.

Split into two coxless fours on Sunday, they came 22nd and 31st in the time-trial.

And Stewart-Woods, Cookman, Partridge and Whittal-Williams then finished seventh in the C final just over a length up on Putney club Vesta in 7.05.80.

The other quartet were also seventh in the D final, beating Putney Town by 3L in 7.30.9.