The Boat Race

For other meanings, see Boat race (disambiguation).

Crews at the finish of the 2002 Boat Race. Cambridge at the left.

The Boat Race is an annual rowing race between the Oxford University Boat Club and the Cambridge University Boat Club, rowed between competing eights on the River Thames in London, England. It is also known as the University Boat Race and the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, and from 2010–2012 for sponsorship reasons as the Xchanging Boat Race. It usually takes place on the last Saturday of March or the first Saturday of April.

The first race was in 1829 and the event has been held annually since 1856, except during the two world wars. The course covers a 4.2 mile (6.8 km) stretch of the Thames in West London, from Putney to Mortlake. Members of both teams are traditionally known as blues and each boat as a "Blue Boat", with Cambridge in light blue and Oxford dark blue. As of 2012 Cambridge have won the race 81 times and Oxford 76 times, with one dead heat.

The race is a well-established and popular fixture in the British sporting calendar. In 2010 an estimated quarter of a million people watched the race live from the banks of the river and millions on television.

History

Origin

The tradition was started in 1829 by Charles Merivale, a student at St John's College, Cambridge, and his schoolfriend Charles Wordsworth who was at Oxford. Cambridge challenged Oxford to a race at Henley-on-Thames. The second race occurred in 1836, with the venue moved to be from Westminster to Putney. Over the next couple of years, there was disagreement over where the race should be held, with Oxford preferring Henley and Cambridge preferring London. Cambridge therefore raced Leander Club in 1837 and 1838. Following the formation of the Oxford University Boat Club, racing between the two universities resumed and the tradition continues to the present day, with the loser challenging the winner to a re-match annually.

The race is governed by a Joint Understanding between Oxford and Cambridge University Boat Clubs.

1877 dead heat

The race in 1877 was declared a dead heat. Legend in Oxford has it that the judge, "Honest John" Phelps, was asleep under a bush when the race finished, leading him to announce the result as a "dead heat to Oxford by four feet". This is not borne out, however, by contemporary reports.

Oxford, partially disabled, were making effort after effort to hold their rapidly waning lead, while Cambridge, who, curiously enough, had settled together again, and were rowing almost as one man, were putting on a magnificent spurt at 40 strokes to the minute, with a view of catching their opponents before reaching the winning-post. Thus struggling over the remaining portion of the course, the two eights raced passed the flag alongside one another, and the gun fired amid a scene of excitement rarely equalled and never exceeded. Cheers for one crew were succeeded by counter-cheers for the other, and it was impossible to tell what the result was until the Press boat backed down to the Judge and inquired the issue. John Phelps, the waterman, who officiated, replied that the noses of the boats passed the post strictly level, and that the result was a dead heat.

— The Times

Stanley Muttlebury

Cambridge produced one of the legends of the Boat Race and of rowing worldwide, Stanley Muttlebury ("Muttle"), whose crew won the race in the first four of the five years he was a member, 1886–1890. Contemporaries writing to The Times to add to his 1933 obituary called attention to his extraordinary physical prowess and natural aptitude for rowing, traits accompanied by mildness, good manners, and natural kindness. R.P.P. Rowe wrote:

Muttlebury had a natural aptitude which amounted to a genius for rowing, and, as he was not only massively large and full of courage but herculean in muscular strength, it was inevitable that he should be an outstanding exponent of oarsmanship. Added to this, he came to his prime when rowing was in a transitional stage, when the old methods of the straight back and the body catch suited to the fixed seat and the short slide, had necessarily to be superseded by methods required by the long-slide. I consider that long-slide rowing sprang suddenly to perfection in Muttlebury, that on him this new (or partially new) art was built...

1959 Oxford mutiny

Oxford in Autumn 1958 had a large and talented squad. It included eleven returning Blues plus Yale oarsmen Reed Rubin and Charlie Grimes, a gold medallist at the 1956 Olympics. Ronnie Howard was elected OUBC President by the College Captains, beating Rubin. In 1958, Howard had rowed in the Isis crew coached by H.R.A. "Jumbo" Edwards, which had frequently beaten the Blue Boat in training.

Howard's first act was to appoint Edwards as coach. Edwards was a coach with a strong record, but he also imposed strict standards of obedience, behaviour and dress on the triallists which many of them found childish. As an example, Grimes withdrew from the squad after Edwards insisted he remove his "locomotive driver's hat" in training.

With selection for the crew highly competitive, the squad split along the lines of the presidential election. A group of dissidents called a press conference, announcing that they wanted to form a separate crew, led by Rubin and with a different coach. They then wished to race off with Howard's crew to decide who would face Cambridge.

Faced with this challenge, Ronnie Howard returned to the College Captains and asked for a vote of confidence in his selected crew and the decision not to race off with the Rubin crew. He won the vote decisively and the Cambridge president also declared that his crew would only race the Howard eight.

Three of the dissidents returned and Oxford went on to win by six lengths.

1987 Oxford mutiny

In 1987, another disagreement arose amongst the Oxford team. A number of top class American oarsmen refused to row when a fellow American was dropped in preference for the Scottish President, Donald Macdonald. They became embroiled in a conflict with Macdonald and with coach Dan Topolski over his training and selection methods. This eventually led most of the Americans to protest what they perceived to be the president's abuse of power, by withdrawing six weeks before the race was due to start.

To the surprise of many, Oxford, with a crew partially composed of oarsmen from the reserve team, went on to win the race. One aspect of the race was Topolski's tactic, communicated to the cox while the crews were on the start, for Oxford to take shelter from the rough water in the middle of the river at the start of the race, ignoring conventional wisdom that centre stream is fastest even if rowing conditions are poor.

A further surprise was that the captains of the Oxford college boat clubs, who had voted in support of Macdonald and Topolski and precipitated the Americans' withdrawal during the mutiny, voted one of those Americans, Chris Penny, as OUBC president for 1988, a break with the tradition that the president is a returning Blue (the other candidate being Tom Cadoux-Hudson, who was a British member of the 1987 winning crew).

Topolski wrote a book entitled True Blue: The Oxford Boat Race Mutiny on the incident. A movie based on the book, True Blue, was released in 1996. Topolski's account was seen by some as one-sided, and Ali Gill, who had been a member of the university women's Boat Club at the time of the mutiny, wrote a book The Yanks at Oxford to put the other side of the story.

Reported facts of the "mutiny" still differ greatly depending on the source, and with the historians having been personally involved in the events or the small community in which they occurred, a definitive, unbiased version has never been agreed upon. Macdonald and the Americans have refused to contribute to any debate on the event, including a 2007 BBC radio programme to mark the 20th anniversary.

Sinkings

In the 1912 race both crews sank, and the race was re-run. Cambridge also sank in 1859 and 1978, while Oxford did so in 1925, and again in 1951, when the race was then re-run on the following Monday. In 1984 the Cambridge boat sank after colliding with a barge before the start of the race, which was then rescheduled for the next day.

Cambridge's sinking in 1978 was named in 79th place on Channel 4's list of the 100 Greatest Sporting Moments.

Notable races since 2000

2003: Approaching Barnes Bridge – Oxford (nearer the camera) ultimately won by just one foot

Recent years have seen especially dramatic races. In 2001 the race was halted by umpire Rupert Obholzer just over a minute after the start, following repeated warnings to both crews to move apart, and then a clash of blades. The blade of Cambridge bowman Colin Swainson dislodged from his hand and in consequence the umpire immediately stopped the race. Despite Oxford having a lead when the race was stopped, the boats were restarted level with each other; this decision was highly contentious, especially when Cambridge went on to win after the restart.

In 2002 the favoured Cambridge crew led with only a few hundred metres to go, when a Cambridge oarsman (Sebastian Mayer, who was later part of the winning 2004 Cambridge crew) collapsed from exhaustion and Oxford rowed through to win by three-quarters of a length. They did so on the outside of the last river bend, a feat last accomplished in 1952.

In 2003 Cambridge were substantially heavier and appeared to be the favourites. Two days prior to the race, however, the Cambridge crew suffered a collision on the river in which oarsman Wayne Pommen was injured. With a replacement in Pommen's seat, Cambridge went on to lose by a record slim margin of one foot. In that year, there were two sets of brothers rowing: Matt Smith and David Livingston for Oxford, and Ben Smith and James Livingston for Cambridge. All four had been pupils together at Hampton School in south-west London. Cambridge gained revenge in 2004 in a race marred by dramatic clashes of oars in the early stages, and the unseating of Oxford's bowman.

The 2006 race was won by Oxford. Cambridge had started as strong favourites but, despite rough rain, made a tactical decision not to use a pump to remove excess water in the boat. Oxford did use a pump and overtook Cambridge to win. Cambridge had in fact introduced pumps as early as 1987 (the year of the Oxford mutiny, and a day of rough conditions).

2010: Cambridge (left) kept up with Oxford (Surrey station) and overtook them in the final mile

In 2007 Cambridge were again strong favourites based on the team members' individual successes, and 9 lb heavier per man on average. The Cambridge crew had five returning blues compared to Oxford's one. Furthermore, the international achievement of Cambridge's rowers far exceeded that of Oxford's: the World Champion stern pair of Germans Thorsten Engelmann – the heaviest ever boat race oarsman at 110.8 kilograms (244 lb) – and Sebastian Schulte; Olympic Gold medallist Kieran West MBE and GB medal winner Tom James. Although Oxford rowed strongly at the beginning, the light blues showed their class by holding Oxford while they had the advantage, and pushing on with tidier rowing from Chiswick steps. Despite their weight and technical superiority, Cambridge won by only a length and a quarter in a time of 17 minutes and 49 seconds.

In 2012 the race was halted for over 30 minutes, when a man got into the water from Chiswick Eyot, almost three quarters of the way down the course, and deliberately swam between the boats near Chiswick Pier. Once spotted by assistant umpire Sir Matthew Pinsent, both boats were required to stop for safety reasons. The swimmer, Trenton Oldfield, was later charged under the Public Order Act. The umpire, John Garrett, made the decision to restart the race from the eastern end of Chiswick Eyot. Shortly after the restart the boats clashed and the Oxford crewman Hanno Wienhausen suffered a broken oar. Garrett judged the clash as Oxford's fault and allowed the race to continue. Cambridge quickly took the lead and went on to win the race. The Oxford crew entered a final appeal to the umpire which was quickly rejected and Cambridge were confirmed as official winners by 4 1/4 lengths. It was the first time since 1849 that a crew had won the boat race without an official recorded winning time. After the end of the race Oxford's bow man, Alex Woods – a medical student at Pembroke College – received emergency treatment after collapsing in the boat from exhaustion. Due to the circumstances, the post-race celebrations by the winning Cambridge crew were unusually muted and the planned award ceremony was cancelled.

Course

Boat Race course ("Middlesex" and "Surrey" denote sides of the Thames Tideway corresponding to the traditional English counties)

The course is 4 miles and 374 yards (6.779 km) from Putney to Mortlake, passing Hammersmith and Barnes; it is sometimes referred to as the Championship Course, and follows an S shape, east to west. The start and finish are marked by the University Boat Race Stones on the south bank. The clubs' presidents toss a coin (the 1829 sovereign) before the race for the right to choose which side of the river (station) they will row on: their decision is based on the day's weather conditions and how the various bends in the course might favour their crew's pace. The north station ('Middlesex') has the advantage of the first and last bends, and the south ('Surrey') station the longer middle bend.

Competing for the fastest current

During the race the coxes compete for the fastest current, which lies at the deepest part of the river, frequently leading to clashes of blades and warnings from the umpire. A crew that gets a lead of more than a boat's length can cut in front of their opponent, making it extremely difficult for the trailing crew to gain the lead. For this reason the tactics of the race are generally to go fast early on, and few races have a change of the lead after half-way (though this happened in 2003, 2007 and 2010).

The race is rowed upstream, but is timed to start on the incoming flood tide so that the crews are rowing with the fastest possible current. If a strong wind is blowing from the west it will be against the tide in places along the course, causing the water to become very rough. The conditions are sometimes such that an international regatta would be cancelled, but the Boat Race has a tradition of proceeding even in potential sinking conditions (see Sinkings above).

During the race the crews pass various traditional landmarks, visible from the river:

Landmark	Coordinates	Comments
Putney		Oxford boats from Westminster School Boat Club (left), and Cambridge from King's College School Boat Club (right). Both clubs are near the Start, just downstream of the Black Buoy. The crews warm up by rowing downstream below Putney Bridge before taking their places at the start.
The Start by Putney Bridge	51.467319°N 0.213756°W / 51.467319; -0.213756 (Boat Race start)	The race starts from two stake boats moored so that the competitors' bows are in line with the University Stone on the south bank. The winner of the toss has the choice of station. The Surrey station won 10 out of the 15 races 1994–2008 – though this is not statistically significant.
		Coxes raise their arms while their VIIIs are getting into position. When both crews are ready the Umpire starts the race by waving a red flag. In the straight section after the start the Middlesex crew tries to hold the fastest water on the centre line of the river.
The Black Buoy	51.471211°N 0.221132°W / 51.471211; -0.221132 (The Black Buoy)	Roughly marks the end of the Putney Boat Houses. The Black Buoy has now been painted yellow to avoid collisions.
Fulham Football Club	51.474895°N 0.221655°W / 51.474895; -0.221655 (Fulham Football Club)	'Craven Cottage': crews stay wide (preferring the Surrey bank) round the bend as the area in front of the football ground (known as 'the Fulham flats') is shallow, with slack water.
The Mile Post	51.47852°N 0.226987°W / 51.47852; -0.226987 (The Mile Post)	The 'post' is in fact a stone monument to rowing coach Steve Fairbairn. Exactly a mile from the Boat Race start, it is a traditional timing point. The Middlesex bank water continues to be shallow and slack all the way to Hammersmith Bridge.
The Crabtree	51.482041°N 0.223482°W / 51.482041; -0.223482 (The Crabtree)	This section is called the "Crabtree Reach" after the Crabtree Tavern pub on the Middlesex bank (just to the right of the camera).
Harrods Furniture Depository	51.484633°N 0.227956°W / 51.484633; -0.227956 (Harrods' Furniture Repository)	Previously the warehouse for the famous shop, now apartments. For the next 8–9 minutes the bend will be in Surrey's favour. The deep water channel now lies close to the Surrey bank.
Hammersmith Bridge	51.488129°N 0.230536°W / 51.488129; -0.230536 (Hammersmith Bridge)	Coxes aim for the second lamp-post from the left which marks the deepest part of the river and therefore the fastest line. 80%–85% of boats ahead at Hammersmith Bridge have won, though only 50% in the last 6 years. The turning point comes once the crews are under Hammersmith Bridge.
St Paul's School	51.488983°N 0.235855°W / 51.488983; -0.235855 (St Paul's School)	1.80 miles have been rowed and the direction and perhaps the wind and water conditions are about to change. The next 3–4 minutes are Surrey's last major opportunity to kill the Middlesex crew off.
Chiswick Eyot ("eight")	51.487596°N 0.245814°W / 51.487596; -0.245814 (Chiswick Eyot)	An uninhabited river island. The river is straight again, and the deepest water is half-way between the Eyot and the Surrey bank.
Fuller's Brewery	51.487182°N 0.250411°W / 51.487182; -0.250411 (Chiswick Eyot)	Just visible to crews, behind the eyot. The most exposed section of the course with the risk of wind problems.
Chiswick Pier	51.482452°N 0.250937°W / 51.482452; -0.250937 (Chiswick Pier)	2.87 miles have been rowed. If there are wind problems the inside of the Middlesex bend may offer calmer water.
The Crossing	51.47879°N 0.250583°W / 51.47879; -0.250583 (The Crossing)	Marks the end of the long Surrey bend. The deep water channel is in the centre of the river.
The Bandstand	51.476572°N 0.252149°W / 51.476572; -0.252149 (The Bandstand)	The deep water channel lies close to the Middlesex bank at this point, and water near the Surrey bank is shallow.
Barnes Railway Bridge	51.472736°N 0.253758°W / 51.472736; -0.253758 (Barnes Railway Bridge)	Crews must pass through the centre arch. 95% of boats leading here have won. Only one boat has won since 1945 when trailing at Barnes Bridge: Oxford came from behind this late in 2002. The Barnes Bridge corner by Emanuel School Boat House is very tight: if both crews are level this is a real test for the coxes.
Stag Brewery	51.470474°N 0.266376°W / 51.470474; -0.266376 (Stag Brewery)	3.94 miles have been rowed. Previously a Watneys brewery, now producing Budweiser beer.
The Finish by Chiswick Bridge	51.472861°N 0.268151°W / 51.472861; -0.268151 (The Boat Race Finish)	The finish, just before Chiswick Bridge is marked by a stone on the south bank and a post on the north bank.

At the conclusion of the race, the boats come ashore on the paved area in front of the boathouse at Quintin Hogg Memorial Sports Ground, on the Middlesex shore, where shortly after the race the trophy is presented to the winning team. It is traditional for the winning side to throw their Cox in the Thames to celebrate their achievement. In the arms of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, which covers much of the course, two griffin supporters hold oars, one light blue, one dark, in reference to the Boat Race. These colours are highly unusual in English heraldry.

Previous courses

The course for the main part of the race's history has been from Putney to Mortlake, but there have been three other courses:

• 1829 – At Henley-on-Thames
• 1839 to 1842 — Westminster to Putney
• 1846, 1856, 1862, 1863 – Mortlake to Putney

In addition, there were four unofficial boat races held during World War II away from London. As none of those competing were awarded blues, these races are not included in the official list:

• 1940 – At Henley-on-Thames
• 1943 – Sandford-on-Thames
• 1944, 1945 – River Great Ouse, Ely, Littleport to Queen Adelaide

Media coverage

The event is now a British national institution, and is televised live each year. As of the 2005 race, the BBC handed over broadcasting rights to ITV, after 66 years, but it returned to the corporation in 2010.

The most famous commentary on The Boat Race featured BBC radio commentator John Snagge who, his voice filled with excitement during the 1949 staging of the event, reported: "I can't see who's in the lead but it's either Oxford or Cambridge".

Barry Davies was the voice of the Boat Race for the BBC for the years 1993 to 2004. Peter Drury then took over as the main commentator for ITV from 2005 to 2009.

The race which took place on 30 March 1895 became the subject of one of the world's first motion pictures directed by Birt Acres.

Ethnographer Mark de Rond described the training, selection, and victory of the 2007 Cambridge crew in The Last Amateurs: To Hell and Back with the Cambridge Boat Race Crew.

Competitors

Main articles: List of Oxford University Boat Race crews and List of Cambridge University Boat Race crews

The race is for heavyweight eights (i.e., for eight rowers with a cox steering, and no restrictions on weight). Female coxes are permitted, the first to appear in the Boat Race being Sue Brown for Oxford in 1981. In fact female rowers would be permitted in the men's boat race, though the reverse is not true.

Although the contest is strictly between amateurs and the competitors must be students of the university for whom they race, the training schedules each team undertakes are very gruelling. Typically each team trains for six days a week for six months before the event.

Such is the competitive spirit between the universities it is common for Olympic standard rowers to compete, notably including four times Olympic gold medallist Matthew Pinsent who rowed for Oxford in 1990, 1991, and 1993. Olympic Gold medallists from 2000 – Tim Foster (Oxford 1997), Luka Grubor (Oxford 1997), Andrew Lindsay (Oxford 1997, 1998, 1999) and Kieran West (Cambridge 1999, 2001, 2006, 2007) – and 2004 – Ed Coode (Oxford 1998) have also raced for their university. Other famous participants in the race include Andrew Irvine (Oxford 1922, 1923), Lord Snowdon (Cambridge 1950), Colin Moynihan (Oxford 1977), and Hugh Laurie (Cambridge 1980).

Academic status

There are no sporting scholarships at Oxford or Cambridge, so in theory every student must obtain a place at their university on their academic merits, but there have been unproven accusations that these students are admitted to the universities for their rowing skill without meeting the normal academic standards.

From 1978 to 1983 the race was won every year by Oxford crews that included Boris Rankov, who was then a graduate student at Oxford and recognised as a powerhouse of the crews. Although Rankov was a bona fide student (and is now a professor at the University of London), this led to the establishment of the informal "Rankov Rule", to which the teams have adhered ever since, that no rower may compete in the boat race more than four times as an undergraduate, and four times as a graduate.

In order to protect the status of the race as a competition between genuine students, the Boat Race organising committee in July 2007 refused to award a blue to 2006 and 2007 Cambridge oarsman Thorsten Engelmann, as he did not complete his academic course and instead returned to the German national rowing team to prepare for the Beijing Olympics. This has caused a debate about a change of rules, and one suggestion appears to be that only students that are enrolled in courses lasting at least two years should be eligible to race.

Evidence suggests that participants in the boat race are indeed academically capable: the 2005 Cambridge crew, for example, contained four PhD students, including a fully qualified medical doctor and a veterinarian.

Standard of the crews

The question whether the Boat Race crews are up to the standard of international crews is difficult to judge, since the Boat Race crews train for a long-distance race early in the season, so their training schedule is quite different for crews training for international regattas over 2000 metres that take place later in the year.

According to British Olympic gold medallist Martin Cross, Boat Race crews of the early 1980's were viewed as "a bit of a joke" by some international–level rowers of the time. However, their standard has improved substantially since then. Current Boat Race crews do race against selected club and international crews in the build-up to the race, and are competitive against them, but again these matches are over various non-standard distances, against crews that might not have been together as long as the Oxbridge crews.

In 2005 a strong Oxford crew, similar to that which had raced in the Boat Race, entered the Grand Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta losing to the winning German international crew in the first round by a third of a length. The same year, Cambridge won the Ladies Challenge plate at the HRR.

In 2007 Cambridge were entered in the London Head of the River Race where they should have been measured directly against the best crews in Britain and beyond. However, the event was called off after several crews were sunk or swamped in rough conditions. Cambridge were fastest of the few crews who did manage to complete the course.

Sponsorship

The Boat Race has been sponsored since 1976, with the money spent mainly on equipment and travel during the training period. The sponsors do not have their logos on the boats or kit during the race, but provide branded training gear and have some naming rights. Boat Race sponsors have included Ladbrokes, Beefeater Gin, Aberdeen Asset Management, and the business process outsourcing company Xchanging, who will sponsor the race until 2012. Controversially, in the renewal of the deal with Xchanging, the crews agreed to wear the sponsor's logo on their kit during the race itself, in exchange for increased funding . Prior to this, all sponsorship marks had been scrupulously discarded on boating for the competition, in line with the race's amateur and ‘Corinthian’ spirit. Xchanging also became title sponsor in November 2009 so, since the 156th Race, the event is known as The Xchanging Boat Race.

Other boat races involving Oxford and Cambridge

Although the heavyweight men's eights are the best-known event, the two universities compete in other rowing boat races. The main boat race is preceded by a race between the two reserve crews. The Oxford reserve crew is called Isis (after the Isis, a section of the River Thames which passes through Oxford), and the Cambridge reserve crew is called Goldie (the name comes from rower and Boat Club president John Goldie, 1849–1896, after whom the Goldie Boathouse is named).

The women's eights, women's reserve eights, men's lightweight eights and women's lightweight eights race in the Henley Boat Races, usually a week before the men's heavyweight races. There is also a 'veterans' boat race, usually held on a weekday before the main Boat Race, on the Thames between Putney and Hammersmith. The women's boat race will be moving to the Tideway in 2015.

Build-up

Training for the boat race officially begins in September, before the start of term. The first public tests are in November at the British Indoor Rowing Championships where each university sends around 20 rowers to compete. Everyone races 2 km on an indoor rower with the club presidents using adjacent machines. Both universities also send crews to the Head of the River Fours race in London which is raced over the reverse Boat Race course, that is to say the Championship course from Mortlake to Putney.

In December, the coaches put out Trial Eights where two crews from the same university race each other over the full boat race course. These crews are given names such as Kara and Whakamanawa (Māori words for strength and honour, Cambridge 2004) or Cowboys and Indians (Oxford 2004). Other trials boat names have included such pairings as Guns and Roses.

Over the Christmas period the squads go on training camps abroad, where final places for the blue boats are decided. After the final blue boat crews have been decided they race against the top crews from the UK and abroad (e.g. in recent years they have raced Leander, Molesey, the German international crew, and a composite crew of Olympic scullers). These races are only over part of the course (from Putney to Chiswick Eyot).

In case of injury or illness, each university has ten extra rowers, eight in the reserve boats Isis and Goldie, and two as the spare pair. Isis and Goldie race 30 mins before the Blue Boat event over the same course. As for the spare pair, in the week before the main event they race each other from the mile post to university stone (i.e. from a point one mile into the Championship Course back to the Boat Race start). In the final week, there is also an official weigh in and the average crew weights announced. The perceived slight advantage of being the heavier crew leads to the practice of drinking large volumes of water directly before the weigh in order to artificially increase weight for a short period of time.

Popular culture

Boat race became such a popular phrase that it was incorporated into Cockney rhyming slang, for "face".

In the stories of P. G. Wodehouse, Boat Race Night is often alluded to as a time of riotous celebration, which frequently sees the participants in trouble with the authorities. Bertie Wooster mentions several times that he was fined ten pounds for stealing a policeman's helmet on Boat Race Night. The beginning of first episode of the Jeeves and Wooster television series shows his court appearance on this occasion.

Results and statistics

The detailed nature of the record-keeping over the event's history has many record statistics being carefully monitored. A selection of the more frequently cited statistics includes:

• Number of wins: Cambridge, 81; Oxford, 76 (1 dead heat)
• Most consecutive victories: Cambridge, 13 (1924–36)
• Course record: Cambridge, 1998 – 16 min 19 sec; average speed 24.9 kilometres per hour (15.5 mph)
• Heaviest rower: Thorsten Engelmann, Cambridge 2007, Template:J (110.8 kg; 244 lb)
• Lightest rower: Alfred Higgins, Oxford 1882, 9 st 6.5 lb (60.1 kg; 132.5 lb)
• Heaviest crew: Oxford 2009, Template:J (99.7 kg) average
• Tallest rower: Josh West, Cambridge 1999–2002, 6 ft 9.5 in (2.07 m)
• Tallest crew: Cambridge 1999, 6 ft 6.3 in (1.98 m) average
• Oldest rower: Mike Wherley, Oxford 2008, 36 yrs 14 days
• Oldest cox: Andy Probert, Cambridge 1992, 38 yrs 86 days
• Reserve wins: Cambridge (Goldie), 29; Oxford (Isis), 17

Full results by year

No.	Date	Winner	Time	Margin	Oxford total	Camb total	Reserve Race
1	10 June 1829 1830–1835 no race	Oxford	14:03	999Easily	1	0
2	17 June 1836 1837–1838 no race	Cambridge	36:00	20 lengths	1	1
3	3 April 1839	Cambridge	31:00	35 lengths	1	2
4	15 April 1840	Cambridge	29:03	0.75¾ length	1	3
5	14 April 1841	Cambridge	32:03	22 lengths	1	4
6	11 June 1842 1843–1844 no race	Oxford	30:01	04.254½ lengths	2	4
7	15 March 1845	Cambridge	23:30	10 lengths	2	5
8	3 April 1846 1847–1848 no race	Cambridge	21:05	03 lengths	2	6
9	29 April 1849	Cambridge	22:00	999Easily	2	7
10	15 December 1849 1850–1851 no race	Oxford	foul	ZZZCambridge disqualified	3	7
11	3 April 1852 1853 no race	Oxford	21:36	09 lengths	4	7
12	8 April 1854 1855 no race	Oxford	25:29	07 lengths	5	7
13	15 March 1856	Cambridge	25:45	0.25½ length	5	8
14	4 April 1857	Oxford	22:05	11 lengths	6	8
15	27 March 1858	Cambridge	21:23	07.57½ lengths	6	9
16	15 April 1859	Oxford	24:04	99SCambridge sank	7	9
17	31 March 1860	Cambridge	26:05	01 length	7	10
18	23 March 1861	Oxford	23:03	16 lengths	8	10
19	12 April 1862	Oxford	24:34	10 lengths	9	10
20	28 March 1863	Oxford	23:06	15 lengths	10	10
21	19 March 1864	Oxford	21:04	09 lengths	11	10
22	8 April 1865	Oxford	21:24	04 lengths	12	10
23	24 March 1866	Oxford	25:35	03 lengths	13	10
24	13 April 1867	Oxford	22:39	0.5½ length	14	10
25	4 April 1868	Oxford	20:56	06 lengths	15	10
26	17 March 1869	Oxford	20:04	03 lengths	16	10
27	6 April 1870	Cambridge	22:04	01.51½ lengths	16	11
28	1 April 1871	Cambridge	23:01	01 length	16	12
29	23 March 1872	Cambridge	21:15	02 lengths	16	13
30	29 March 1873	Cambridge	19:35	03 lengths	16	14
31	28 March 1874	Cambridge	22:35	03.53½ lengths	16	15
32	20 March 1875	Oxford	22:02	10 lengths	17	15
33	8 April 1876	Cambridge	20:02	999Easily	17	16
34	24 March 1877	Dead Heat	24:08	...Dead Heat	17	16
35	13 April 1878	Oxford	22:15	10 lengths	18	16
36	5 April 1879	Cambridge	21:18	03 lengths	18	17
37	22 March 1880	Oxford	21:23	03.753¾ lengths	19	17
38	8 April 1881	Oxford	21:51	03 lengths	20	17
39	1 April 1882	Oxford	20:12	07 lengths	21	17
40	15 March 1883	Oxford	21:18	03.53½ lengths	22	17
41	7 April 1884	Cambridge	21:39	02.52½ lengths	22	18
42	28 March 1885	Oxford	21:36	02.52½ lengths	23	18
43	3 April 1886	Cambridge	22:03	0.667⅔ length	23	19
44	26 March 1887	Cambridge	20:52	02.52½ lengths	23	20
45	24 March 1888	Cambridge	20:48	07 lengths	23	21
46	30 March 1889	Cambridge	20:14	03 lengths	23	22
47	26 March 1890	Oxford	22:03	01 length	24	22
48	21 March 1891	Oxford	21:48	0.50½ length	25	22
49	9 April 1892	Oxford	19:01	02.252¼ lengths	26	22
50	22 March 1893	Oxford	18:45	01.251¼ lengths	27	22
51	17 March 1894	Oxford	21:39	03.53½ lengths	28	22
52	30 March 1895	Oxford	20:05	02.252¼ lengths	29	22
53	28 March 1896	Oxford	20:01	0.40½ length	30	22
54	3 April 1897	Oxford	19:12	02.52½ lengths	31	22
55	26 March 1898	Oxford	22:15	999Easily	32	22
56	25 March 1899	Cambridge	21:04	03.253¼ lengths	32	23
57	31 March 1900	Cambridge	18:45	20 lengths	32	24
58	30 March 1901	Oxford	22:31	0.667⅔ length	33	24
59	22 March 1902	Cambridge	19:09	05 lengths	33	25
60	1 April 1903	Cambridge	19:33	06 lengths	33	26
61	26 March 1904	Cambridge	21:37	04.54½ lengths	33	27
62	1 April 1905	Oxford	20:35	03 lengths	34	27
63	7 April 1906	Cambridge	19:25	03.53½ lengths	34	28
64	16 March 1907	Cambridge	20:26	04.54½ lengths	34	29
65	4 April 1908	Cambridge	19:02	02.52½ lengths	34	30
66	3 April 1909	Oxford	19:05	03.53½ lengths	35	30
67	23 March 1910	Oxford	20:14	03.53½ lengths	36	30
68	1 April 1911	Oxford	18:29	02.752¾ lengths	37	30
69	1 April 1912	Oxford	22:05	06 lengths	38	30
70	13 March 1913	Oxford	20:53	0.75¾ length	39	30
71	28 March 1914 1915–1919 no race	Cambridge	20:23	04.54½ lengths	39	31
72	28 March 1920	Cambridge	21:11	04 lengths	39	32
73	30 March 1921	Cambridge	19:45	01 length	39	33
74	1 April 1922	Cambridge	19:27	04.54½ lengths	39	34
75	24 March 1923	Oxford	20:54	0.75¾ length	40	34
76	5 April 1924	Cambridge	18:41	04.54½ lengths	40	35
77	28 March 1925	Cambridge	21:05	99SOxford sank	40	36
78	27 March 1926	Cambridge	19:29	05 lengths	40	37
79	2 April 1927	Cambridge	20:14	03 lengths	40	38
80	31 March 1928	Cambridge	20:25	10 lengths	40	39
81	23 March 1929	Cambridge	19:24	07 lengths	40	40
82	12 April 1930	Cambridge	19:09	03 lengths	40	41
83	21 March 1931	Cambridge	19:26	02.52½ lengths	40	42
84	19 March 1932	Cambridge	19:11	05 lengths	40	43
85	1 April 1933	Cambridge	20:57	02.252¼ lengths	40	44
86	17 March 1934	Cambridge	18:03	04.254¼ lengths	40	45
87	6 April 1935	Cambridge	19:48	04.54½ lengths	40	46
88	4 April 1936	Cambridge	21:06	05 lengths	40	47
89	24 March 1937	Oxford	22:39	0.25¼ length	41	47
90	2 April 1938	Oxford	20:03	02 lengths	42	47
91	1 April 1939 1940–1945 no race	Cambridge	19:03	04 lengths	42	48
92	30 March 1946	Oxford	19:54	03 lengths	43	48
93	29 March 1947	Cambridge	23:01	10 lengths	43	49
94	27 March 1948	Cambridge	17:05	05 lengths	43	50
95	26 March 1949	Cambridge	18:57	0.25¼ length	43	51
96	1 April 1950	Cambridge	20:15	03.53½ lengths	43	52
97	26 March 1951	Cambridge	20:05	12 lengths	43	53
98	29 March 1952	Oxford	20:23	0.06Canvas	44	53
99	28 March 1953	Cambridge	19:54	08 lengths	44	54
100	3 April 1954	Oxford	20:23	04.54½ lengths	45	54
101	26 March 1955	Cambridge	19:01	16 lengths	45	55
102	24 March 1956	Cambridge	18:36	01.251¼ lengths	45	56
103	30 March 1957	Cambridge	19:01	02 lengths	45	57
104	5 April 1958	Cambridge	18:15	03.53½ lengths	45	58
105	28 March 1959	Oxford	18:52	06 lengths	46	58
106	2 April 1960	Oxford	18:59	01.251¼ lengths	47	58
107	1 April 1961	Cambridge	19:22	04.254¼ lengths	47	59
108	7 April 1962	Cambridge	19:46	05 lengths	47	60
109	23 March 1963	Oxford	20:47	05 lengths	48	60
110	28 March 1964	Cambridge	19:18	06.56½ lengths	48	61
111	3 April 1965	Oxford	18:07	04 lengths	49	61	Isis
112	26 March 1966	Oxford	19:12	03.753¾ lengths	50	61	Isis
113	25 March 1967	Oxford	18:52	03.253¼ lengths	51	61	Goldie
114	30 March 1968	Cambridge	18:22	03.53½ lengths	51	62	Goldie
115	5 April 1969	Cambridge	18:04	04 lengths	51	63	Goldie
116	28 March 1970	Cambridge	20:22	03.53½ lengths	51	64	Goldie
117	27 March 1971	Cambridge	17:58	10 lengths	51	65	Goldie
118	1 April 1972	Cambridge	18:36	09½ lengths	51	66	Goldie
119	7 March 1973	Cambridge	19:21	13 lengths	51	67	Goldie
120	6 April 1974	Oxford	17:35	05.55½ lengths	52	67	Goldie
121	29 March 1975	Cambridge	19:27	03.753¾ lengths	52	68	Isis
122	20 March 1976	Oxford	16:58	06.56½ lengths	53	68	Isis
123	19 March 1977	Oxford	19:28	07 lengths	54	68	Goldie
124	25 March 1978	Oxford	18:58	99SCambridge sank	55	68	Goldie
125	17 March 1979	Oxford	20:33	03.53½ lengths	56	68	Goldie
126	5 April 1980	Oxford	19:02	0.04Canvas	57	68	Isis
127	4 April 1981	Oxford	18:11	08 lengths	58	68	Isis
128	27 March 1982	Oxford	18:21	03.253¼ lengths	59	68	Isis
129	2 April 1983	Oxford	19:07	04.54½ lengths	60	68	Isis
130	18 March 1984	Oxford	16:45	03.753¾ lengths	61	68	Goldie
131	6 April 1985	Oxford	17:11	04.754¾ lengths	62	68	Isis
132	29 March 1986	Cambridge	17:58	07 lengths	62	69	Isis
133	28 March 1987	Oxford	19:59	04 lengths	63	69	Goldie
134	2 April 1988	Oxford	17:35	05.55½ lengths	64	69	Goldie
135	25 March 1989	Oxford	18:27	02.52½ lengths	65	69	Isis
136	31 March 1990	Oxford	17:22	02.252¼ lengths	66	69	Goldie
137	30 March 1991	Oxford	16:59	04.254¼ lengths	67	69	Goldie
138	4 April 1992	Oxford	17:44	01.251¼ lengths	68	69	Goldie
139	27 March 1993	Cambridge	17:00	03.53½ lengths	68	70	Goldie
140	26 March 1994	Cambridge	18:09	06.56½ lengths	68	71	Goldie
141	1 April 1995	Cambridge	18:04	04 lengths	68	72	Goldie
142	6 April 1996	Cambridge	16:58	02.752¾ lengths	68	73	Goldie
143	29 March 1997	Cambridge	17:38	02 lengths	68	74	Goldie
144	28 March 1998	Cambridge	16:19	03 lengths	68	75	Isis
145	3 April 1999	Cambridge	16:41	03.53½ lengths	68	76	Goldie
146	25 March 2000	Oxford	18:04	03 lengths	69	76	Isis
147	24 March 2001	Cambridge	19:59	02.52½ lengths	69	77	Goldie
148	30 March 2002	Oxford	16:54	0.75¾ length	70	77	Isis
149	6 April 2003	Oxford	18:06	0.011 foot	71	77	Goldie
150	28 March 2004	Cambridge	18:47	06 lengths	71	78	Isis
151	27 March 2005	Oxford	16:42	02 lengths	72	78	Goldie
152	2 April 2006	Oxford	18:26	05 lengths	73	78	Goldie
153	7 April 2007	Cambridge	17:49	01.251¼ lengths	73	79	Goldie
154	29 March 2008	Oxford	20:53	06 lengths	74	79	Isis
155	29 March 2009	Oxford	17:00	03.53½ lengths	75	79	Isis
156	3 April 2010	Cambridge	17:35	01.3331⅓ lengths	75	80	Goldie
157	26 March 2011	Oxford	17:32	04 lengths	76	80	Isis
158	7 April 2012	Cambridge	n/a[a]	04.254¼ lengths	76	81	Isis

a. ^{^} No time was recorded as the race was interrupted and restarted.

Unofficial wartime races

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Time	Margin
1	2 March 1940	Henley-on-Thames	Cambridge	9:28	5 lengths
2	13 February 1943	Sandford-on-Thames	Oxford	4:49	⅔ length
3	26 February 1944	River Great Ouse, Ely	Oxford	8:06	¾ length
4	24 February 1945	Henley-on-Thames	Cambridge	8:17	2 lengths

See also

• Oxbridge rivalry
• Varsity match
• List of Oxford University Boat Race crews
• List of Cambridge University Boat Race crews

External links

• Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race official website
• Watch the 2007 Boat Race
• The Boat Race course visualization on Google Earth/Maps