Tom James takes to the water ahead of the Boat Race

Undergraduate Thomas James from Coedpoeth, near Wrexham, who is just 19, rowed in the Cambridge crew which was defeated by just one foot by Oxford on Sunday.

The UK's two oldest universities have been battling against each other over four-and-a-quarter miles on the River Thames for 174 years.

But there has never been a closer finish in the 149 times the race has taken place.

James, a former pupil of The King's School in Chester, had worked hard for his place in the race.

Oxford won by a narrow margin

His former art teacher Steve Downey said he deserves his success.

"He's very quiet and unassuming and he's had a lot of success as a rower," he said.

"We're absolutely delighted for him, he really has got natural ability.

"Ex-pupils have rowed for Oxford and Cambridge before but it's special for Tom because he's so young."

The engineering student started rowing at school as a young teenager after a knee injury forced him to give up running.

He has won several medals in the World Junior Championships.

Tradition

The world-famous competition is one of the highlights of the British sporting calendar, attracting crowds of 250,000 to the River Thames.

It began when two friends Charles Merival who was at Cambridge, and Charles Wordsworth (nephew of the poet William Wordsworth), a student at Oxford, decided to hold a race between the universities.

On 12 March 1829, Cambridge challenged Oxford and a tradition was born.

Each year, the loser of the previous year's event challenges the winner to a new race.

The record books now show that Cambridge have won 77 races to Oxford's 71.

This year's race broke with tradition by switching from its regular slot on a Saturday.