 | | | Oxbridge boat race, photo by Phil Searle |
Oxford and Cambridge are the oldest and most famous universities in Britain, and there has always been a great rivalry between the two institutions. But the most public competition between the two is the annual Boat Race. The 2006 Boat Race will take place on 2nd April, and will be the 152nd race of its kind. Both universities are located near rivers, and rowing is a popular and prestigious sport. The very first race took place in 1829, when a Cambridge student challenged a school-friend studying at Oxford. Ever since, the defeated team from the previous year challenges the opposition to a rematch. The only times when no Boat Races took place were during the First and Second World Wars. The race is between two crews of eight oarsmen, each led by a cox, who steers, and gives commands to the rowers. Since 1836, the rowing eights have worn different shades of blue – Oxford wear dark blue and Cambridge light blue. As a result, the rowers are known as the Blues. The Boat Race was initially held on the River Thames at Westminster in central London, but due to overcrowding, it was moved to further upstream near Putney, in South West London, and the course is just under 5 miles long. The average race time is 20 minutes, but the record is just over 16 minutes. Over the years that the two universities have gone head-to-head on the river, Oxford have won 70 times, and Cambridge have had 77 wins. Only once there was a dead heat. There have been three occasions when one of the boats sank and forfeited the race. The race is a very popular spectator event, with around 250,000 people going to the Thames to watch, and several million more watching on television. The training for the race is very tough, and rowers start practising in September in order to try to win a place on the Blue Boats. Those who don’t quite make the grade become the reserve team, who race before the main teams on race day. Who will win this year? | 
