Acer Gary Nethercott (28 November 1977 – 26 January 2013) was a British

coxswain The coxswain ( , or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the cockboat, a type of ship's boa ...

, Olympic silver medallist and double

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

winner.

Early life

Nethercott was born in Newmarket, England. Having attended Mark Hall Comprehensive School, Harlow, and

The Broxbourne School The Broxbourne School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form with academy status located in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, England. The school began life in 1959 with just under 50 pupils as a grammar school (Broxbourne Grammar Schoo ...

in Hertfordshire, Acer was admitted to

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the unive ...

to study

Physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

and Philosophy as an undergraduate. He subsequently earned a BPhil and then a

DPhil A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

degree in philosophy.

The Boat Race

Nethercott took up rowing at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

as a first year student but quickly switched to coxing when it became evident that his body type was more suited to that than pulling an oar. He became a member of both

Oxford University Boat Club Oxford University Boat Club (OUBC) is the rowing club for male, heavyweight oarsman of the University of Oxford, England, located on the River Thames at Oxford. The club was founded in the early 19th century. The Boat Race The club races agai ...

and

Oxford University Women's Boat Club Oxford University Women's Boat Club (OUWBC) is the rowing club for female rowers (and coxes of either sex) who are students at the University of Oxford. The club was founded in 1926 and is now based in Wallingford at the Fleming Boat Hous ...

. He earned his first Blue when he steered the Oxford women's heavyweight blue boat to victory against

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

in 2000. The Oxford crew won by 2 lengths, and completed the Henley Boat Race course in a time of 6 minutes and 18 seconds. Nethercott steered Isis to victory in 2002. A year later, he stepped up to the Blue Boat, steering Oxford in the closest

in recent memory. In a thrilling finish Oxford won the 4 mile race by just a foot in a time of 18 minutes and 6 seconds. The

race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...

was also notable for it being the first time in history two sets of brothers competed against each other. David Livingston (Oxford) raced against his older brother James, and a last minute call up for Ben Smith (who joined the Cambridge Blue Boat from

Goldie Clifford Joseph Price MBE (born 19 September 1965), better known as Goldie, is a British music producer and DJ. Initially gaining exposure for his work as a graffiti artist, Goldie became well known for his pioneering role as a musician in t ...

hours before the race after the original crew member was injured) meant that he competed against his brother Matthew, the Oxford president. In 2004, Nethercott won his seat in the Blue Boat after a tense internal competition with Peter Hackworth, the 2002 winning Blue Boat cox who had taken a year out to study in Italy. In a controversial race, in which the two boats clashed blades and the Oxford bowman came off his seat, Oxford lost by 6 lengths in a time of 18 minutes and 17 seconds. Nethercott's final Boat Race was in 2005. Both universities had extremely strong intakes that year, with Cambridge boasting several world champions and the Oxford crew including Olympic silver medallist Barney Williams. Oxford won the contest by 2 lengths in a time of 16 minutes 42 seconds.

International coxing career

Nethercott coxed the British Eight from 2005 to 2008, winning bronze at the

2007 World Rowing Championships The 2007 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 26 August to 2 September 2007 at Oberschleißheim Regatta Course near Munich, Germany. Medal summary Men's events Non-Olympic classes Women's events N ...

in Munich. A year later he won a silver medal at the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

in Beijing.

Other rowing

Despite coxing for both

and Great Britain, Nethercott still found time to compete for University College Boat Club in 2007 in the annual

Eights Week Eights Week, also known as Summer Eights, is a four-day regatta of bumps races which constitutes the University of Oxford's main intercollegiate rowing event of the year. The regatta takes place in May of each year, from the Wednesday to th ...

competition. Acer started coxing in his first term at University College, when he took part in the traditional freshers' Christchurch Regatta.

Death

Nethercott died on 26 January 2013 from

glioblastoma multiforme Glioblastoma, previously known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), is one of the most aggressive types of cancer that begin within the brain. Initially, signs and symptoms of glioblastoma are nonspecific. They may include headaches, personality cha ...

, an aggressive form of brain cancer. Oxford's winning boat in the 2013

was named in his honour.

Achievements

Olympics

*2008 Beijing – Silver, Eight (coxswain)

World Championships

*2007

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

– Bronze, Eight (coxswain) *2006 Eton – 5th, Eight (coxswain) *2005 Gifu – 4th, Eight (coxswain)

World Cups

*2008

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...

– Gold, Eight (coxswain) *2008 Lucerne – Bronze, Eight (coxswain) *2008

– Silver, Eight (coxswain) *2007 Lucerne – 4th, Eight (coxswain) *2007

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

– Bronze, Eight (coxswain) *2007

Linz Linz ( , ; cs, Linec) is the capital of Upper Austria and third-largest city in Austria. In the north of the country, it is on the Danube south of the Czech border. In 2018, the population was 204,846. In 2009, it was a European Capital ...

– 5th, Eight (coxswain) *2006 Lucerne – 6th, Eight (coxswain) *2006

– 5th, Eight (coxswain) *2005 Lucerne – 5th, Eight (coxswain) *2005 Eton – Bronze, Eight (coxswain)

Legacy

A boat was named in Acer Nethercott's honour on 31 May 2014 at the University College Boathouse on

the Isis "The Isis" () is an alternative name for the River Thames, used from its source in the Cotswolds until it is joined by the Thame at Dorchester in Oxfordshire. It derives from the ancient name for the Thames, ''Tamesis'', which in the Middle ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

at the end of the last day of

. In January 2015,

announced that they would name their new sports centre building in his honour.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nethcott, Acer 1977 births 2013 deaths People from Newmarket, Suffolk Alumni of University College, Oxford Oxford University Boat Club rowers English male rowers Rowers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic rowers of Great Britain Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain Olympic medalists in rowing Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Coxswains (rowing) Deaths from brain cancer in England World Rowing Championships medalists for Great Britain