Clubhouse, Reading University Boat Club - geograph

Reading University Boat Club (RUBC, boat code RDU) is the

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

club for the

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...

in the United Kingdom. It is based at a boat house in Christchurch Meadows on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

in the

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

suburb of Caversham. The club has a focus on

sculling Sculling is the use of oars to propel a boat by moving them through the water on both sides of the craft, or moving one oar over the stern. A long, narrow boat with sliding seats, rigged with two oars per rower may be referred to as a scull, it ...

. It has consistently been one of the more successful university rowing clubs in Britain, including topping the medal table at the

BUCS British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) is the governing body for higher education sport in the United Kingdom. BUCS was formed in June 2008 following a merger of British Universities Sports Association (BUSA) and University College Sport ...

regatta in 2011 and at the BUCS small boats head in 2014 and 2015, as well as wins at

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thre ...

in 1986, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2013, and is considered one of the top six university rowing clubs in the UK. A number of former members have competed at the Olympics, including double gold-medallists

James Cracknell James Edward Cracknell, (born 5 May 1972) is a British athlete, rowing champion and double Olympic gold medalist. Cracknell was appointed OBE for "services to sport" in the 2005 New Year Honours List. Biography Cracknell began rowing whilst ...

and Helen Glover. The club has organised the Reading University Head of the River race since 1935.

History

The club was founded in 1892, when the university was established as an extension college of

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 the ...

. They originally shared a boathouse with other clubs, but got their own boathouse in the 1930s. The Reading Head of the River Race, organised by RUBC, has been held since 1935 (with a break for the second world war), attracting well over 100 crews in 2000. The boathouse burnt down in 1989, destroying a number of boats worth around £150,000. The current boathouse was built in 1992. The Ortner Boat Club is a club for alumni of RUBC, founded in 1997 and named after former Reading University coach Frank Ortner.

Notable alumni

Cath Bishop Catherine Bishop (born 22 November 1971) is a former British rower. In partnership with Katherine Grainger she was World Champion in the coxless pair in 2003, and in 2004 they won a silver medal at the Olympic Games. Following a career as a dipl ...

won silver at the

Athens 2004 The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

Olympic Games. *

won gold at the

Sydney 2000 The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

and

Olympic Games. * Adrian Ellison won gold at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games. *

Debbie Flood Deborah Kirsty Bruwer (née Flood; born 27 February 1980) is an English rower, noteworthy for winning silver medals in the quadruple sculls at both the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games. Biography Flood was born in Harrogate, Yorkshire, and was a Gr ...

won silver at the

and

Beijing 2008 The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

Olympic Games. * Helen Glover won gold at the

London 2012 The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and

Rio 2016 The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

Olympic Games. *

Alex Gregory Alexander John Gregory, (born 11 March 1984) is an English rower and a two-time Olympic Gold medallist from 2012 and 2016 in the Coxless four. Education Alex Gregory was educated at the Richard Pate School in Cheltenham, then Bredon Hill Mi ...

rowed at the

and

Olympic Games. *

Garry Herbert Garry Gerard Paul Herbert (b. 3 October 1969) is an Olympic gold medal-winning cox. He steered the British coxed pair (brothers Jonny and Greg Searle) to victory in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics (the last time this event was included in the Olym ...

won gold at the

Barcelona 1992 The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

Olympic Games. * Stewart Innes rowed at the

Olympic Games. *

Sam Townsend Sam Townsend (born 26 November 1985 in Reading) is a British rower who competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2016 Summer Olympics. Rowing career Townsend competed in the double sculls with Bill Lucas at the 2012 Olympic Games rowing even ...

rowed at the

and

Olympic Games.

Honours

Henley Royal Regatta

RUBC have been frequent competitors at the

, which is held around 10 km downriver from Reading. *Queen Mother Challenge Cup - winner 2010 (with

Leander Club Leander Club, founded in 1818, is one of the oldest rowing clubs in the world, and the oldest non-academic club. It is based in Remenham in Berkshire, England and adjoins Henley-on-Thames. Only three other surviving clubs were founded prior to ...

), 2011 (with Leander Club), 2013 (with Leander Club) *The Stewards' Challenge Cup - 2009 (with Leander Club); Coxless Fours - winner 1986 *The Princess Grace Challenge Cup - winner 2008 (with Wallingford Rowing Club) *Visitors Challenge Cup - finals 1984; semi-finals 1974, 1977, 1994, 1996 *Prince of Wales Challenge Cup - semi-finals 2010 *Thames Challenge Cup - semi-finals 1948 *Ladies Plate - semi-finals 1970, 1979 *Wyfolds Challenge Cup - semi-finals 1987

British Championships

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

Ltw Men 4- *

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

Open 4-, Women 1x *

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

Open 2x, Open Ltw 2x, Open U23 1x *

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

Open U23 1x *

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

Women 8+ *

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Open 4x *

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

Women 2x

University Sport

Small Boats Head - Top of Medal Table 2014, 2015 *BUCS Regatta - Top of medal table, 2011 *BUSA Regatta - Second in Victor Ludorum, 2006

Reading Head of the River Race

The Reading University Head of the River race has been run since 1935 and is the largest student-organised public sporting event in the country, drawing a record 237 crews in 2015. It is run over a 4.6 km course on the Thames between Mapledurham lock and Caversham lock. Major prizes are the Roe Challenge Cup for the fastest crew overall, the Coronation Cup for the fastest Senior III crew, the Bourne Cup for the fastest school, and the Mackintosh Trophy for the fastest British University crew.

References

{{United Kingdom rowing clubs Rowing clubs in England University and college rowing clubs in the United Kingdom Sports clubs established in 1892 Sport in Reading, Berkshire Rowing clubs of the River Thames