The 103rd Boat Race took place on 30 March 1957. Held annually, the Boat Race is a side-by-side rowing race between crews from the Universities of

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 ...

and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a 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. Cambridge bec ...

along 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 ...

. The race was umpired by former Oxford rower

Gerald Ellison Gerald Alexander Ellison (19 August 1910 – 18 October 1992) was an Anglican bishop and rower. He was the Bishop of Chester from 1955 to 1973 and the Bishop of London from 1973 to 1981. Early life and education Ellison was the son of a chaplai ...

. Despite Oxford being favourites and with the heaviest crew in the history of the event, Cambridge won by two lengths in a time of 19 minutes 1 second. The victory took the overall record to 57–45 in their favour.

Background

The Boat Race The Boat Race is an annual set of rowing races between the Cambridge University Boat Club and the Oxford University Boat Club, traditionally rowed between open-weight eights on the River Thames in London, England. There are separate men's ...

is a side-by-side rowing competition between the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

(sometimes referred to as the "Dark Blues") and the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

(sometimes referred to as the "Light Blues"). First held in 1829, the race takes place on the

Championship Course The Championship Course is a stretch of the River Thames between Mortlake and Putney in London, England. It is a well-established course for rowing races, particularly the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race. The course is on the tidal reaches of th ...

on the

in southwest London. The rivalry is a major point of honour between the two universities; it is followed throughout the United Kingdom and, as of 2014, broadcast worldwide. Cambridge went into the race as reigning champions, having won the 1956 race by lengths, and led overall with 56 victories to Oxford's 45 (excluding the "dead heat" of 1877). Cambridge's coaches were

James Crowden James Gee Pascoe Crowden CVO (14 November 1927 – 24 September 2016) was an English former oarsman who competed for Great Britain in the 1952 Summer Olympics. He was Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire. Crowden was born in Tilney All Saints, ne ...

(who had rowed for the Light Blues in the

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

and 1952 races), D. K. Hill (who had rowed for Cambridge in 1953 and 1954), Derek Mays-Smith (who had represented Cambridge in the

1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...

and 1956 races and James Owen. Oxford were coached by J. H. Page, L. A. F. Stokes (a Dark Blue in 1951 and 1952) and R. A. Wheadon (who had rowed in the 1954 race). The race was umpired by

, the

Bishop of Chester The Bishop of Chester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chester in the Province of York. The diocese extends across most of the historic county boundaries of Cheshire, including the Wirral Peninsula and has its see in the C ...

, who had rowed for Oxford in the

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

and 1933 races. According to the rowing correspondent of ''The Times'', "never in the past 10 years has there been such unanimity in Boat Race forecasts as this year, when only the staunchest Cambridge supporters could see more than an outside chance of a light blue victory". He described the Oxford crew as "exceptionally strong and mechanically quite efficient" yet "lacks polish and uniformity" and while Cambridge were demonstrated uniformity, they rowed in a way which "does look like hard work". In the build-up to the race, Oxford's time in their second full course row was 45 seconds quicker than that rowed by Cambridge the previous day.

Crews

The Oxford crew weighed an average of 13 st 3 lb (83.7 kg), per rower more than their opponents,Burnell, p. 78 making them the heaviest crew on record. Cambridge's crew featured a single rower with Boat Race experience: their number six and boat club president Michael Delahooke had rowed in the previous year's race. Oxford saw four rowers return who had previously participated in the event. Two members of each crew were registered as non-British: Oxford's

Roderick Carnegie Sir Roderick Howard Carnegie AC (born 27 November 1932) is a prominent Australian businessman, primarily working in the coal industry. Carnegie was born in November 1932 in Melbourne, eldest child and only son of Douglas and Margaret Carnegie ( ...

was Australian while their

cox Cox may refer to: * Cox (surname), including people with the name Companies * Cox Enterprises, a media and communications company ** Cox Communications, cable provider ** Cox Media Group, a company that owns television and radio stations ** ...

A. Said was from Pakistan. Cambridge's crew included two Americans in J. R. Meadows and their cox R. C. Milton.Burnell, p. 39

Race

Oxford won the toss and elected to start from the Middlesex station, handing the Surrey side of the river to Cambridge. Both crews rowed 38 strokes in the first minute, with the Light Blues holding a canvas-length lead. While Oxford dropped their

stroke rate In competitive rowing, the following specialized terms are important in the corresponding aspects of the sport: Boat classes In competitive rowing events, abbreviations are used for different boat classes. ;Weight: *L, LWT or Lt: Lightweight ...

to 32 strokes per minute, Cambridge continued at pace, rating 35 strokes per minute in an attempt to extend their early lead through to

Beverley Brook Beverley Brook is a minor English river long in south-west London. It rises in Worcester Park and joins the River Thames to the north of Putney Embankment at Barn Elms. Course Beverley Brook rises at the top of a hill in a shady area at Cuddi ...

. Oxford's longer stroke saw them pass Cambridge to pass the Mile Post around a length ahead. At the Crab Tree pub, Cambridge pushed on while the Dark Blues maintained their rhythm, with the rowing correspondent for ''The Times'' suggesting this was "Oxford's tactical error". The Dark Blues' lead was down to half a length by the time the crews passed

Harrods Furniture Depository The Harrods Furniture Depository buildings flank the south bank of the River Thames near Hammersmith Bridge in Barnes, London, built on the site of an old soap factory in 1894 as a storage centre for the larger items that could not be taken into ...

and by

Hammersmith Bridge Hammersmith Bridge is a suspension bridge that crosses the River Thames in west London. It links the southern part of Hammersmith in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, on the north side of the river, and Barnes in the London Borough ...

Cambridge had edged ahead. Still out-rating Oxford, the Light Blues gradually pulled away and were a length and a half ahead by Chiswick Steps. With no response from Oxford, Cambridge extended their advantage further to around two lengths by

Barnes Bridge Barnes Bridge railway station, in Travelcard Zone 3, is on The Terrace, Barnes in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, in south west London. The station and all trains serving it are operated by South Western Railway. It is on the Houn ...

, a lead which they held at the finishing post in a time of 19 minutes 1 second. They secured their third consecutive victory and their ninth win in eleven years and taking the overall record in the race to 57–45 in their favour. At the post-race dinner, held at the

Royal Automobile Club The Royal Automobile Club is a British private social and athletic club. It has two clubhouses: one in London at 89 Pall Mall, and the other in the countryside at Woodcote Park, near Epsom in Surrey. Both provide accommodation and a range o ...

in Pall Mall, the Oxford boat club president Carnegie defended his crew's style: "The style was all right but we did not match up to it". His counterpart Delahooke suggested that had the race been held ten days prior, Oxford would have won.

References

Notes Bibliography * *

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boat Race 1957 1957 in English sport 1957 in rowing The Boat Race March 1957 sports events in the United Kingdom 1957 sports events in London