The 129th Boat Race took place on 2 April 1983. Held annually, the event 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 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 ...

along the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. The pre-race preparation saw Cambridge threaten to boycott the race for the first time, following the inclusion of

Boris Rankov Nikolas Boris Rankov (born 9 August 1954) is a British professor of Roman history at Royal Holloway, University of London. He is a former rower and current umpire. Early life, education and family Rankov was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, th ...

in the Oxford boat. The crews were the two heaviest in the history of the event, and featured ten former Boat Race competitors. Oxford won the race by lengths. Isis won the reserve race, while Cambridge were victorious in the Women's Boat Race.

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 The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

(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 and followed throughout the United Kingdom and broadcast worldwide. Oxford were the reigning champions, having beaten Cambridge by lengths in the previous year's race. However, Cambridge held the overall lead, with 68 victories to Oxford's 59 (excluding the "dead heat" of 1877). The race was sponsored by

Ladbrokes Ladbrokes Coral is a British gambling company founded in 1886. Its product offering includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. The business is split into two divisions, UK and International. UK operations are c ...

; the winner was awarded the Ladbrokes Trophy. On 7 March 1983, Cambridge issued a statement suggesting that they might boycott the race following a dispute over Oxford's selection of

as a member of their crew. Veteran of the previous five Boat Races, all of which were Dark Blue victories, Cambridge argued Rankov was ineligible for inclusion as he was a lecturer at the university. Coach David Townsend of the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

offered the services of his crew to provide an opponent for Oxford, should Cambridge refuse to participate. Rankov himself had offered to withdraw from the race, but the Dark Blues' committee rejected this. Cambridge finally agreed to race after they reached an agreement with Oxford to discuss and possibly tighten the eligibility criteria. This ultimately led to establishment of the so-called "Rankov Rule", which states that oarsmen will compete in the race no more than four times as an undergraduate and no more than four times as a graduate. The first

Women's Boat Race The Women's Boat Race is an annual rowing race between Cambridge University Women's Boat Club and Oxford University Women's Boat Club. First rowed in 1927, the race has taken place annually since 1964. Since the 2015 race it has been rowed on ...

took place in 1927, but did not become an annual fixture until the 1960s. Up until 2014, the contest was conducted as part of the

Henley Boat Races The Henley Boat Races were a series of annual rowing races between various crews representing the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. The event included the Lightweight Men's Boat Race from 1975 to 2018, the Women's Boat ...

, but as of the 2015 race, it is held on the River Thames, on the same day as the men's main and reserve races. The reserve race, contested between Oxford's Isis boat and Cambridge's Goldie boat has been held since 1965. It usually takes place on the Tideway, prior to the main Boat Race.

Crews

The two crews were the heaviest in Boat Race history, Oxford averaging 14

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

8 lbs (92.3 kg) per rower, nearly a man heavier than the Cambridge crew, and were pre-race favourites to win an eighth consecutive race. Cambridge's crew featured six unsuccessful Blues, while Oxford's boat contained four Blues with ten Boat Race victories between them. While seven of the Oxford rowers were international post-graduates, Cambridge's crew included seven undergraduates. The average age of the Oxford crew was 25, four years more than Cambridge. Boat Race 2018 - Men's Blues Race (03)

Race

Cambridge won the toss and elected to start from the Surrey station. Oxford, rowing at a higher rate, took an early lead and were clear of Cambridge by the Mile Post. Extending their lead to six seconds 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 ...

, Oxford pushed on to lead by nine seconds at Chiswick Steps. Despite trying to keep in touch, Cambridge were four lengths behind at

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 ...

and trailed by 13 seconds as Oxford passed the finishing post. Oxford won by lengths in a time of 19 minutes 7 seconds. This was Oxford's eighth consecutive victory, and their ninth in ten years, and took the overall record to 68–60 in favour of Cambridge. The race was watched by 14 million television viewers. In the reserve race, Oxford's Isis beat Cambridge's Goldie by lengths, while Cambridge won the 38th Women's Boat Race.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boat Race 1983 The Boat Race 1983 in English sport 1983 in rowing April 1983 sports events in the United Kingdom 1983 sports events in London