The Boat Race 2024 was a series of side-by-side rowing races in London which took place on 30 March 2024. Held annually,

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 contested 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 ...

, usually along a tidal stretch of 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 ...

, known as the Tideway, in south-west London. This was the 78th women's race and the 169th men's race. Cambridge led the longstanding rivalry 86–81 and 47–30 in the men's and women's races, respectively.

Background

is an annual 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 usually 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 ...

, between

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

and

Mortlake Mortlake is a suburban district of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes. Historically it was part of Surrey and until 1965 was in the Municipal Borough of Barnes. For many centu ...

on the

in south-west London. The rivalry is a major point of honour between the two universities; the race is followed throughout the United Kingdom and broadcast worldwide.

Details

The crews for both men's and women's boats were announced earlier in March 2024 at

Battersea Power Station Battersea Power Station is a decommissioned Grade II* listed coal-fired power station, located on the south bank of the River Thames, in Nine Elms, Battersea, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It was built by the London Power Company (LPC) ...

. The women's race was umpired by Richard Phelps and the men's race was umpired by former Olympian

Matthew Pinsent Sir Matthew Clive Pinsent, (; born 10 October 1970) is an English rower and broadcaster. During his rowing career, he won 10 world championship gold medals and four consecutive Olympic gold medals. Since retiring, he has worked as a sports br ...

. Cambridge retained their title as winners of the Women's Boat Race for the seventh consecutive year, 7 lengths ahead of rivals Oxford. This took the overall record in the women's race to 48–30 to Cambridge. Cambridge beat the Oxford men by 3 lengths in a time of 18m 56s in a tense encounter which featured the collapse of the Cambridge stroke Matt Edge in the closing stages of the race. As a result of Cambridge's victory the head-to-head record after the race stood at 87–81 in Cambridge's favour. Oxford women's boat Osiris won the women's reserves race. Cambridge's Goldie won the men's reserves race. Cambridge's men and women secured victory in

The Lightweight Boat Races The Lightweight Boat Races are a series of annual rowing races between men's and women's lightweight crews representing the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. The first men's race took place in 1975, being joined by the wom ...

. The race was broadcast internationally on television. Fox News, CNN, The New York Times, CBS and other international media organisations ran stories about the poor water quality in the Thames, specifically citing excrement in the water during the race.

Thames Water Thames Water Utilities Ltd, known as Thames Water, is a large private utility company responsible for the public water supply and waste water treatment in most of Greater London, Luton, the Thames Valley, Surrey, Gloucestershire, north Wiltshir ...

said improving river health was a "key focus" for the company, which recently completed the

Thames Tideway Tunnel The Thames Tideway Tunnel is a combined sewer under construction running mostly under Tideway, the tidal section (estuary) of the River Thames across Inner London to capture, store and convey almost all the raw sewage and rainwater that curren ...

super sewer to stop sewage overflows and improve water quality in the Thames.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boat Race 2024, The The Boat Race Women's Boat Race 2024 in English sport 2024 sports events in London 2024 in English women's sport March 2024 sports events in the United Kingdom