The 162nd Boat Race

:00:16. > :00:23.This is one of the great British sporting traditions, two ancient

:00:24. > :00:28.universities going head-to-head on a mighty river in an iconic city.

:00:29. > :00:35.Welcome to London, welcome to the Thames, welcome to the Boat Races.

:00:36. > :00:46.Six months of training and hard work... Using every bit of lung

:00:47. > :00:54.power they have a... Now they are starting to make it count... Now it

:00:55. > :00:58.is down to real guts and determination... For Cambridge it is

:00:59. > :01:07.all about determination... Oxford are the winners!

:01:08. > :01:24.The Thames... Oxford... Cambridge... Two races... Only one possible

:01:25. > :01:34.outcome. We have ignition! Binary, a number system composed of only ones

:01:35. > :01:41.and zeros. This ancient simple code is central to modern life. It is

:01:42. > :01:45.adaptable and evolving, keeping pace with the changing times. Oxford

:01:46. > :01:50.University Women's Boat Club have won this historic race... But

:01:51. > :02:03.whatever the era, there are only two options. Zero, one. Friend, enemy.

:02:04. > :02:06.Win, lose. These ones and zeros can encode vast amounts of data,

:02:07. > :02:13.plotting improvement and revealing the bigger picture. Life, death. It

:02:14. > :02:21.is only when the values are lined in the correct order that the system

:02:22. > :02:29.can be fully understood. Binary, only two values. Win, lose. Which

:02:30. > :02:37.crew will be the one, which one will be the zero?

:02:38. > :02:42.It is brutal in its simplicity, you are either a hero or you leave with

:02:43. > :02:48.zero. This is the Oxford women arriving earlier this afternoon. The

:02:49. > :02:54.race is in honour of Cancer Research UK. The minibus was being driven by

:02:55. > :02:59.the woman who was president last year, Anastasia Chitty, who will be

:03:00. > :03:04.at key member of that grow. For Cambridge, they come here trying to

:03:05. > :03:08.turn the tide. Oxford have been dominant in recent Boat Races but

:03:09. > :03:16.this is only the second to be raced on the Tideway. Alice Jackson going

:03:17. > :03:22.through, their average age is 24. For the men, Oxford coming here off

:03:23. > :03:28.the back of three wins in a row, they are on a roll, they have won 11

:03:29. > :03:36.races since the turn of the century, six of the last eight. Some collier

:03:37. > :03:42.is the cox, Jamie Cook going through there. Cambridge have the benefit of

:03:43. > :03:43.more Boat Race experience. They have four returning Blues. Their

:03:44. > :04:07.president is Henry Hoff -- Hoff stopped. They are strong

:04:08. > :04:11.crew, their form has looked good and they are determined to make sure a

:04:12. > :04:16.winning day. It is beautiful sunshine right now but we have had

:04:17. > :04:22.four seasons in a day already. We have had heavy rain, hail stone

:04:23. > :04:28.before that. The shots are lightning coming down, and actually hitting a

:04:29. > :04:32.tree there which caught fire. We understand the presentation platform

:04:33. > :04:36.in that area is not damaged but it now feels lovely, but the water

:04:37. > :04:41.conditions will be difficult. Anything could happen. This is

:04:42. > :04:44.earlier for spectators, it has not been an enjoyable afternoon so far

:04:45. > :04:49.but we are promised it will continue to Brighton and we should get the

:04:50. > :04:55.better conditions still ahead. It means as far as the race is

:04:56. > :05:01.concerned, it is going to be choppy out there. These are live

:05:02. > :05:04.conditions. For the third time this century, the Boat Race is taking

:05:05. > :05:11.place on Easter Day so happy Easter to everybody and let's welcome

:05:12. > :05:17.George Nash and constant tying the lewdness, they are now part of Team

:05:18. > :05:24.GB. This test is different to anything you would experience

:05:25. > :05:30.anywhere else in rowing. Most rowing is on a two kilometre Lake, you are

:05:31. > :05:37.usually separated by a line of laying boys from the upper --

:05:38. > :05:44.opposition. You mentioned the wind, which today will be very bad. You

:05:45. > :05:49.are coming in blind coming around nothing about your opposition before

:05:50. > :05:54.you start the race so there is loads of uncertainty, nerves, and it is

:05:55. > :06:01.altogether a lot more random factors in play. Adding to that, they are

:06:02. > :06:05.full-time students as well, not full-time athletes. It is an

:06:06. > :06:14.incredibly demanding lifestyle. George and I are full-time athletes

:06:15. > :06:17.now. In comparison it is relaxed, sedate. As a student athlete you get

:06:18. > :06:24.days when you don't have a minute off. You have deadlines, tutorials

:06:25. > :06:27.and training, extremely draining. I mentioned that Cambridge have been

:06:28. > :06:33.in good form recently so are you hopeful this could be the year for

:06:34. > :06:38.the light Blues? You have your scarf on. I have nailed my colours to the

:06:39. > :06:42.mast early with this scarf. Cambridge have shown good form this

:06:43. > :06:51.season and I have everything crossed for them today. They are coming in

:06:52. > :06:53.pretty hot favourites. Constant tying, you are disagreeing with the

:06:54. > :06:57.word hot. They are real bunch of scrappers. They will get out there

:06:58. > :07:01.and take on the mantle of being underdogs. If you style it right,

:07:02. > :07:06.you get the momentum going with you. When you are level against a crew

:07:07. > :07:14.going against you, the momentum is with you. Five of that crew have

:07:15. > :07:18.experienced winning, and they have all improved individually. It is not

:07:19. > :07:27.a write-off at all and I am certainly backing Oxford. The men's

:07:28. > :07:31.race is due at 4:10pm. Nadine Dorries you were part of the Oxford

:07:32. > :07:42.crew that won the first-ever race on the Tideway last year -- Nadine. It

:07:43. > :07:45.is incredibly a motion for me to be back. I remember sitting on the

:07:46. > :07:55.start line and thinking of all the generations of Oxford women who have

:07:56. > :08:00.made it happen. You are still at Oxford studying, aren't you? Yes, I

:08:01. > :08:05.am in my last year. So why aren't you in the boat this year? It

:08:06. > :08:08.requires a lot of dedication and the women in the boat are balancing this

:08:09. > :08:13.with their demanding studies. This year I have a lot of projects to

:08:14. > :08:19.finish and I wanted to focus on my research. Cath Bishop, who was part

:08:20. > :08:23.of a winning Boat Race group for Cambridge in the 1990s, the guys

:08:24. > :08:26.were talking about the difference of this challenge and for the women it

:08:27. > :08:33.is a challenge they haven't had that long to get used to. Yes, it is a

:08:34. > :08:38.new tradition we are building in a way. There are some things that are

:08:39. > :08:41.different, obviously we learn and we talked to the men's clubs, on the

:08:42. > :08:45.other hand we have all done Boat Races and there is something about

:08:46. > :08:53.the intensity and experience that is the same. Yes, the course has

:08:54. > :08:57.changed but in many ways it is about raising Oxford and bringing your

:08:58. > :09:03.best. There is nothing else like it, it is a sporting event which is

:09:04. > :09:07.utterly unique. Here is what we have coming up... Dark blue has been the

:09:08. > :09:14.dominant force in the last decade but every dynasty must come to an

:09:15. > :09:17.end. Nothing ever lasts forever. It is a rowing race and it doesn't

:09:18. > :09:22.matter what history is around it, deal with what is in front of you.

:09:23. > :09:27.Last year Oxford were the first women ever to win the Boat Race on

:09:28. > :09:31.the Tideway. What seemed impossible is now a matter of course. It is

:09:32. > :09:40.such a huge occasion you don't want it to overwhelm you. If it is light

:09:41. > :09:43.blue versus dark blue, we have the Varsity victory is covered. It is so

:09:44. > :09:49.much bigger venue that everybody gets caught up in the narrative.

:09:50. > :09:52.Choppy waters, swirling winds, we have tricky conditions on Easter Day

:09:53. > :09:56.and it could get worse before the men's race at 4:10pm. For those

:09:57. > :10:02.considering coming out to the banks of the Thames to have a look, the

:10:03. > :10:08.news is that now it is warm and sunny so get out there. You should

:10:09. > :10:13.get a good spot as well to enjoy both races. It is a huge social

:10:14. > :10:20.occasion, around 250,000 people are due to be part of this crowd and in

:10:21. > :10:30.amongst them I think checking out the pubs is Helen Skelton. The

:10:31. > :10:38.atmosphere is building in here, this is a pub close to where it kicks

:10:39. > :10:41.off. I'm not the only one who thinks this is an occasion to be

:10:42. > :10:45.celebrated, for a lot of Londoners it is an annual event. Quarter of a

:10:46. > :10:53.million people will line the banks of the Thames today. Among them,

:10:54. > :11:02.myself and comedian Sean Walsh. Good to see you. Why haven't I got a

:11:03. > :11:08.microphone? What is your experience of the Boat Race so far? I have no

:11:09. > :11:17.idea, I am happy to be here. I think there has been a booking error. I

:11:18. > :11:23.think right now Stephen Fry is going to Stoke to do a university gig. We

:11:24. > :11:27.are exploring the social side of the Boat Race. You live a stones throw

:11:28. > :11:32.from here, yet you have never been here. Buy your own admission you

:11:33. > :11:40.thought it was in Cambridge. I'm usually in bed, it is Sunday. All

:11:41. > :11:46.right, mate, how was it going? Everyone is enjoying themselves by

:11:47. > :11:52.the banks of the river. We need to get him involved. Is he part of the

:11:53. > :11:56.Boat Race? He is part of the enviable atmosphere that we will be

:11:57. > :12:03.dipping in and out of all afternoon. Who knows what will happen. We look

:12:04. > :12:07.forward to the uncertainty. The women's crews are out on the water

:12:08. > :12:12.continuing to warm up, but although this is a head-to-head, it is a

:12:13. > :12:17.jewel between two incredibly physically fit crews. It is also a

:12:18. > :12:24.race against the course, and Wayne Common, the winning Cambridge

:12:25. > :12:32.president two years ago, is out there -- there. You can see the

:12:33. > :12:40.brooding skies behind me, it is very windy behind me, we have had hail,

:12:41. > :12:44.wind and lightning. Wind of 40-50 kilometres per hour from the

:12:45. > :12:48.south-west. Halfway through the course after Hammersmith Bridge it

:12:49. > :12:53.will be a big headwind, very rough and the crew that handles at best

:12:54. > :12:57.will win the race. If it gets even rougher than this, it could be

:12:58. > :13:01.sinking conditions with the crews taking on water. Very entertaining

:13:02. > :13:07.to watch but no fun for the crews so we don't want to see that today.

:13:08. > :13:20.There have been awful conditions, six sinkings in total. As and when

:13:21. > :13:26.they make it to the finish, the Jason Mohammad will be there waiting

:13:27. > :13:34.for them. Thank you, very good afternoon to you. I am in place at

:13:35. > :13:38.Mortlake where I will be interviewing the winners and losers.

:13:39. > :13:44.This course isn't just long, it is also open to the elements.

:13:45. > :13:49.Therefore, conditions could change dramatically so tactics and strategy

:13:50. > :13:54.are just as important as brute force and endurance. Matthew Pinsent won

:13:55. > :14:02.this race twice with Oxford, this is his guide to the river of pain. Four

:14:03. > :14:06.miles around 17 minutes of pain. It begins at Putney Bridge. The crew on

:14:07. > :14:09.the left is racing on the Surrey side, the crew on the right,

:14:10. > :14:24.Middlesex. Three and a half minutes into the race they will

:14:25. > :14:26.arrive at the first mile marker, then onwards towards Harrods

:14:27. > :14:28.Depository. Hammersmith Bridge is often a decisive part of the race.

:14:29. > :14:31.The majority of the crews leading here go on to win. The next bend

:14:32. > :14:37.gives the crew on the Surrey side a huge advantage, where conditions can

:14:38. > :14:40.often be rough and windy. Then it is under the central arch of Barnes

:14:41. > :14:45.Bridge before heading onwards to the finished just before Chiswick

:14:46. > :14:49.Bridge. That is the challenge that awaits

:14:50. > :14:55.them but there is no glamour in rowing, you carry your own boat down

:14:56. > :15:00.to the water, and the Cambridge crew have three returning Blues. Ashton

:15:01. > :15:10.Brown, Martschenko and Rosemary Ostfeld. They also have the

:15:11. > :15:20.experience of Myriam Goudet from France. They have core strength and

:15:21. > :15:30.the experience of former winners. Their average age is 23. They are

:15:31. > :15:33.very strong. Rosemary knows them well, she has coxed here in the

:15:34. > :15:36.men's race but you know the comparisons between these crews and

:15:37. > :15:41.would you make Oxford the strong favourites?

:15:42. > :15:46.Oxford are the strong favourites, they have experienced winners coming

:15:47. > :15:52.in as well as a cox who is very talented. Cambridge will be a good

:15:53. > :15:57.crew but I can't see how they could get past Oxford. Will the conditions

:15:58. > :16:00.make it more level? Conditions certainly can come into play

:16:01. > :16:04.depending on whether you get worse on one side than the other, but it's

:16:05. > :16:12.hard to say until you get into the race. The better crew will get into

:16:13. > :16:18.it better but one might have a slightly better boat and be sitting

:16:19. > :16:23.out of the water better. Oxford were impressive last year, what do

:16:24. > :16:26.Cambridge need to do to catch up? They had an outstanding crew last

:16:27. > :16:34.year, there are lots of factors that go into a fast boat at the Boat

:16:35. > :16:39.Race. Having the right coaching and athletes and having belief in your

:16:40. > :16:42.system, a range of factors. You try to build those year-on-year. It's

:16:43. > :16:46.quite difficult to make big leaps but if you are losing you have to

:16:47. > :16:49.try to be more bold about what you might be able to do to make a

:16:50. > :16:54.difference. Some of those things don't change quickly. Nadine Coyle

:16:55. > :16:58.are standing and looking out at the river is their part of you that

:16:59. > :17:02.wishes you were in the Oxford boat? --,

:17:03. > :17:08.on a daylight this it looks pretty tricky. The conditions are

:17:09. > :17:12.definitely tricky and it's a big challenge and it is why we train in

:17:13. > :17:16.all conditions and we go out no matter whether it is raining and no

:17:17. > :17:20.matter what the wind does and we try to be prepared for all of these

:17:21. > :17:25.situations. In recent years Oxford have definitely had the upper hand

:17:26. > :17:29.but over its complete history of the men's and women's races, Cambridge

:17:30. > :17:33.are actually the most successful, so how do these waves of domination

:17:34. > :17:40.come about? Can they be broken? Matthew Pinsent reports. Like the

:17:41. > :17:47.waters of the tidal Thames, the fortunes of the Boat Race come and

:17:48. > :17:56.go. When the tide is in, morale is sky high, but conversely, when its

:17:57. > :18:01.download, it's a long way back. -- low. There is a history of winning

:18:02. > :18:06.runs in the Boat Race, in a period of success it is almost as though

:18:07. > :18:13.the other team can get nowhere near you, and at this moment it's the

:18:14. > :18:18.turn of Oxford. This has been a dark blue clean sweep. Sean Bowden's men

:18:19. > :18:21.have won seven out of the last ten and he has created a dynasty and

:18:22. > :18:26.under Christine Wilson, the women look to be starting their own.

:18:27. > :18:31.Moving to London has completely changed the game for both Oxford and

:18:32. > :18:35.Cambridge. Oxford have only won one race but you get the impression they

:18:36. > :18:41.are on a roll and Cambridge need to really come back. The dark blues

:18:42. > :18:46.haven't always had it their own way. In the 1920s Cambridge's men won 13

:18:47. > :18:52.in a row. And the women did the same at Henley in the 1960s. In the

:18:53. > :18:55.modern era it was Oxford's turn again with the late Dan Topolski

:18:56. > :19:04.leading them to ten years of unparalleled success. It builds up

:19:05. > :19:09.and it can depress the squad but it can also be a stimulus if someone

:19:10. > :19:12.comes along and says, we have got to stop this, that can be really

:19:13. > :19:19.motivating. What are being greedy and is needed to build an empire and

:19:20. > :19:24.create a winning mentality? Once you start on a run of success you keep

:19:25. > :19:27.being successful, so we had a coach who had an effective programme and

:19:28. > :19:32.he knew how to win and people were attracted to it. You began to

:19:33. > :19:39.believe that as long as you went with the system, then you were going

:19:40. > :19:44.to win. The question is, how do you turn it around? How can you bring

:19:45. > :19:48.about the end of a dynasty? I think it is that fundamental self belief

:19:49. > :19:55.that this is our year, we are the ones who can do it, and then you

:19:56. > :19:58.have to find your own method, making your 2000 strokes better than the

:19:59. > :20:04.opposition. Everything has to come to an end. Doesn't it? Nothing ever

:20:05. > :20:07.lasts for ever. It's a rowing race and it doesn't matter about the

:20:08. > :20:13.history around it, you are dealing with what's in front of you, that's

:20:14. > :20:17.the bit you can deal with. If we have a look at recent results you

:20:18. > :20:23.can see that Oxford's dominance, winning eight out of 11 and the

:20:24. > :20:27.Oxford women have won 11 out of 14. The Oxford success rate coincides

:20:28. > :20:37.with the period of Sean Bowden as the coach, taking over in 1998,

:20:38. > :20:41.Constantine, you know how he works, what makes him so successful? He is

:20:42. > :20:44.one of the most thoughtful and innovative coaches in the sport and

:20:45. > :20:49.he brings a real focus to everything he does, when you first meet him he

:20:50. > :20:52.is quite intimidating and he can come across as quite cold but

:20:53. > :20:57.incredibly analytical and brings intense focus do everything he does.

:20:58. > :21:03.He won't follow the crowd and he makes his own decisions. He is a bit

:21:04. > :21:08.of a pioneer in the sport, I think. It has made Oxford a club that

:21:09. > :21:12.everyone else in the sport wants to emulate. Obviously he is a coach

:21:13. > :21:16.through and through. Steve Trapmore came to Cambridge with a good

:21:17. > :21:20.reputation as a row, he was the stroke of the eight that won Gold

:21:21. > :21:27.for Team GB at the Sydney Olympics. What is he like as a coach? Steve,

:21:28. > :21:34.similarly, is quite meticulous, and similarly analytical. He is a bit

:21:35. > :21:36.more personable and Sean, but incredibly passionate and works

:21:37. > :21:41.incredibly hard and is always the first guy into the shed and the last

:21:42. > :21:48.guy to leave, regularly putting in 13 or 14 hour days down there and

:21:49. > :21:51.the passion rubs off on the guys. He is always kind of keen on the

:21:52. > :21:59.technical aspects of the sport, he was famed as being a very particular

:22:00. > :22:03.rower in how he moved and road, and he is keen to instil the passion for

:22:04. > :22:08.technique in the guys. This is his sixth Boat Race in charge with one

:22:09. > :22:12.win so for our. At Oxford, do you get the feeling there that the

:22:13. > :22:17.system is trusted because the system has proved so successful? Is it

:22:18. > :22:22.about process more than personality? It's a different race, as George

:22:23. > :22:25.spoke about earlier. It's different to usual international racing and

:22:26. > :22:30.you need to understand the race and the river and the tactics. If you

:22:31. > :22:34.have a coach like Sean Bowden, or example, who has won year after

:22:35. > :22:40.year, not only does he clearly understand that but is his athlete

:22:41. > :22:44.will trust him straightaway. Going back to the women's race, Cambridge

:22:45. > :22:48.were absolutely dominant, what did they have then that Oxford didn't?

:22:49. > :22:54.They had a really strong coaching team with legendary Ron and Roger,

:22:55. > :22:57.these amazing coaches who turned many of those closet into Olympians

:22:58. > :23:05.over an incredible period. We had a lot of talent coming through. -- he

:23:06. > :23:08.turned many of us into Olympians. We certainly tried different things and

:23:09. > :23:13.they have looked at bringing in guest coaches and freshness and

:23:14. > :23:16.inspiration to lift things and get the edge. It also comes down to the

:23:17. > :23:21.talent that you have at the beginning of the season and there is

:23:22. > :23:25.only a short period, September to March, to mould these athletes, some

:23:26. > :23:30.of whom are incredibly new to the sport. It is a lot to do in a short

:23:31. > :23:33.period. Four years ago they recruited a woman with Olympic

:23:34. > :23:38.experience, Christine Wilson is Canadian but had worked with the USA

:23:39. > :23:42.at the Olympics and coached men at Yale and Cornell. She has a holistic

:23:43. > :23:46.approach to the crew and students, she believes in developing their

:23:47. > :23:54.personalities as well as talent, but she does expect the best out of

:23:55. > :24:00.them. To be able to work with somebody who is that talented, in a

:24:01. > :24:07.high-performance environment, is incredible. She knows more about how

:24:08. > :24:13.I work than I do. There is an underlying desire to really gain her

:24:14. > :24:18.respect. We are going to organise you into two groups, one will start

:24:19. > :24:24.in the tanks and one on the station and then there will be a swap, OK?

:24:25. > :24:27.The building of every team is a little bit of a mysterious process.

:24:28. > :24:32.They don't have to be best friends, but they do have to trust each other

:24:33. > :24:38.and finding those dynamics isn't ever a straight line approach. You

:24:39. > :24:41.said your job is to worry, so do you have nights where you are lying in

:24:42. > :24:46.bed and worrying about your number six or the dissertation they should

:24:47. > :24:53.have finished? It is a coaches job to worry behind-the-scenes, so I do

:24:54. > :24:58.have sleepless nights. I have never met a coach who can look at a boat

:24:59. > :25:03.and immediately assess how they can improve and what they can do to get

:25:04. > :25:11.better. It's way more compact and connected to the foot stretch and

:25:12. > :25:14.the hull. We like to think we are in control but at the end of the day

:25:15. > :25:19.it's up to them. As it gets closer to race day, what do you say to them

:25:20. > :25:24.to stop them obsessing because most of us would? We stay focused on the

:25:25. > :25:28.process, always elevating the standard of these women. It's almost

:25:29. > :25:32.like a polishing of rough diamonds. She has taken the time to invest in

:25:33. > :25:40.you, and there is always that desire to hear that comment where she says,

:25:41. > :25:47.that's the right idea. At different times, these women, they do need

:25:48. > :25:51.bolstering. Because what they are doing is just flat out impressive.

:25:52. > :25:54.I'm not sure I could do it. I'm pretty excited about what this crew

:25:55. > :25:59.can do at their best. Their performance on the day is their

:26:00. > :26:05.message to the world. If they are prepared and they show up when it

:26:06. > :26:10.matters, that's pretty fun to watch. And they do look very strong in

:26:11. > :26:14.training, I have to say. Katherine Grainger, the Olympic champion, is

:26:15. > :26:19.beside me. You have seen Christine in action. They have a good setup,

:26:20. > :26:23.Oxford? They do, and they have confidence that the system and

:26:24. > :26:28.coaching works and the athletes need to fit into the system the best they

:26:29. > :26:33.can. How about you? We are set for Rio, how are things, how are you? We

:26:34. > :26:46.are not set yet, a few months to go but we are aiming for Rio now, as

:26:47. > :26:48.soon as the clock ticked into 2016 that is everyone's focus. The final

:26:49. > :26:51.countdown. We are announcing the crews in the coming weeks. Game on.

:26:52. > :26:53.Presumably for some people it is still very open? The big selection

:26:54. > :26:56.dates have come and gone and everyone has improved as much as

:26:57. > :27:00.they can. The coaches are fine tuning the boats for Rio. It is not

:27:01. > :27:04.relaxed and comfortable yet, there are still more athletes than we need

:27:05. > :27:08.so there will be cuts and that is tough for everyone in the squad.

:27:09. > :27:11.It's fair to say that there is one certainty, they are the hottest

:27:12. > :27:21.favourites of any of the British athletes going to Rio, to win gold,

:27:22. > :27:30.that is these two. Its two in a row at the European Championships. They

:27:31. > :27:34.are the world champions again. Great Britain are Olympic champion! They

:27:35. > :27:48.are the worthy winners. They are here today and they will be

:27:49. > :27:53.doing the honours in the presentation later. Let's head out

:27:54. > :27:56.to Jason who I hope has got them. Yes, thanks very much, the

:27:57. > :28:03.excitement is mounting here at the finish line, and Heather and Helen

:28:04. > :28:06.are beside me. You were out on the water, what were the conditions

:28:07. > :28:11.like? It was sunny and the water was flat but by mid-morning it was a

:28:12. > :28:15.different story. I hope it's OK. The conditions will be crucial this

:28:16. > :28:20.afternoon? Yes, especially because you have to go on one side or the

:28:21. > :28:25.other and the coxes will have a big job to do. You are handing out the

:28:26. > :28:29.trophy is, how honoured are you to be here? Really honoured because we

:28:30. > :28:32.know this will be the highlight of their years. I'm sure they were

:28:33. > :28:36.probably won't remember who hands then the trophy but it's a big deal

:28:37. > :28:40.for us and it's nice to be asked. Feeling good for Rio? At the moment

:28:41. > :28:44.we are feeling strong but there are still a few months to go. A bit more

:28:45. > :28:51.training to do but everything is on track. Good luck for Rio and we look

:28:52. > :28:56.forward to seeing you a of Brazil. Helen Skelton, where are you? We are

:28:57. > :29:01.at the Blue Anchor, bit of a pilgrimage for both racegoers. I've

:29:02. > :29:06.never seen so many middle-class people in my life! It's like a

:29:07. > :29:12.Waitrose on Black Friday! Look how many pastel colours there are! This

:29:13. > :29:16.really is an event for everybody. Especially now that the women's race

:29:17. > :29:20.happens on the same day, the second year. Lots of families gather on the

:29:21. > :29:25.south side of the river to catch a glimpse of this historical event,

:29:26. > :29:30.part of the nation's rich tapestry. I have a question, do the women have

:29:31. > :29:35.cox? They certainly do, that is a very important role. This boat is

:29:36. > :29:40.the same length as a double-decker bus. That is big. They are steering

:29:41. > :29:44.using a rudder the size of a credit card and every time they use that

:29:45. > :29:52.they are breaking the boat, they have to find the best line. I have

:29:53. > :29:57.rowed and paddled a lot, there is a lot of pressure on these rowers,

:29:58. > :30:01.including the lady who is looking for success in the Cambridge number

:30:02. > :30:05.five seed, Daphne Martschenko. Rowing means everything to me, I

:30:06. > :30:09.started when I first got into secondary school. And I was never

:30:10. > :30:14.athletic before that. It completely changed my life in terms of giving

:30:15. > :30:18.me the confidence to be able to do sport and Excel. To be able to come

:30:19. > :30:22.here and have hundreds of thousands of people watching the race, that is

:30:23. > :30:29.unparalleled compared to anything I had ever experienced before in my

:30:30. > :30:32.life. It's not an easy sport, how difficult and demanding is your

:30:33. > :30:40.schedule? We take the train three days a week to Ely come and we have

:30:41. > :30:46.a session which enables us to get back in time for 9am lectures. In

:30:47. > :30:52.the afternoon we will have a erg or a weights session. You train in the

:30:53. > :30:57.same way as professional full-time athletes but you are studying as

:30:58. > :31:01.well, how difficult is it? Some days you feel like Superwoman because you

:31:02. > :31:10.can accomplish all you need to do in the academic sphere and you go and

:31:11. > :31:18.crush it on an ergo session. The closing stages of a painful row for

:31:19. > :31:22.Cambridge. We have a lot of drive this year and the energy in the

:31:23. > :31:27.squad has been incredible. Thereafter re-of us returning from

:31:28. > :31:31.last year and it's definitely an advantage especially because our cox

:31:32. > :31:37.Rosemary Ostfeld was the blue boat cox last year, coming back is a huge

:31:38. > :31:42.asset for us. It sounds like you get a lot out of the sport but on race

:31:43. > :31:45.day, how serious is the Boat Race to you? It is the event that you spend

:31:46. > :31:50.all year training for and it's always in the back of your mind that

:31:51. > :31:54.that is the goal that you are working towards. It is the Boat Race

:31:55. > :32:02.and that's the only race that matters. Daphne is one of three

:32:03. > :32:18.returning Blues in the Cambridge boat.

:32:19. > :32:30.We are live on the banks of the Thames. The course, twisting and

:32:31. > :32:41.turning, stretching ahead of them. Four and a quarter miles. Cath

:32:42. > :32:50.Bishop is with me, and how often would they do a race over four and a

:32:51. > :32:55.quarter miles? Not very often. The Cambridge crew raced in the same

:32:56. > :33:00.course but the other way round, but in a timed race, a time trial. It is

:33:01. > :33:08.not something you do, even at Olympic level, you wouldn't race two

:33:09. > :33:14.kilometres that often. You would do shorter, sharper pieces that would

:33:15. > :33:18.build up ready to do this. We will talk more about tactics, but first

:33:19. > :33:27.let's meet the two teams about to compete in the Women's Boat Race.

:33:28. > :33:31.First up, the Coxes. Morgan Baynham-Williams is Debbie tent, one

:33:32. > :33:36.with international experience. American Rosemary Ostfeld returns to

:33:37. > :33:54.give orders to the Cambridge crew. And stroke, Lauren Kedar. Muddy

:33:55. > :34:01.backcourt is striving for her second straight win with Oxford. Cambridge

:34:02. > :34:07.president Hannah Roberts steps up after two years of experience in the

:34:08. > :34:11.reserve boat. It is such a huge occasion you don't want the

:34:12. > :34:18.excitement to overwhelm you. At six, hoping to make it four wins from

:34:19. > :34:30.four appearances, Anastasia Chitty. For Cambridge, 27-year-old French

:34:31. > :34:42.international Myriam Goudet. Elo Luik becomes the first Estonian to

:34:43. > :34:52.compete. Daphne Martschenko will be hoping to make amends for last

:34:53. > :35:09.year's defeat. Two more first timers at three, Joanne Jansen and Alice

:35:10. > :35:14.Jackson. At two, MS spruce, while Fiona Matalin follows in the

:35:15. > :35:21.footsteps of her grandfather, who rowed for Cambridge in 1951. I feel

:35:22. > :35:36.very lucky to be sitting in his seat. And there is a Canadian

:35:37. > :35:42.flavour out bow, Emma Lukasiewicz, while Ashton Brown for Cambridge has

:35:43. > :35:46.Canadian nationality. And they are the crews whose

:35:47. > :35:49.stomachs will be churning right now and they will be trying to focus on

:35:50. > :36:02.the challenge ahead. Let talk about the Coxes, Baynham-Williams and

:36:03. > :36:09.Ostfeld, how do they shape up? Morgan is an extremely experienced

:36:10. > :36:14.international cox and I think she will put her crew in an excellent

:36:15. > :36:19.place today. Is it likely they will have pumps on board on these boats?

:36:20. > :36:22.I'm pretty sure they will have their pumps on board. You need a good

:36:23. > :36:26.amount of water before it is worth taking the weight of the pumps but

:36:27. > :36:32.given the conditions predicted, I suspect they will have opted to put

:36:33. > :36:36.the pumps in. Cath, does it add weight? It doesn't make a huge

:36:37. > :36:42.amount of difference, and if both crews have them there is no real

:36:43. > :36:48.advantage. Does that mean it is much more difficult for a crew to sink or

:36:49. > :36:54.is it still possible? It is pretty difficult for recruit to sink. You

:36:55. > :36:57.can move to find better water. They are small boats, it is still

:36:58. > :37:04.possible and if the waves high enough the water can fill into the

:37:05. > :37:10.boat so it can happen. Not that they will be thinking about that, I

:37:11. > :37:14.suspect it is all positive. Yes, although the Coxes will be prepared

:37:15. > :37:18.for the water, they will be prepared to make decisions about their

:37:19. > :37:25.steering if it comes to it. The sun is out now, so hopefully the

:37:26. > :37:29.conditions will be much more pleasurable for the spectators.

:37:30. > :37:30.Andrew Cotter will describe the Cancer Research UK Women's Boat Race

:37:31. > :38:22.of 2016. Good afternoon. You think of all the

:38:23. > :38:26.work that has been done, and that will pay off in the next 20 minutes.

:38:27. > :38:31.The waiting is almost over, but you can see the life in the river

:38:32. > :38:35.already from the overhead shots. That wind as they sit in the start

:38:36. > :38:41.is coming from the left and a little bit behind. You think perhaps of the

:38:42. > :38:46.Thames as flowing out to sea in a linear direction, west to east, east

:38:47. > :38:55.to west, but it doesn't, it weaves around. They head north-west

:38:56. > :38:58.firstly, and into the second half of the race they will turn round into

:38:59. > :39:00.the wind and the river will be venomous. Wayne will be out on the

:39:01. > :39:06.river, and it is pretty lively already. Yes, there is a heck of a

:39:07. > :39:14.wind. It will be hard for these boats to stay straight off the

:39:15. > :39:18.start. Both will have to work hard to stay aligned. The minutes feel

:39:19. > :39:23.like ours and it is even worse when there is this kind of wind out

:39:24. > :39:27.today. And the start is so important. You might not think it

:39:28. > :39:30.would be in a race of four and a quarter miles but the first few

:39:31. > :39:37.strokes are there building blocks. They set the race for you, and to

:39:38. > :39:41.get a good start is vital. You can see also the difficulty here that in

:39:42. > :39:49.these conditions the boats will start to display around little bit.

:39:50. > :39:55.They cannot really drift too far ahead of each other, but they can

:39:56. > :40:05.move in different directions and start to point towards one bank or

:40:06. > :40:11.the other. The women are racing a couple of hours before high tide,

:40:12. > :40:15.the men will race one hour before, but the river flows with them

:40:16. > :40:20.because the tide is coming in. They are down at Putney Bridge, the

:40:21. > :40:25.famous starting point. There is a little stone in the South bank,

:40:26. > :40:33.University Stone, which marks the starting line of the Boat Race. And

:40:34. > :40:39.Oxford are on the Surrey station. They won the toss and chose that.

:40:40. > :40:48.Just as Cambridge in the men's race, they won the toss and chose that as

:40:49. > :40:54.well. We are one-minute or so away from the start. Can this Cambridge

:40:55. > :40:58.crew somehow bridge the gap that was clearly there last year and in

:40:59. > :41:02.recent seasons as well because Oxford have dominated this. They

:41:03. > :41:17.dominated last year. Both crews with three returning Blues.

:41:18. > :41:36.The umpire for this one is Rob Clegg, there he is, he rowed in the

:41:37. > :41:43.1990s for Oxford. Arms in the air tell us. Rosemary Ostfeld is not

:41:44. > :41:46.happy with the way her boat is sitting at the moment. When her arm

:41:47. > :42:04.drops, that will signify that she is ready. Ready to go now. Rosemary

:42:05. > :42:09.Ostfeld puts her hand up again. Both crews have got to be satisfied that

:42:10. > :42:16.their boat has just the right direction to start. As I say, they

:42:17. > :42:24.are drifting around, but Rob Clegg is ready. You can see the arm of

:42:25. > :42:32.Rosemary Ostfeld up again, and Morgan Baynham-Williams has her arm

:42:33. > :42:37.up. When her arm goes down, the tension and go will be the simple

:42:38. > :42:44.instruction. Quickly, Cath, it is so important to get this good start.

:42:45. > :42:50.Crucial. If you are not ahead in the first period, it is really hard to

:42:51. > :42:56.come back. It is crucial to commit. Rosemary Ostfeld is happy. Ready

:42:57. > :43:01.now, so they go, and Oxford just sitting there for a moment on the

:43:02. > :43:06.start as Cambridge seem to get out more brightly. It is a real bruising

:43:07. > :43:10.efforts for the first minute or so, then they settle into things but

:43:11. > :43:14.this start is so important. Oxford really didn't look ready for that

:43:15. > :43:21.start, contrary to the practice start I saw them do on Friday. They

:43:22. > :43:25.looked really good and sharp, so I'm quite surprised they really seemed

:43:26. > :43:30.to struggle at the first stroke. As you can see, they are coming back

:43:31. > :43:36.into it now. They have a very strong mid-race pace, once they got off

:43:37. > :43:42.this initial fast, hard part of the race they will be into it. Just a

:43:43. > :43:46.fraction down at the moment, Oxford. Cambridge will have the initial

:43:47. > :43:55.advantage of the bend round Craven Cottage. Oxford were really caught

:43:56. > :43:59.napping. It is certainly going to help the Cambridge girls feel it has

:44:00. > :44:03.gone well from the first moment, they will be settling themselves

:44:04. > :44:07.down as the body releases the adrenaline and the sheer intensity

:44:08. > :44:13.of that start as well. They are beautiful conditions at the moment.

:44:14. > :44:18.It is bouncy out there, and will get even more lively past Hammersmith

:44:19. > :44:22.Bridge. You can see Oxford have made up for that start, and they are

:44:23. > :44:26.beginning to eke ahead. They will have to try to come round the

:44:27. > :44:33.outside of the initial bend, which will favour the Cambridge crew on

:44:34. > :44:38.the northside of the river. Cambridge are working hard, putting

:44:39. > :44:41.in a bit of a push. It will be a big commitment point, the Cambridge

:44:42. > :44:45.girls have talked about the importance of coming out of start

:44:46. > :44:50.and maintaining the intensity that keeps them in the race that will

:44:51. > :44:54.give them a chance later. You can see Cambridge's stroke rate is

:44:55. > :44:58.slightly higher, they are taking more strokes per minute than Oxford

:44:59. > :45:08.which means the pace they are setting might be more unsustainable.

:45:09. > :45:19.They are getting close to clashing and Rob Clegg, the umpire, is

:45:20. > :45:26.warning them. Both coxes know the line they are allowed to take. Many

:45:27. > :45:31.hours' training. They are creeping together. This actually means the

:45:32. > :45:34.coxes are fighting for the water and getting the advantage on this first

:45:35. > :45:41.bend will be crucial. Of course they are looking for the same line. The

:45:42. > :45:48.reason they both look for the same line is because the fastest water is

:45:49. > :45:52.in the middle. It actually comes out at Craven Cottage, it is quite far

:45:53. > :45:57.out from the north bank and they are both fighting for that fast water at

:45:58. > :46:02.the moment. It is a good race in the early stages. Rosemary Ostfeld has

:46:03. > :46:07.done a good job of holding Oxford out on the initial bend. Oxford have

:46:08. > :46:14.also done a good job of staying with her. She's doing a great job of

:46:15. > :46:19.keeping her crew in the race, but I suspect after this bend Oxford will

:46:20. > :46:27.creep out on the straight. Not too much between the crews in terms of

:46:28. > :46:34.their bows, and also the blades coming closer together, we might see

:46:35. > :46:39.a clash. We see a shot of how wide they have to come round past Craven

:46:40. > :46:45.Cottage because the faster water is closer to the Southbank as we look.

:46:46. > :46:49.Of course when we get that overhead view, it is easy to see where they

:46:50. > :46:52.are on the river, but when you are sitting in that boat, it is really

:46:53. > :46:58.difficult to get that same perspective. Yes, that's one of the

:46:59. > :47:02.hardest things of coxing the Boat Races, knowing where the best line

:47:03. > :47:07.is. As I know from my horrible experience of the Boat Race, you can

:47:08. > :47:11.do a lot to make mistakes as a cox and this looks like a significant

:47:12. > :47:17.moment for Oxford as they are coming onto the straight. There are stages

:47:18. > :47:25.in races where the cox will ask for a push, it certainly seems to have

:47:26. > :47:27.happened for Oxford. Even with that, Oxford have taken out almost half a

:47:28. > :47:35.length. They did what they wanted, what they

:47:36. > :47:39.talked about earlier in the week, having a good start and keeping up

:47:40. > :47:46.the intensity but now they have to find something that can give them

:47:47. > :47:49.that speed per stroke. You can hear Rosemary Ostfeld, the very

:47:50. > :48:01.experienced Cambridge cox, the returning Blue. Let's listen in. 34,

:48:02. > :48:10.push it again. Likes! You have got it. Legs through -- legs! You have

:48:11. > :48:16.got it, guys. All right, I need you to now. Those cries you are very

:48:17. > :48:23.familiar with, Zoe. Constant encouragement. Yes, you can start to

:48:24. > :48:26.hear the desperation creeping in, she knows that this is a really

:48:27. > :48:31.vital moment to keep her crew in the race and I do think they have done a

:48:32. > :48:35.good job so far against a very strong Oxford crew. It looks like

:48:36. > :48:43.Oxford have now made their decision to start to move away. What you can

:48:44. > :48:49.really see is that they have a bit more length, Oxford, the oars are in

:48:50. > :48:53.the water for a bit longer which adds up on each stroke, 35 strokes

:48:54. > :48:59.per minute, inching away, they added that push. Cambridge are going to

:49:00. > :49:04.struggle at this point in the race to find more length, everything you

:49:05. > :49:07.do day by day, the training, to row a long stroke that you can maintain

:49:08. > :49:12.under pressure, and Oxford are doing it better at the moment. As they

:49:13. > :49:18.sail past one of the more familiar sights, the Harrods Depository, they

:49:19. > :49:24.are expensive flats now, and you can see that Oxford are beginning to go

:49:25. > :49:29.clear. Ashton Brown in the bow seat is the only one who can see

:49:30. > :49:33.anything. They are going towards Hammersmith Bridge. Coming close

:49:34. > :49:36.together again. This is desperate for Cambridge because now the Big

:49:37. > :49:43.Ben favours Oxford so this will be a hard six minutes for Cambridge. --

:49:44. > :49:47.the big bend. It has been a heck of a race up to this point but Oxford

:49:48. > :49:51.after the bad start just had a better, longer rhythm. A minute ago

:49:52. > :49:56.I saw them putting in 20 or 30 strokes, a big push. You can see the

:49:57. > :49:59.difference it has made and if they can do that again they can get away

:50:00. > :50:11.from Cambridge in the next minute or two. Once again, Rosemary Ostfeld

:50:12. > :50:19.trying to purge on their crews. They have crept a bit back and once again

:50:20. > :50:22.they are coming closer together. -- urging on. This will really hurt

:50:23. > :50:26.Cambridge, they have done a great job to get back and they have not

:50:27. > :50:31.broken contact so Oxford should not come across in front at this point.

:50:32. > :50:35.That was both crews coming together and you could hear the umpire

:50:36. > :50:39.warning both of them to move apart. That was far too close for me. You

:50:40. > :50:44.don't want a clash in the Boat Race, I know that far too well. That

:50:45. > :50:46.looked a bit risky but having said that Rosemary Ostfeld is keeping her

:50:47. > :51:03.crew in the race. A great job not to lose

:51:04. > :51:06.contact, looked as though Oxford would move away but the Cambridge

:51:07. > :51:08.girls fought hard to hold on. Can they now, this is critical, hard for

:51:09. > :51:11.them on the outside of the bend because the bandage is with Oxford,

:51:12. > :51:14.but what can they do? The blade of the number two seed, of Cambridge,

:51:15. > :51:16.Fiona Macklin, was very close to Oxford. They have put in another

:51:17. > :51:22.push now. They are coming together again. -- number two seat. It all

:51:23. > :51:29.favours Oxford now and they are in charge of this race now. The water

:51:30. > :51:32.is more choppy there too. Much harder, the advantaged is definitely

:51:33. > :51:36.with Oxford. Cambridge are battling hard. This is what we promised you,

:51:37. > :51:44.coming around the bend and heading into the wind, as they go, South,

:51:45. > :51:47.South West, once you get past Chiswick Eyot, you can see the river

:51:48. > :51:51.and how they are having to battle and which crew can cope better? It's

:51:52. > :51:56.just one of those things in the Boat Race, you have to deal with this

:51:57. > :51:59.water in an Olympic event where you have time, but that is not something

:52:00. > :52:06.you do in the Boat Race. I was coxing the veterans Boat Race and

:52:07. > :52:09.the water was appalling. It is good to see both of the crews still

:52:10. > :52:14.rowing reasonably cleanly into this water. There is a better view, from

:52:15. > :52:19.up high if looks placid but down there you can see them grappling

:52:20. > :52:25.with it. These boats are designed to cut through the water, but this is a

:52:26. > :52:28.real test of all of their technique. Yes, you can really see on the

:52:29. > :52:32.right-hand side your picture how rough the water is and it might

:52:33. > :52:37.affect Cambridge more than Oxford. They do look like they have slightly

:52:38. > :52:41.rougher water. And you can now see that Oxford are starting to move

:52:42. > :52:45.away and how those waves are really hitting Cambridge hard. They are

:52:46. > :52:50.getting filthy water sent down to them, as if it weren't bad enough,

:52:51. > :52:54.now they have all sorts of puddles and dirty water. It's very

:52:55. > :53:00.difficult. The Cambridge boat is rocking around. Almost impossible

:53:01. > :53:06.conditions to row in. Cambridge are trying to maintain contact. It is

:53:07. > :53:09.absolutely Drupal down here and Cambridge got the worst of it

:53:10. > :53:13.because they were furthest from the shelter of the Surrey bank and in

:53:14. > :53:18.the last 30 seconds Cambridge have taken on real water, I saw a few big

:53:19. > :53:22.waves coming into their boat and I assume they have turned on the pumps

:53:23. > :53:25.but it's looking very heavy now. You can see Rosemary Ostfeld heading for

:53:26. > :53:30.the shelter of the Surrey bank to get out of it. For some reason

:53:31. > :53:38.Oxford are in the worst of the waves and now are struggling. That's a

:53:39. > :53:41.strange move, look at Oxford there, with a quizzical look on your face?

:53:42. > :53:43.I'm not sure what they were thinking there, they have the better water on

:53:44. > :53:53.the Surrey line and Oxford have headed into the rougher water now.

:53:54. > :53:57.The Oxford cox Morgan Baynham-Williams is a very

:53:58. > :54:01.experienced character. Heading at running speed towards each other.

:54:02. > :54:07.Oxford clearly thought better of that decision and came back. They do

:54:08. > :54:14.have clear water, they have the bend anyway. That almost let Cambridge

:54:15. > :54:18.back into it. This bend is running fast for Oxford, they had plenty of

:54:19. > :54:23.clear water and that mistake has really cost them, Cambridge do have

:54:24. > :54:27.a bit bend left after we get past Barnes Bridge. There is water being

:54:28. > :54:31.taken on there, the pumps will be working hard, they have splashed

:54:32. > :54:35.boards as well. Cambridge are hanging on once again. I'm not sure

:54:36. > :54:41.Oxford will make that mistake again with a desperate lunge to the north.

:54:42. > :54:46.That's what a major error by Oxford. -- that was a major error. Can

:54:47. > :54:49.Cambridge capitalise? It's hard to add anything to what you are doing

:54:50. > :54:54.in rough water because you are being constantly thrown off your rhythm by

:54:55. > :54:58.the conditions. Hopefully they will sense how much they caught them up

:54:59. > :55:01.and now they will have to make a move somehow and get some confidence

:55:02. > :55:06.that Oxford are making mistakes out there. You always work so hard on

:55:07. > :55:10.your technique and it comes down to just feathering the blade and you

:55:11. > :55:13.come out in these conditions and it's a very different prospect,

:55:14. > :55:19.Oxford have pulled clear again and you can see their lead. The river is

:55:20. > :55:22.in venomous mood today and it will play a major part in the race and

:55:23. > :55:27.certainly in the men's race. That's what makes racing on the Tideway

:55:28. > :55:31.such a glorious thing, it is alive and it has character. It has

:55:32. > :55:36.personality. It gets angry. This is an angry day for the tide way.

:55:37. > :55:40.Oxford still have the lead, almost a length clear now and they still have

:55:41. > :55:47.the advantage, the bend is playing out now, but they still have the

:55:48. > :55:50.slight advantage of the large sweeping bend as they head down

:55:51. > :55:54.towards Barnes and now the order has been restored. For a moment it was

:55:55. > :55:56.frightening for Oxford and I'm sure Morgan Baynham-Williams will look

:55:57. > :56:00.back on that but they have a better rhythm now and they will reassert

:56:01. > :56:06.their authority in the race. There is more life in the Oxford crew,

:56:07. > :56:10.they have got that sort of lightness, their boat is higher. It

:56:11. > :56:15.looks heavier for Cambridge. It's hard to get out of place where it is

:56:16. > :56:19.so heavy, each stroke, how can you lighten it? You have to put more

:56:20. > :56:22.effort in and everyone does it together. At this point with this

:56:23. > :56:33.level of fatigue that incredibly difficult. As we leave the pier

:56:34. > :56:35.coming into the last third of the race, Oxford have a commanding lead

:56:36. > :56:39.but Cambridge are sticking with them and it will be interesting to see

:56:40. > :56:44.what happens if the water stays rough. With that clear water in the

:56:45. > :56:48.final bend there is no advantage for Cambridge because Oxford can choose

:56:49. > :56:54.their line, but you can see the chop in the water and its fascinating

:56:55. > :56:59.conditions. The flotilla behind is chopping up the water as well.

:57:00. > :57:03.Rosemary Ostfeld is making a bit of a move as well towards the Middlesex

:57:04. > :57:09.bank. Just hanging in there, a couple of links, certainly Oxford

:57:10. > :57:15.are in control but Cambridge still have an outside chance. -- a couple

:57:16. > :57:19.of lengths. On the Surrey side, the Oxford side of the river, there is a

:57:20. > :57:24.real patch of dead water, it's very flat and shallow and slow. It looks

:57:25. > :57:28.like Oxford are now crossing over and obviously looking to stay out of

:57:29. > :57:32.the shallow water. If Cambridge move back Oxford will have to move back

:57:33. > :57:37.towards the slower water. Cambridge are struggling with the water, big

:57:38. > :57:41.waves, really rocking them, the boat was rocking each way. It is tough

:57:42. > :57:45.going out there and there is not much shelter because this is the

:57:46. > :57:48.worst bit in terms of waves. Oxford have made a big move out of the

:57:49. > :57:52.stream, they decided they don't want to be in the rough water and are

:57:53. > :57:57.moving straight into the bank and I'm not sure it will pay off. That

:57:58. > :58:01.is a risk. A long way out of the best water now. This is a test of

:58:02. > :58:06.coxing. We are finding out where the stream is and whether the roughness

:58:07. > :58:09.is giving them an advantage or slowing them down. All of the

:58:10. > :58:14.Tideway legends will say that you have to stay in the stream. Shallow

:58:15. > :58:19.water towards the bank but Oxford believe that there might be smoother

:58:20. > :58:24.water there, and it will cancel out the lack of stream to help them.

:58:25. > :58:28.That I'm not sure about Oxford going to the Surrey bank and heading for

:58:29. > :58:32.the shelter, but I think Cambridge have coxed this better and given

:58:33. > :58:38.themselves a chance. There are still three lengths now. But Cambridge are

:58:39. > :58:44.resolutely staying on the racing line and Oxford are heading for

:58:45. > :58:48.shelter. This is just the most interesting steering I have ever

:58:49. > :58:53.seen, at least in the last ten years of the Boat Race. The creative

:58:54. > :58:56.coxing going on today. Morgan Baynham-Williams of Oxford making a

:58:57. > :59:00.hugely calculated move to head for the save water along the Middlesex

:59:01. > :59:03.bank. At first I thought she was crazy but now I see what is

:59:04. > :59:10.happening with Cambridge in front of me I think Morgan was the smart one,

:59:11. > :59:14.Cambridge have half sunk. I can see white horses engulfing the Cambridge

:59:15. > :59:18.boat. You can see the difficulties that Cambridge are in. All sorts of

:59:19. > :59:23.trouble now and the pump will be working so hard. You can see the

:59:24. > :59:27.water, standing in the shell will stop Cambridge are in real

:59:28. > :59:30.difficulty. This is where the Cambridge men's boat sank in 78 and

:59:31. > :59:36.it would take a lot with about with modern advances do sink but you can

:59:37. > :59:40.see the difficulties they have. This is not something that the pumps can

:59:41. > :59:46.do. There is a good chance that the Cambridge boat won't make it to the

:59:47. > :59:54.finish line. Cambridge are going to lose this race, and now it's a

:59:55. > :59:58.battle to finish. That is the view from Rosemary Ostfeld, you can see

:59:59. > :00:03.what she is dealing with! The water is splashing around inside the boat.

:00:04. > :00:09.And it's creeping almost over the bow, into the seat of Ashton Brown.

:00:10. > :00:12.The real bother now, and suddenly the decision by Oxford to head for

:00:13. > :00:17.the shelter of the bank seems like amassed a stroke. Cambridge in real

:00:18. > :00:21.trouble here. Cambridge has already shipped more water earlier so they

:00:22. > :00:25.were carrying more water from after Hammersmith. It will be incredibly

:00:26. > :00:29.difficult for them. They are not racing, they are literally in

:00:30. > :00:34.survival mode. The stroke rate is right down, Oxford are heading for

:00:35. > :00:37.victory, a long way clear and not far from the finish. Cambridge are

:00:38. > :00:43.labouring their way through the waters of the Thames today. They

:00:44. > :00:47.will have to graft simply to finish. They will head for the central span

:00:48. > :00:51.of Barnes Bridge and the rather more Syrian progress of Oxford. Cambridge

:00:52. > :00:56.are a long way back and it's hard graft now. If they can get a bit of

:00:57. > :01:00.clear water the pumps. Working, as there is more water filling in the

:01:01. > :01:04.pumps can't keep up, so perhaps as they clear out of Barnes Bridge now

:01:05. > :01:08.they can stay a bit higher out of the water and they might start

:01:09. > :01:11.shipping some of it out and you will see the pumps feeding over the side

:01:12. > :01:18.of the boat and see them shooting water out. But with water like this

:01:19. > :01:21.I think they might not make it. There have been no sinkings in the

:01:22. > :01:26.women's Boat Race so far and I fear we may be about to see one. They are

:01:27. > :01:31.now almost fully underwater. I can't see how the Cambridge boat will make

:01:32. > :01:34.the finish line. What a moment, a red flag has been waived and in the

:01:35. > :01:40.shadows of Barnes Bridge Cambridge are sinking. Cambridge, you will

:01:41. > :01:44.have to state to the side, we will pick you up. If you want to keep

:01:45. > :01:48.going you can keep going. History has been made but not the history we

:01:49. > :01:55.wanted to see today. They want to keep going, they are here. They will

:01:56. > :01:59.be 1000 metres to go, but there are now heading to the side, they want

:02:00. > :02:00.to keep going says Rosemary Ostfeld and they all will want to keep in

:02:01. > :02:13.but is it even possible? If they can find some shallow water,

:02:14. > :02:17.they might get some water out of the boat. I cannot see how they will get

:02:18. > :02:23.to the finish line, but perhaps they will. They clearly want to finish

:02:24. > :02:28.this race. This will be a victory of sorts in itself if they can make it

:02:29. > :02:32.to the finish. Oxford are long way clear and made the decision through

:02:33. > :02:44.Morgan Baynham-Williams to head for shelter. Oxford sail on, pushing on

:02:45. > :02:47.towards victory here in the 71st Women's Boat Race. A dark blue

:02:48. > :02:59.victory it will be once again, and victory once more for the likes of

:03:00. > :03:19.Anastasia Chitty, muddy blood clot, Lauren -- Maddy Badcott and Lauren

:03:20. > :03:26.Kedar. They have been through hell and high water. In March you can get

:03:27. > :03:35.all sorts of wind and weather you don't get in some of racing. It is a

:03:36. > :03:39.different world from the Olympics and brings these other factors that

:03:40. > :03:45.the weather and the water throws at you. But the moment will shortly

:03:46. > :03:50.belong to Oxford once again, as they come up to the brewery and finished

:03:51. > :03:55.just before Chiswick Bridge. You can just see hidden by the trees and the

:03:56. > :03:59.shelter of the north bank, Cambridge are gamely battling on. I'm sure

:04:00. > :04:05.they will finish this now, it seems to have cleared a little bit for

:04:06. > :04:10.them but it will be victory once again for Oxford. They have chosen

:04:11. > :04:23.their course through Morgan Baynham-Williams. Oxford are going

:04:24. > :04:27.to win, and by a handsome margin as well. They have beaten Cambridge,

:04:28. > :04:33.they have beaten the conditions as well, they have mastered the river,

:04:34. > :04:42.in all its devilish nurse today. Oxford win the 71st Women's Boat

:04:43. > :04:46.Race. I think Oxford have done a good job of keeping it together,

:04:47. > :04:52.they made a couple of serious mistakes, not just off the start but

:04:53. > :04:55.also that steering error, but they made an excellent decision to head

:04:56. > :05:03.for safety and they were the better crew in terms of their ability to

:05:04. > :05:11.keep going through the rough water. There is Lukasiewicz and Anastasia

:05:12. > :05:15.Chitty embracing. They have these moments that are such familiar

:05:16. > :05:19.moments to all who have watched the Boat Race over the years as they

:05:20. > :05:24.gathered beneath Chiswick Bridge and they are long way in the distance,

:05:25. > :05:28.and Cambridge struggle on, and it has been a real struggle but the

:05:29. > :05:34.fact they are finishing it is something. It has been a struggle

:05:35. > :05:37.and a loss, and it is a novel tough blow for Cambridge who have been

:05:38. > :05:41.trying to come back and have a crew that can win the race. In the first

:05:42. > :05:46.half of the race they did really take it to them and hang on, there

:05:47. > :05:50.are some positives there, but otherwise Cambridge haven't had

:05:51. > :05:54.enough on the day once more. So it will be a fourth successive defeat

:05:55. > :05:59.for Cambridge in the Women's Boat Race, but past the finish post they

:06:00. > :06:04.come. It will be of no consolation to them at all because they know in

:06:05. > :06:10.this race it is when or lose, all or nothing, but they have finished, but

:06:11. > :06:17.they have been beaten by Oxford and the river today. It is always a

:06:18. > :06:21.desolate feeling, there is no consolation at this point. What they

:06:22. > :06:25.have been through, the tests they've had, how far they have been

:06:26. > :06:30.stretched, and in the end the result is a loss and that means nothing to

:06:31. > :06:34.take home. In recent years I've not seen a more graphic demonstration of

:06:35. > :06:39.what the river can do and why these races are so special and difficult

:06:40. > :06:43.at times. Absolutely, that's what makes the Boat Race more exciting

:06:44. > :06:47.and more interesting to the spectator than some of the Olympic

:06:48. > :06:52.courses, is the fact that these races can change so quickly. It is

:06:53. > :06:56.something they do in their preparation. The coaches have got to

:06:57. > :07:01.make sure they know the river and they can prepare the cox is to make

:07:02. > :07:04.those decisions that we saw the Oxford cox thinking about. The

:07:05. > :07:10.Cambridge cox have that choice to make as well. I wonder if the men

:07:11. > :07:14.watching this, we have the two reserve Boat Races to come as well,

:07:15. > :07:24.they will be fascinated viewers because there is so much to learn.

:07:25. > :07:28.The races will be very interested. It will be interesting to see if

:07:29. > :07:31.they are getting any feedback from their coaches somehow from the bank

:07:32. > :07:38.of what has happened during this race because that would be vital

:07:39. > :07:41.information. And a word, Zoe, for Morgan Baynham-Williams, because it

:07:42. > :07:47.was a big decision to make for the north bank and we thought that at

:07:48. > :07:50.the time, and I think it was the wrong decision at the time, but it

:07:51. > :07:55.proved to be right later on to go for the shelter. The first decision

:07:56. > :07:58.was a mistake and she got lucky that Cambridge didn't close on them more

:07:59. > :08:03.but the second decision was definitely the right decision. He

:08:04. > :08:06.saw them waving their penguin which they found floating around and

:08:07. > :08:14.became their crew mascot so that's what she had ready for this part of

:08:15. > :08:24.the race. In the Cambridge boat the penguin would have come to a sorry

:08:25. > :08:29.end. In 1978 in the men's race the crew were in a similar position but

:08:30. > :08:39.they made for the shelter under the sensible guidance of the umpire. The

:08:40. > :08:46.victory belongs to Oxford, once again they have won the women's

:08:47. > :08:50.race. You can see Emma Spruce coming forward, and Anastasia Chitty, what

:08:51. > :08:58.a strength she has been as well. The president last year, and her fourth

:08:59. > :09:04.Blue Boat, her fourth victory. What a record she has. It is a really

:09:05. > :09:08.class group, there has been a real core that have competed for many

:09:09. > :09:13.years, that have really contained and sent on that forward from

:09:14. > :09:21.year-to-year of what is required to win. There we are, Oxford are the

:09:22. > :09:23.winners and steered very well in the end by their cox, Morgan

:09:24. > :09:29.Baynham-Williams. Let's hear from her now. Morgan

:09:30. > :09:34.Baynham-Williams is with me, high-fiving everybody as she gets

:09:35. > :09:42.off the boat. Talk us through the strategy. It got pretty wavy and I

:09:43. > :09:47.think there was a point I realised the waves were outweighing the

:09:48. > :09:53.benefit in the stream. We went for more shelter so I decided to get the

:09:54. > :09:58.guys over there as quickly as I could. We had the pumps on and off

:09:59. > :10:01.all the way trying to get the water out. They did such a good job, the

:10:02. > :10:07.wind picking up and they could barely hold on to the blades. I

:10:08. > :10:12.tried to drive them out of the wash as best I could. When we came round

:10:13. > :10:16.the corner from Barnes, the waves were down a bit and I thought stay

:10:17. > :10:26.there. Would you agree you didn't get off to the best possible start?

:10:27. > :10:35.I think our foregirl may have missed a stroke. Maddy Badcott is here as

:10:36. > :10:41.well, amazing performance from your crew but also your cox. We are so

:10:42. > :10:50.lucky to have Morgan, she smashed it. Those conditions are probably

:10:51. > :10:54.worse than anything I have rowed on but we train all year to be ready

:10:55. > :11:01.for anything and we are so glad it turned out well. How does this

:11:02. > :11:05.compare to last year, as President? Last year I was over the moon to win

:11:06. > :11:10.but this year in some ways it means so much more to me because I have

:11:11. > :11:15.worked so hard to build this team. This was an insane race and I'm so

:11:16. > :11:20.glad our training paid off. And you have such an incredible team spirit,

:11:21. > :11:25.don't you? Yes, this is probably the best team I have ever been part of.

:11:26. > :11:29.Because we care so much for each other and for Morgan, we have built

:11:30. > :11:34.so much over this year that I think that's what got us through the race.

:11:35. > :11:42.Let's have a word with Anastasia Chitty. We chatted last year when

:11:43. > :11:47.new won as President, how does this compared to last year? The race was

:11:48. > :11:53.very different. Entirely different conditions. I never imagined they

:11:54. > :12:03.could be that bad. It was so exciting. Morgan got her tactics and

:12:04. > :12:08.strategy absolutely bang on today. She did a great job. We saw Rosemary

:12:09. > :12:14.moving from Cambridge and we realised we needed to get over

:12:15. > :12:21.there. Four in a row, how does that sound? It is pretty exciting, I've

:12:22. > :12:37.been fortunate enough to work with four -- these girls for four years.

:12:38. > :12:40.From the excitement of Oxford, to the desperation of the Cambridge

:12:41. > :12:47.crews, but how well they did to finish, because particularly down

:12:48. > :12:55.Chiswick Reach, the bow worst taking on so much water, it was up to their

:12:56. > :12:59.thighs. Katherine Grainger, that was more like watching America's Cup!

:13:00. > :13:05.And I bet they are wishing they had huge sales to help them. It is very

:13:06. > :13:10.dramatic. The cameras can pick up a lot, but when you are an athlete in

:13:11. > :13:13.that position, when the boat is full of water and the pumps are not

:13:14. > :13:18.responding quicker enough to get the water out, and you are fighting it,

:13:19. > :13:24.the Cambridge to finish at all is a huge achievement for them. Here,

:13:25. > :13:35.Rosemary Ostfeld puts her hands in the air to say I want to carry on.

:13:36. > :13:42.She is sitting in water. Yes, the part she is sitting on is the lowest

:13:43. > :13:47.part. The umpire brings up the red flag to say it is OK to stop, it is

:13:48. > :13:52.a safety precaution, and it is their decision to stop the race. They have

:13:53. > :14:03.been preparing for months and months, nobody wants to finish two

:14:04. > :14:08.thirds down the course. Bill -- they will be upset to lose in that way.

:14:09. > :14:11.Let's hear the reaction of the Cambridge crew.

:14:12. > :14:19.The president Hannah Roberts is here, and all of the crew decided to

:14:20. > :14:23.surround her for the interview. That is an amazing end to the race,

:14:24. > :14:30.carrying on such remarkable team spirit. There wasn't really an

:14:31. > :14:35.option that we didn't finish. We have bought so much into this year,

:14:36. > :14:39.and obviously the result was not going to go our way but we had to

:14:40. > :14:45.see it through to the end. When did you realise it was all going wrong?

:14:46. > :14:49.Through the second half, it started coming in faster than our pumps

:14:50. > :14:55.could get it out. Once it was filling up, there was no way the

:14:56. > :14:59.pumps could overcome it. I know it is defeat, I know you have worked so

:15:00. > :15:05.hard, how proud are you of your wonderful crew? I am so proud. I

:15:06. > :15:14.couldn't ask for better women to do with this and I'm so proud.

:15:15. > :15:19.Commiserations. Thank you. Hannah Roberts, the president of the

:15:20. > :15:26.Cambridge women's club. There is Christine Wilson, the coach, who has

:15:27. > :15:30.now continued her 100% record, four from four from her and she has some

:15:31. > :15:34.setup there. They were utterly dominant but it was a memorable

:15:35. > :15:39.race. I cannot remember seeing anything like that and I wonder what

:15:40. > :15:45.it was like on the banks. Helen Skelton is around about the

:15:46. > :15:51.Hammersmith point, they were still afloat at that stage. Yes, the crowd

:15:52. > :15:57.were whooping as they went by, even Sean Walsh got excited. I found an

:15:58. > :16:02.activity that means Sean is too exhausted to talk. Are you trying to

:16:03. > :16:09.suggest those ladies had a pathetic attempt? How hard is it? At least I

:16:10. > :16:15.didn't think. Let's stick to the activity where he cannot talk. How

:16:16. > :16:19.gutted will they be? So gutted, it is really tough but they did so

:16:20. > :16:23.well, and the sink is really unfortunate but they have done very

:16:24. > :16:28.well so they should be proud. And plenty of people will be proud of

:16:29. > :16:36.them. It is a phenomenal effort even to get in that boat. Yes, very well

:16:37. > :16:45.done. Chaps, you are in a celebratory camp, are you confident

:16:46. > :16:50.of a double? Yes, the dedication of the Oxford crew should really strike

:16:51. > :16:58.through. How tough is it out there? Really tough, but they are Oxford

:16:59. > :17:06.winning conditions. Nobody told you to stop rowing. It is four miles out

:17:07. > :17:08.there. I did 100 metres in 21.9 seconds. That is a drop in the

:17:09. > :17:15.ocean, isn't it? Carry on rowing. and they all will want to keep in

:17:16. > :17:21.but is it even possible? Maddy Badcott, the winning Oxford

:17:22. > :17:26.president says that it's the worst conditions she has ever rowed in.

:17:27. > :17:29.Oxford celebrating a dominant success, and plaudits to Cambridge

:17:30. > :17:34.for their bravery and managing to complete the course. These are

:17:35. > :17:39.rowers that you know well, you have won the race with some of them,

:17:40. > :17:43.certainly with Anastacia and Maddie. How impressed were you today? I am

:17:44. > :17:50.incredibly impressed and proud of what they have done today.

:17:51. > :17:53.Especially rara -- Lauren in the stroke seat, keeping up that rhythm

:17:54. > :17:57.in these conditions is incredibly difficult and they did an amazing

:17:58. > :18:03.job to deal with the conditions. Also a good decision by Morgan. When

:18:04. > :18:08.everyone in the commentary box was saying, what is she doing?! The

:18:09. > :18:13.losing crew Cambridge will come up to the podium first. Thank you very

:18:14. > :18:16.bunch indeed, one of the great British sporting events and what

:18:17. > :18:24.drama we have had here this afternoon for the Boat Race. Your

:18:25. > :18:27.presentation party this afternoon, the CEO of Cancer Research UK.

:18:28. > :18:33.Helena Mara see, and our Olympic champions Helen Glover and Heather

:18:34. > :18:38.standing will present the trophies. These welcome the losing crew,

:18:39. > :18:53.Cambridge University Women's Boat Club led by their president Hannah

:18:54. > :19:00.Roberts. Ashton Brown, Fiona Macklin, Alice Jackson, Thea Zabell,

:19:01. > :19:04.Daphne Martschenko, Myriam Goudet, and Rosemary Ostfeld. Please show

:19:05. > :19:10.your appreciation with a huge round of applause for the losers this

:19:11. > :19:16.afternoon. Once again, just like last year, a huge congratulations to

:19:17. > :19:26.Oxford University Women's Boat Club. Our winners this year. Once again.

:19:27. > :19:34.Led by their cox Morgan Baynham-Williams. Emma Lukasiewicz,

:19:35. > :19:39.Emma Spruce, Joanne Jansen, Ruth Siddorn, Elo Luik, Anastasia Chitty.

:19:40. > :19:54.Once again on the winner 's podium, Lauren Kedar, and the winning

:19:55. > :20:03.president Maddy Badcott. Four out of four now four and a -- Anastacia

:20:04. > :20:12.Helen and Heather are standing by to present the trophy to the victorious

:20:13. > :20:18.Oxford University Women's Boat Club. Winners once again. After a terrific

:20:19. > :20:30.form and is here. -- terrific performance. Your president, Maddy

:20:31. > :20:37.Badcott. If you could hand over the trophy now to Helen, who has the

:20:38. > :20:38.honour of handing the trophy to Oxford University Women's Boat Club

:20:39. > :20:54.and the president Maddy Badcott! As the Oxford women celebrate, their

:20:55. > :21:00.male counterparts take their boat down to the water. And the Oxford

:21:01. > :21:04.men are coming into this race in a similarly dominant run of form

:21:05. > :21:11.having won their last three races. This is one of the most

:21:12. > :21:15.inexperienced crews for a while. Their president is Morgan Gerlak

:21:16. > :21:20.from America who will be rowing at number three. Here is the Cambridge

:21:21. > :21:25.crew. They have returning Blues, Ian Middleton is in charge for the third

:21:26. > :21:29.year in a row, three big Americans, Luke Juckett, Henry Hoffstot, the

:21:30. > :21:35.president, and Ben Ruble, the vice president. Their average weight is

:21:36. > :21:39.13 stone 13, they are the heaviest crew and have strong form coming

:21:40. > :21:42.into this. As we saw from the women's race conditions are as tough

:21:43. > :21:47.as they have ever been on Boat Race day so literally anything could

:21:48. > :21:50.happen. Think about the rivalry between these great universities,

:21:51. > :21:54.it's not limited to the banks of the Thames, they compete all year at a

:21:55. > :21:59.variety of different sports. Here is Andrew Cotter with more. The

:22:00. > :22:03.sporting clubs of Oxford and Cambridge have been in ferocious

:22:04. > :22:07.competition for well over 150 years, the Boat Race is of course the

:22:08. > :22:10.oldest and best-known but at Twickenham we have the Vermeulen is

:22:11. > :22:15.in rugby union which give a real taste of the fierce rivalry between

:22:16. > :22:18.the two universities. It was the dark blues of Oxford coming out on

:22:19. > :22:24.top in the men's varsity match while Cambridge were triumphant in the

:22:25. > :22:33.women's fixture. What's next? What about powerlifting? The light blues

:22:34. > :22:38.cleaned up there. Other students do skiing and snowboarding, it finish

:22:39. > :22:43.1-1. Staying with wintry themes, Oxford 's women swept all before

:22:44. > :22:46.them out on the ice. And their male counterparts workings of the court,

:22:47. > :22:52.winning the basketball. Cambridge romped home in the horse racing, and

:22:53. > :22:57.in outdoor ultimate frisbee, Oxford flew high. Cambridge were squeezed

:22:58. > :23:02.out in the squash and crushed in the 100th men's lacrosse fixture. In the

:23:03. > :23:06.women's cross-country Oxford were left trailing. Onto rugby league

:23:07. > :23:10.which does not quite have the same varsity background as union but

:23:11. > :23:17.Oxford were in a different league, 70-0 winners to help the dark blues

:23:18. > :23:22.lead 24-23 by the end of February. Also taking the women's gymnastics.

:23:23. > :23:28.Oxford hosted the 109th Varsity boxing competition which saw the

:23:29. > :23:30.first ever women's Blues awarded. Their match ended in a draw with

:23:31. > :23:35.Oxford winning the men's event. It is so much bigger than you expect,

:23:36. > :23:39.everyone is caught up in the narrative. It has been going for

:23:40. > :23:46.hundreds of years, it is spectacular. Cambridge have the

:23:47. > :23:51.upper hand in trampolining. Also in korfball, but I'm not sure what that

:23:52. > :23:53.is. Also cheerleading. The dark blues won the men's and women's

:23:54. > :24:02.badminton matches earlier this month. And in that very traditional

:24:03. > :24:04.British bought, the rather gentle pursuit of Australian rules

:24:05. > :24:11.football, Oxford did all of the celebrating. -- British sport. There

:24:12. > :24:17.will be a few beers, drinking out of that delicious cup. And so with the

:24:18. > :24:21.overall standing delicately poised, we are here a few hundred yards from

:24:22. > :24:26.the start of the Boat Races at Craven Cottage for one of the oldest

:24:27. > :24:29.fixtures in world football, beginning in 1873, it's time for the

:24:30. > :24:35.latest edition of the varsity football match. That football match

:24:36. > :24:38.has been won by Oxford, the score was 2-0 and this was the first goal,

:24:39. > :24:48.great skill. That means that for the varsity

:24:49. > :24:56.sports of the season 2015-16, Cambridge so far have 37 wins,

:24:57. > :25:02.Oxford have 38. Two draws. There are 16 remaining sports this academic

:25:03. > :25:07.year. We are on the banks of the Thames, now, Constantine Louloudis

:25:08. > :25:11.and George Nash are with me. Katherine Grainger is with me as

:25:12. > :25:14.well, we are about to get on a speedboat down the river which I

:25:15. > :25:20.normally look forward to but given the conditions today I'm not so

:25:21. > :25:24.sure! I know, watching the race to win turning into a battle for is a

:25:25. > :25:29.viable, at least we have an engine! That helps. Constantine, you would

:25:30. > :25:33.have watched the women's race closely, what did you make of that

:25:34. > :25:36.and how difficult it will be? We were relying on a smartphone

:25:37. > :25:41.connection so I could not see much but it seemed savage. Those

:25:42. > :25:45.conditions, I've never rowed in anything like that. It is merciful

:25:46. > :25:49.that they made it to the finish and it will become really tactical for

:25:50. > :25:53.the men's race. There will be shelters for different crews at

:25:54. > :25:57.different stages and the coxes will play a big role. Let's head out

:25:58. > :26:01.there because Matthew Pinsent was following the women's race as the

:26:02. > :26:07.reserve umpire and he can give an update on how difficult it will be

:26:08. > :26:11.for the men. Thank you. We have returned on the umpires launch which

:26:12. > :26:15.follows the women's and men's races, and everybody saw the absolutely

:26:16. > :26:19.biblical conditions that are out there. There is a wind coming

:26:20. > :26:23.against the tide which is really making huge mountains of water

:26:24. > :26:26.beyond Chiswick Eyot, where the Cambridge women got into such

:26:27. > :26:31.difficulty. The real difficulty now is that on the incoming tide river

:26:32. > :26:35.is coming up and up all the time which will make conditions in theory

:26:36. > :26:38.worse and worse. We are keeping our fingers crossed that everyone will

:26:39. > :26:42.get to the finish line in the race but there is no doubt that these

:26:43. > :26:46.conditions are absolutely brutal. For the crews that are out there

:26:47. > :26:49.racing. We will keep our fingers crossed for a safe finish for this

:26:50. > :26:56.race coming up but it's really tough. James is going to be our

:26:57. > :27:00.driver taking us hopefully safely to the finish position. I mentioned

:27:01. > :27:05.earlier that they used to race in opposition in the Boat Race and are

:27:06. > :27:12.now part of Team GB. They could yet in Rio be rowing alongside a man

:27:13. > :27:16.called Mohammed Sabihi. He hated water and the sport of rowing but he

:27:17. > :27:23.now could be part of the Olympic team in a couple of months. Here is

:27:24. > :27:29.his story. The feeling on the water is unparalleled to anything I have

:27:30. > :27:33.ever done, that feeling of harmony. The reward for your hard work, when

:27:34. > :27:41.you look at the Boat Race, you build a bond for life. My first rowing

:27:42. > :27:45.stroke, I was 15. I took to it really badly. I kept falling in.

:27:46. > :27:52.There were many moments in the first six months when I wanted to quit

:27:53. > :27:59.because I hated the sport. How are you? Very good, yourself? I remember

:28:00. > :28:07.my first day. You got me into the river. For five seconds! Let's have

:28:08. > :28:14.a look at the gym. It hasn't changed much. Since 2008. It still has that

:28:15. > :28:19.rocking floor. It is nice and cold, very back to basics training. It was

:28:20. > :28:24.not common in my school for people to row. It was the basic sports of

:28:25. > :28:28.football, rugby, basketball and tennis. At the time I still had

:28:29. > :28:34.thoughts that there were stigmas that you could not row if you did

:28:35. > :28:43.not go to public school but actually it's not the truth. The first moment

:28:44. > :28:46.when the penny drops was in the Erg championships when I won my age

:28:47. > :28:54.division, and it is something that made me think, I can do this. I was

:28:55. > :28:55.born as a Muslim, and it is also my personal choice growing up to

:28:56. > :29:07.continue my faith. There has been no prejudice against

:29:08. > :29:12.me about being a muslin and it has been very accommodating as a sport

:29:13. > :29:16.to allow me to fast and I like the fact that I'm an ambassador for my

:29:17. > :29:19.religion and I doubt like the fact that I'm one of the first, but

:29:20. > :29:27.hopefully that is for the next generation. Constantine and George

:29:28. > :29:31.obviously know him very well, he was talking about trying to fast and

:29:32. > :29:37.train. Ramadan will be from June the 5th or sixth next year until 30 days

:29:38. > :29:41.later, how would he do that a month before the Olympics? Can he do it at

:29:42. > :29:46.another time? Well, he can put it off until the winter but it comes at

:29:47. > :29:55.a cost. If I have got it right he has to pay for 1500 meals for people

:29:56. > :30:00.in his native country of Morocco. And then do Ramadan in the winter

:30:01. > :30:09.back in the UK. I could be wrong on that. I rowed with Mo at the

:30:10. > :30:12.Olympics in 2012 and it was during the Olympics and he moved it to

:30:13. > :30:18.December, he made a sizeable charitable contribution to a

:30:19. > :30:23.Moroccan... It had an effect in Morocco, and then he did it in

:30:24. > :30:29.December and got permission from his Imam, who was supportive. He's a

:30:30. > :30:32.great character and a very talented rower. Down to the finish, we will

:30:33. > :30:37.hear from Andrew Cotter in the commentary box and before that Helen

:30:38. > :30:41.Skelton at Hammersmith Bridge. We are survey in the river situation at

:30:42. > :30:45.the moment because this young man is a rower at Cambridge. Would you want

:30:46. > :30:50.to be out there now? It is a lot choppy than it looks. Would you be

:30:51. > :30:55.in the boat this afternoon? Yes. When you say it is more choppy, it

:30:56. > :30:59.does look like a millpond to people having a meander along the South

:31:00. > :31:03.bank of the river, but sitting on the surface we have seen how

:31:04. > :31:07.difficult it was for the Cambridge ladies, how difficult is it? It's

:31:08. > :31:12.hard to describe but is not the same as it looks, it's definitely not

:31:13. > :31:16.flat. As this wet your appetite? Well, I have done the rowing

:31:17. > :31:19.machine, so I'd experienced what these athletes go through and I

:31:20. > :31:27.understand their pain and what they are going through, so I'm looking

:31:28. > :31:34.forward to this one. People passing the alcohol! The level of dedication

:31:35. > :31:37.is something I'm not suspecting you are familiar with, think about how

:31:38. > :31:44.much they train, like professional athletes. Isn't it seven hours a day

:31:45. > :31:49.or something? Twice a day. Not seven hours twice a day? Seven hours in

:31:50. > :31:52.total. The only thing I do for seven hours is sleep, nothing else. There

:31:53. > :31:58.is nothing I will do for seven hours. It's incredible. You are an

:31:59. > :32:01.inspiration(!) turn your eyes this way because soon Clare Balding will

:32:02. > :32:05.be making her way down the river to the finish line to take in the men's

:32:06. > :32:11.Boat Race. This is your first experience of the race so far, how

:32:12. > :32:13.are you finding it? I'm loving it. Who is meant to be winning? Oxford

:32:14. > :32:34.or Cambridge? Everybody knew Oxford were going to

:32:35. > :32:47.win that. Do you have a prediction? Cambridge. You have an affinity with

:32:48. > :32:52.them. Where did you get that? JD Sports? Let's turn our eyes to the

:32:53. > :33:02.river and keep our eyes out for Clare Balding. There she is. Look at

:33:03. > :33:18.that! She has turned into James Bond, she wants the next Bond role.

:33:19. > :33:31.Glamorous and elegant as ever, there she goes. Clare Balding.

:33:32. > :33:50.Hello, how are you? I am Clare. Ben. Very nice to meet you, Ben. We both

:33:51. > :33:56.came to Cambridge together, both lost the Boat Race together. We are

:33:57. > :34:01.both going to win it together this year. Do they bring the best out in

:34:02. > :34:10.each other, do you think? I think so. Luke is very emotional, whereas

:34:11. > :34:15.Ben is more calm and cool. You must feel like family, more than

:34:16. > :34:18.team-mates? We have seen a lot of success and failure together. You

:34:19. > :34:26.can kind of tell when the other person is not having a good practice

:34:27. > :34:31.or a good day. When were you first aware of the Boat Race? For me it

:34:32. > :34:36.was 2010, we had a Wisconsin guy here. The fact that it could lead to

:34:37. > :34:42.somebody who was once just like me all the way to England, to

:34:43. > :34:48.Cambridge, doing the Boat Race, it was a very inspiring thing to see.

:34:49. > :34:54.What was your parents' reaction when you first mooted the idea of coming

:34:55. > :34:58.to Cambridge and rowing a boat? Initially my dad said he thought it

:34:59. > :35:02.was one of the most stupid things he had ever heard, but they recognised

:35:03. > :35:06.my passion for it and have been nothing but supportive for the

:35:07. > :35:11.entire three years I have been here. How strong would you say the

:35:12. > :35:15.Cambridge boat is this year? I would say strong. We have had some good

:35:16. > :35:24.success early in the year and we've used that as a platform. I think we

:35:25. > :35:31.have a core of guys returning, and a new, in lands who has a lot of

:35:32. > :35:40.international experience. -- in Lance. What do you think will happen

:35:41. > :35:43.this year? In terms of the race? I think we will win. That is the

:35:44. > :35:49.confidence all sportsmen have to show outwardly of course. Sometimes

:35:50. > :35:53.they don't believe it deep down but you sense this Cambridge crew does

:35:54. > :36:01.believe it. Then again, the variables today, the river threw

:36:02. > :36:09.everything into more uncertainty. The Cambridge women won their

:36:10. > :36:13.reserve race. Just one more race to come. It is time to get technical

:36:14. > :36:19.and take you inside the Oxford boat, in the company of Jamie Cook, who

:36:20. > :36:22.can explain more about the boat itself and the roles of the men who

:36:23. > :36:27.feel it. I am Jamie Cook and I sit in the

:36:28. > :36:30.seventh seat of the Oxford University boat. I will show you a

:36:31. > :36:42.boat and the roles of the rowers within the boat.

:36:43. > :36:59.Let me quickly explain how rowing works. We have a sliding seat. We

:37:00. > :37:05.each have an oar, to propel the boat as far as possible with every

:37:06. > :37:09.stroke. The cox communicates the strategy, he uses the steering

:37:10. > :37:16.column is to shift the rudder that moves the boat along the course.

:37:17. > :37:29.Next, I forgotten his name... Now, our stroke man, Nik set the cadence

:37:30. > :37:35.and the rhythm to follow. These guys set the power and the endurance that

:37:36. > :37:40.we need to get the right length. This guy here, he is our technical

:37:41. > :37:50.wizard. He sits here and connects the timing all the way through down

:37:51. > :37:55.the boat. These guys unfortunately have to experience the worst of the

:37:56. > :38:02.conditions. It is all of the wind, a bit like in a Formula One car, and

:38:03. > :38:08.these guys are able to control their body weight and their blades, and

:38:09. > :38:13.attack the opponents of needed. Essentially what it comes down to is

:38:14. > :38:19.timing, teamwork and power all the way down the course so we crossed

:38:20. > :38:23.the finish line first. The couple of things Jamie didn't

:38:24. > :38:28.get chance to show us was the electric pump, which I'm sure we

:38:29. > :38:37.will be talking about, but now it is time to meet the crews in the words

:38:38. > :38:40.of their presidents. I'm Henry Hoffstot, the Cambridge president

:38:41. > :38:48.and I will be sitting at six and this is my crew. In the bow straight

:38:49. > :38:55.we have Felix Newman, at two Ali Abbasi. Sitting three is Charles

:38:56. > :39:01.Fisher. Rowing in the fourth seat is Clemens Auersperg. The approach is

:39:02. > :39:04.better than last year, we have an internal confidence that makes us

:39:05. > :39:19.believe we can win the race. Adding strength at five is Luke Jock it.

:39:20. > :39:32.Ben Ruble... At stroke is land straddle -- Lance Tredell... And at

:39:33. > :39:42.cox, Ian Middleton. For Oxford, at bow we have George

:39:43. > :39:49.McKirdy... Each year is different, this is our year, our story. In two

:39:50. > :39:54.seat we have James White. In the fourth seat, we have Joshua

:39:55. > :40:09.Bugajski. In number five seat we have Leo Carrington, in the sixth

:40:10. > :40:22.seat we have Jorgen Tveit, James Cook, Nick Hazell, and the cox of

:40:23. > :40:29.this year's boat is Sam Collier. It is an amazing thing to do. Those are

:40:30. > :40:36.the two Cruz, who sit now in their boats at the start. Oxford were

:40:37. > :40:42.late, they have been given one false start. Two false starts and they

:40:43. > :40:46.would be disqualified. It would take something drastic, very brave

:40:47. > :40:50.umpire, but just an indication of things that can sometimes go wrong

:40:51. > :40:53.in the Boat Race. An intriguing race, especially bearing in mind

:40:54. > :40:58.what we have seen in the Women's Boat Race and the conditions, and

:40:59. > :41:03.that will add to the nervous tension. This promises to be

:41:04. > :41:08.fascinating. Today the conditions are totally decisive. We saw it in

:41:09. > :41:11.the women's race. Without the pumps today, the Cambridge women would

:41:12. > :41:19.literally be swimming in the water. It's like nothing we have seen for

:41:20. > :41:23.over a decade. Again, we stress that when the coxes' arms are up, they

:41:24. > :41:28.are not happy with the way things are. Being late to the start and

:41:29. > :41:37.getting that initial false start warning might unsettled crew and it

:41:38. > :41:42.might be that the umpire is on the lookout for Oxford to make another

:41:43. > :41:50.mistake. The umpire is Simon Harris. He wrote for Cambridge in 1982 and

:41:51. > :42:02.1983, both won by Oxford. The arm of Sam Collier is up. Cambridge won the

:42:03. > :42:07.toss and chose Surrey. The arm of Ian Middleton is up, both coxes with

:42:08. > :42:12.their arms up. You would think it would favour the Surrey station

:42:13. > :42:19.today. Usually it doesn't matter, if conditions are neutral, but today it

:42:20. > :42:23.has got to favour the Surrey station. Yes, I don't think you

:42:24. > :42:32.would ever choose Middlesex on a day like today but with these conditions

:42:33. > :42:40.all bets are off. As they battle the nerves and tension, and all the work

:42:41. > :42:46.they have done over months, the future is still uncertain as the

:42:47. > :42:51.boats move about. We are ready for a moment, but then the arm of Ian

:42:52. > :42:56.Middleton went up. In his third Boat Race, very experienced. You can see

:42:57. > :43:01.the bow of the boat wandering around in the strong tide coming in. It is

:43:02. > :43:14.one hour before high tide. You have got to get the start right. Dipping

:43:15. > :43:21.the blades into study the boat. And the arm of Ian Middleton is up on

:43:22. > :43:29.the Surrey station but he is ready now, we are ready now, and go is the

:43:30. > :43:34.instruction. The 162nd Boat Race is under way. Both crews are desperate

:43:35. > :43:39.for the best start here and they will have that fierce pace for a

:43:40. > :43:45.minute or so, then settle into that rhythm, but who gets the better

:43:46. > :43:50.start? I think Oxford got away slightly cleaner. Cambridge looked

:43:51. > :43:54.to be pointing slightly towards the Surrey bank. Now it looks like

:43:55. > :43:59.Cambridge are moving up. Oxford are not used to being in this position

:44:00. > :44:05.of being underdogs, can they cope with that? Some of the athletes are

:44:06. > :44:10.brought with potential, not necessarily great oarsmen, but they

:44:11. > :44:16.will have to do it the hard way today, from the Middlesex Station

:44:17. > :44:23.with the wind not favouring them. They don't have the returning Blues,

:44:24. > :44:29.and Cambridge with the slight advantage at the moment. Yes, this

:44:30. > :44:32.is the first year when you would say that on paper Cambridge might have

:44:33. > :44:38.the slightly better crew, so can they get ahead of that reputation

:44:39. > :44:46.that Oxford has built for themselves over the last few years? I think

:44:47. > :44:53.Cambridge looked that idea crew. Matthew Pinsent is down near the

:44:54. > :44:57.water watching this, your thoughts? It is a very even start. We were all

:44:58. > :45:02.expecting the weather to get a lot worse as we go down the course, at

:45:03. > :45:06.the moment the conditions are almost benign but Cambridge look very

:45:07. > :45:18.smooth and confident at this stage. Ominous, I think, for oxidant -- for

:45:19. > :45:27.Oxford. He can see Cambridge have just edged clear of Oxford. The dark

:45:28. > :45:34.Blues have that quarter length advantage of the Middlesex bend

:45:35. > :45:49.around Craven Cottage. The boats are named today Kevin and Daniel. Daniel

:45:50. > :45:59.Sapolsky, a legend and a great coach of the Boat Race as well. --

:46:00. > :46:03.Topolski. The Oxford cox, Sam Collier, sounds very relaxed. He

:46:04. > :46:11.doesn't seem that worried that his crew is down on Cambridge.

:46:12. > :46:23.Sam Collier, we are hearing. Just an early pre-emptive warning as they

:46:24. > :46:24.start to creep together, and Cambridge being warned for straying

:46:25. > :46:33.into Oxford's water. Cambridge responded quickly to the

:46:34. > :46:40.warning from the umpire, there could have been a clash but they turned

:46:41. > :46:44.away quickly. Sam Collier does not have the Boat Race experience of Ian

:46:45. > :46:48.Middleton but he does have greater international experience as well. He

:46:49. > :46:59.comes from the Hampton School of rowing where so many great oarsman

:47:00. > :47:05.have come from. But Cambridge have a clearer bandage now, and Oxford will

:47:06. > :47:11.have to come from behind -- advantage. Slipping half a length

:47:12. > :47:15.behind now. That looks like nearly two thirds of a length, Cambridge

:47:16. > :47:19.starting to stretch out their lead, they still look a little bit more

:47:20. > :47:24.relaxed, a little cleaner and more together than Oxford. Cambridge now

:47:25. > :47:27.have this first bend coming up in their favour, if they want to finish

:47:28. > :47:34.the race here they have to step on the gas. After the bridge all bets

:47:35. > :47:39.are off because the water will be rough and Cambridge will want to be

:47:40. > :47:49.in the lead. Sam Collier, the Oxford cox, let's dip into the words of Ian

:47:50. > :47:57.Middleton now. Now stretch! Stretch! Stretch! Yes! Really clean here,

:47:58. > :48:04.guys. Stroking just slightly higher at the moment, 36, 35. More than

:48:05. > :48:09.half a length lead and the boats come together a bit but Cambridge

:48:10. > :48:13.have that clear advantage at the moment, moving along nicely. This is

:48:14. > :48:18.where Oxford will be looking to put in a big push, they have to maintain

:48:19. > :48:24.overlap, they will need to stay with Cambridge from the outside of this

:48:25. > :48:29.next bend. Traditionally Sean Bowden, the coach of Oxford, tended

:48:30. > :48:32.to push around Hammersmith Bridge and they will have to do that now

:48:33. > :48:36.because they have given away three quarters of a length and perhaps

:48:37. > :48:45.even more now. Cambridge out in front. Matthew Pinsent again. Again,

:48:46. > :48:50.I think it is ominous signs for Oxford. Cambridge have got this long

:48:51. > :48:53.bend to come, probably six or seven minutes of rowing now before Oxford

:48:54. > :48:59.will see any advantage from their bend which is a long way down the

:49:00. > :49:03.course but I'm really impressed with Cambridge, they looked calm, they

:49:04. > :49:06.look controlled, they look confident. That is so important for

:49:07. > :49:10.them in these conditions at this stage of the race, they have got

:49:11. > :49:13.this, they have got it if they want to win, and it will happen in the

:49:14. > :49:22.next two or three minutes for Cambridge. The wing beats of the

:49:23. > :49:25.boats you can hear as they mingle in with the cries of the coxes and

:49:26. > :49:30.Cambridge are building their advantage. The one unknown factor of

:49:31. > :49:34.course is how alive is the river after Hammersmith Bridge coming

:49:35. > :49:39.through Chiswick Reach and past Chiswick Eyot? Oxford are hanging

:49:40. > :49:43.on, if they can't push they need and they might get a bit of help from

:49:44. > :49:48.the river. That's right, there could still be an act of God here, so to

:49:49. > :49:53.speak, even if Cambridge is a length in front, like what we saw from the

:49:54. > :49:58.women's race, anything can happen in the waves. Any time you apply the

:49:59. > :50:02.rudder it's a bit of a break, it is a tiny thing but it does slow down

:50:03. > :50:07.the boat. They have started to put a bit of a push on, as they try to

:50:08. > :50:11.hang on to Cambridge. Oxford are definitely hanging on down the bend,

:50:12. > :50:16.it's a very impressive performance, gutsy, they love like they are now

:50:17. > :50:20.starting to lengthen out and relax a little bit more even though they are

:50:21. > :50:26.nearly a length down. A pretty impressive performance by Oxford to

:50:27. > :50:29.hold on at this point. Past the green spires of Hammersmith Bridge

:50:30. > :50:33.and you can see the times, pretty impressive in these conditions but

:50:34. > :50:36.it's about to get more difficult, you can see the angles they have

:50:37. > :50:40.chosen and Cambridge are moving across to the Surrey Station, but

:50:41. > :50:44.the river will now become more animated as they round the bend

:50:45. > :50:48.which of course favours Cambridge. If I were in the Cambridge crew I

:50:49. > :50:52.would be stepping on the gas hard, they have the first half of the bend

:50:53. > :51:02.and Oxford did not let them get away. The whole thing about the

:51:03. > :51:04.Surrey bend is that with every minute you don't get clear, the

:51:05. > :51:07.Middlesex crew will gain confidence so Cambridge don't want that to

:51:08. > :51:10.happen. If the water is like it was in the women's race Oxford will have

:51:11. > :51:13.a worse time of it. I thought Oxford where heading to Surrey to get extra

:51:14. > :51:19.safety from the water but they have come back together now. Cambridge,

:51:20. > :51:23.in a strong position, an unfamiliar position based on recent years, they

:51:24. > :51:27.have clear water almost now between themselves and Oxford as the

:51:28. > :51:34.flotilla of boats behind are churning up the water which is

:51:35. > :51:38.lively enough. And they sweep around and Ian Middleton in his third Boat

:51:39. > :51:42.Race, the youngster is still just 20, coxing Cambridge and asking for

:51:43. > :51:48.more, having a look round to see where Oxford are but the whole crew

:51:49. > :51:52.can see that, and he's the only one who can't see the advantage, Oxford

:51:53. > :51:56.are hanging on and they have just about clear water between the boats

:51:57. > :52:00.but Oxford are hanging in and they have to keep digging and driving and

:52:01. > :52:04.try to maintain that. You can see the white horses and Cambridge have

:52:05. > :52:08.just hit it, both crews going into the rough water and this is where

:52:09. > :52:15.the challenge will start. Can they keep their full length, can they

:52:16. > :52:19.keep rowing? What a different view down there, the view that these men

:52:20. > :52:25.have. Where the river really is lifting up, and the blades are

:52:26. > :52:30.cutting through the choppy water, up goes the spray. And again it is a

:52:31. > :52:34.battle of technique and who can deal with the conditions better. You have

:52:35. > :52:37.got to keep the water out of your boat, if you have a couple of big

:52:38. > :52:41.waves it's immediately like having an extra man on board who is not

:52:42. > :52:46.rowing, two or three men, it gets heavy. Matthew Pinsent, as we head

:52:47. > :52:51.to Chiswick Reach, things are coming alive here. Yes, as we can all see

:52:52. > :52:57.there are really big slabs of water out here on the Thames. And at the

:52:58. > :53:00.moment I would say that it is still Cambridge's advantage but there's an

:53:01. > :53:04.interesting dynamic in that their corner is beginning to run out in

:53:05. > :53:08.the next two or three minutes, Oxford have probably got two or

:53:09. > :53:11.three minutes to save the race, if they can stay in contact and of

:53:12. > :53:16.course they get the last bend but the real test is against the river,

:53:17. > :53:22.not the opposition. How clean can you be, how smooth can you be? Can

:53:23. > :53:27.you stay on top of the waters of the Thames? That's the real challenge at

:53:28. > :53:32.the moment. Both crews are battling the angry river today and Cambridge

:53:33. > :53:36.as they have clear water, Oxford have to re-establish contact because

:53:37. > :53:40.otherwise Cambridge can choose the line so the final bend will not

:53:41. > :53:43.favour Oxford. If Oxford can re-establish contact Cambridge will

:53:44. > :53:47.have to move out. It's worth pointing out that although some of

:53:48. > :53:50.the Oxford crew have not been in a Boat Race before a number were in

:53:51. > :53:56.the victorious Isis Crewe last year that it actually wrote through the

:53:57. > :53:58.Cambridge reserves when Cambridge had clear water. They have

:53:59. > :54:07.experienced rowing through a race that looks through -- looks as

:54:08. > :54:10.though it was done and dusted. Sam Collier will not quite lied to his

:54:11. > :54:14.crew but tell them that they are still in contact and can still do

:54:15. > :54:20.it. When you start to fall a bit behind you lose the ability to see

:54:21. > :54:25.and hear the other crew and you rely on your cox to tell you where you

:54:26. > :54:36.are in the race. Here is Sam Collier. The 20-year-old. You can

:54:37. > :54:40.see the delicate touch that he has on the rudder cable, the wire that

:54:41. > :54:44.controls the rudder, just holding it with a feather touch, it is so

:54:45. > :54:48.difficult in these conditions. It's hard to manage the boat well in

:54:49. > :54:55.rough conditions so he will have to keep making good decisions.

:54:56. > :55:01.Cambridge have a clear advantage, Clearwater, and as you look down the

:55:02. > :55:07.boat, the stroke, and Henry Hoffstot, the core of Americans in

:55:08. > :55:10.seven, six and five and then Clemens Auersperg, Charles Fisher, Ali

:55:11. > :55:14.Abbasi and Felix Newman. About a length clear now and Oxford are

:55:15. > :55:19.grafting and working to try to maintain contact but you can see

:55:20. > :55:23.their lead now and Cambridge in play control as they passed the Chiswick

:55:24. > :55:26.Steps. It will take a mistake by Cambridge to lose the lead but it's

:55:27. > :55:30.not out of the question because there is more rough water coming. I

:55:31. > :55:33.don't know if you can see but the pumps are working hard on both

:55:34. > :55:39.boats, water is spilling out the side of both of them. You can see

:55:40. > :55:45.that the water is still in the base of the boat there, but the pumps are

:55:46. > :55:51.working. You can see that the crews are working. How can you maintain

:55:52. > :56:03.your rhythm and act as one? The coxes are asking, as one. But how do

:56:04. > :56:07.you do that? Matthew Pinsent again. You can just see that the challenge

:56:08. > :56:14.of the river that was setting up three or four minutes ago, Cambridge

:56:15. > :56:18.have met it admirably. They have rowed clean and smooth over the

:56:19. > :56:20.water and the psychological challenge for Oxford is that they

:56:21. > :56:26.know they are behind and it's a testing day on the river, and it

:56:27. > :56:29.feels heavier and wetter, they hit every splash and every wave and it

:56:30. > :56:34.will feel as if it is adding more and more to their workload. It will

:56:35. > :56:42.increase the distance between them and Cambridge that they have two

:56:43. > :56:45.make-up. Both crews are working in a world of noise and effort and spray

:56:46. > :56:50.that is kicked up but I wonder if it's worth a desperate gamble by

:56:51. > :56:54.Oxford but Cambridge are cutting across to Middlesex anyway for

:56:55. > :57:00.shelter. Both of them have learned from what happened in the women's

:57:01. > :57:05.race, seeking the shelter of the Middlesex bank, there is always a

:57:06. > :57:09.risk of sinking. Look at that. This is a Boat Race at its liveliest best

:57:10. > :57:13.for someone who enjoys the challenge but Oxford are really working hard

:57:14. > :57:19.here, every little wave that comes up, the blades cutting in and

:57:20. > :57:22.kicking up the spray. And it's a thankless to ask for Oxford now

:57:23. > :57:26.because they are beginning to lose further distance to Cambridge and

:57:27. > :57:31.creep further clear. We saw Ian Middleton the Cambridge cox turning

:57:32. > :57:35.to look behind him at Oxford's progress. It looked as though Oxford

:57:36. > :57:38.were staying with them, but these last few strokes they have started

:57:39. > :57:48.to slip, I think they needed to Turkey and a bit quicker. -- to tuck

:57:49. > :57:51.in. They are passing the weeping willows of the bandstand and heading

:57:52. > :57:57.towards a Cambridge victory, they will move beneath the central span

:57:58. > :58:00.where both of them have to pass through, the central span of Barnes

:58:01. > :58:05.Railway Bridge. Cambridge have an advantage which must be 34 lengths

:58:06. > :58:13.now. Still Sam Collier is asking his crew to believe, two and a half

:58:14. > :58:17.lengths perhaps. -- must be three or four. They are not losing any

:58:18. > :58:21.further contact. They seem to be holding the distance well and they

:58:22. > :58:25.are still looking reasonably relaxed actually. Maybe not quite as

:58:26. > :58:31.confident as the Cambridge stroke, Lance Tredell, very experienced and

:58:32. > :58:34.calm and steely guy. They will have to pop out through the middle arch

:58:35. > :58:42.so we will see how the steering takes them here. Very few are the

:58:43. > :58:52.crews that come from behind, it has only happened in 49 and 52. And

:58:53. > :58:54.Oxford did it in 2002. That was when Cambridge's Sebastian Meyer

:58:55. > :58:59.collapsed and was almost a dead weight. It is hard for them to come

:59:00. > :59:02.from behind, around 1000 metres to go from Barnes Bridge to the finish.

:59:03. > :59:07.It looked as though a lot of this bridge was making sure you were

:59:08. > :59:12.ahead as you got to the rough water so that you could keep out of the

:59:13. > :59:15.worst of it and it has paid off for Cambridge. They have held them off

:59:16. > :59:19.through the rough water and there is a look of determination on the faces

:59:20. > :59:23.of Cambridge, they will not let this get away from them. A lot of

:59:24. > :59:27.encouragement for Oxford, though, they have kept the gap to a minimum.

:59:28. > :59:31.Oxford are trying their best not to lose further contact but this will

:59:32. > :59:38.be victory for Cambridge today to end a long run of Oxford wins,

:59:39. > :59:42.Oxford have won the Women's Boat Race and the reserve races have been

:59:43. > :59:47.shared, but this is the one that matters. Matthew Pinsent, what are

:59:48. > :59:53.your thoughts in the closing stages? Oxford are now racing for pride,

:59:54. > :00:00.they know that they must have lost the race, but you have to imagine

:00:01. > :00:05.the atmosphere in the boat, the pain and the agony previously is now

:00:06. > :00:10.coming right, they will be feeling light and warm and dry. Because

:00:11. > :00:15.victory is within their grasp. It's a magical, magical moment. Coming up

:00:16. > :00:22.for Cambridge. There is the Cambridge crew. Felix Newman, Ali

:00:23. > :00:25.Abbasi, Charles Fisher, Clemens Auersperg, the tall Australian, Luke

:00:26. > :00:33.Juckett, the returning American, Henry Hoffstot, Ben Ruble, the three

:00:34. > :00:40.Americans. And Lance Tredell. Ian Middleton driving them on and asking

:00:41. > :00:44.for a final push. No thoughts of a quick time today and that doesn't

:00:45. > :00:49.matter, Oxford are hanging on, they have not drifted further so the

:00:50. > :00:59.margin of victory will be three or four lengths and this will bring to

:01:00. > :01:00.a end a long run of Oxford victories. Asking for a final push

:01:01. > :01:10.now. Bush! Even now as their legs are dying and

:01:11. > :01:17.their backs are breaking and their arms falling out of their sockets,

:01:18. > :01:21.keep pushing. -- push! They will keep pushing to the finish. And

:01:22. > :01:32.still they drive on. Oxford are the winners of this race in 2013, 20 14,

:01:33. > :01:38.and 2015. This year it will belong to Cambridge. What we talked about

:01:39. > :01:41.for Ben Ruble, and Ben Middleton, the cox, they know the pain of

:01:42. > :01:45.losing and will make amends for that today. Even though the water has

:01:46. > :01:50.calmed down as they come around the bend, they have done their work.

:01:51. > :01:54.Cambridge are really piling it on here, they want to win by as much as

:01:55. > :02:01.they possibly can, look at them go, they will get every inch. It is

:02:02. > :02:07.Cambridge who take it, they win the 162nd Boat Race, three years of dark

:02:08. > :02:14.blue turns a lighter shade. Oxford were second today on the Thames, and

:02:15. > :02:17.the bent bodies and get heads of the ten men and the smiles and

:02:18. > :02:21.celebrations of Luke Juckett and what it means as we mentioned to

:02:22. > :02:26.come back having lost and lost, coming back to win now, what a

:02:27. > :02:30.difference. What a race he has had. He had problems before when he was

:02:31. > :02:32.almost knocked out of the boat a couple of years ago. Now he is

:02:33. > :02:45.celebrating as a victor. Then the sharp contrast. Some men

:02:46. > :02:51.who will come back and try again, others this was their only chance.

:02:52. > :02:56.Well beaten today by the favoured group, Cambridge. Here you have,

:02:57. > :03:01.underneath Chiswick Bridge, both crews gather and the cheering from

:03:02. > :03:06.Cambridge will taunt and haunt Oxford in years to come but that is

:03:07. > :03:12.what the Boat Race is like. Cambridge, the winners, and

:03:13. > :03:16.emphatically so. Yes, the cliche is there. There is to second place in

:03:17. > :03:22.the Boat Race and losing it really hurts. You can see on the faces of

:03:23. > :03:27.the Oxford crew. But I think they did a great job to stay in the race,

:03:28. > :03:41.but Cambridge were the worthy victors. Tired and defeated, three

:03:42. > :03:46.cheers for Oxford, but the winners have it all in the Boat Race, and as

:03:47. > :03:51.a former Cambridge man, Wayne, you will be delighted. You had problems

:03:52. > :04:00.in 2003 through injury, but then to combat the next year to and you know

:04:01. > :04:06.what it's like to have been injured before and come back and win. Yes,

:04:07. > :04:15.it is just an unbelievable feeling. I think we knew looking at the

:04:16. > :04:19.races, the solid core of the boat, we knew from November that Cambridge

:04:20. > :04:25.were going to be a very strong crew, and then the contrast again with the

:04:26. > :04:30.losing cox, Sam Collier. A little nod of recognition but he will be

:04:31. > :04:36.back. This has been a very strong Cambridge crew this year, and Sean

:04:37. > :04:44.Bowden, the Oxford coach, knew he had a lot to do. Credit to Sean,

:04:45. > :04:48.even in the years when he doesn't have the best athletes he produces a

:04:49. > :04:55.good crew and this was not a huge margin of victory. I think both

:04:56. > :05:05.crews can be proud of what they did today, especially given the

:05:06. > :05:15.conditions. And their word for Steve Trapmore too, he came in in 2011,

:05:16. > :05:19.and now to win here are good, clean solid win for Cambridge, that's what

:05:20. > :05:31.it means. There will be delight for Steve Trapmore, the Cambridge coach,

:05:32. > :05:35.and what he has done. Yes, there will have been a lot of going back

:05:36. > :05:42.to the drawing board. But each milestone in the year they were

:05:43. > :05:46.where they wanted to be. It was a good season from start to finish so

:05:47. > :05:50.they can be happy with that. It wasn't a race of clearly defined

:05:51. > :05:55.moments where things happened, but from the start, a pretty solid start

:05:56. > :06:01.from both crews but Cambridge edged ahead and never really relinquished

:06:02. > :06:10.it from then on. No, Cambridge started inching away and then sat at

:06:11. > :06:14.this length for a good proportion of the race. It wasn't until they

:06:15. > :06:21.started to hit the rough water that they really got away from Oxford. It

:06:22. > :06:24.was interesting the choice today of the Surrey station did perhaps

:06:25. > :06:29.favour the crews. Anything could have happened in this water but both

:06:30. > :06:37.crews seemed to deal with it pretty much the same. Yes, there is danger

:06:38. > :06:43.in these conditions that one can sync, which is what we saw in the

:06:44. > :06:50.women's race. But for both crews to get through in one piece and to have

:06:51. > :06:54.a winning margin for Cambridge. What a fascinating day of races it has

:06:55. > :06:59.been, and Cambridge said they have not experienced this for four years,

:07:00. > :07:04.coming into land as a winning crew in the Men's Boat Race but they have

:07:05. > :07:09.that now. And again, it will mean a huge amount, not just for the likes

:07:10. > :07:16.of Felix Newman and Ali Abbasi, Charles Fisher and Clemens

:07:17. > :07:18.Auersperg, but for Pitt Street and Ben Ruble, who know what it is to

:07:19. > :07:50.lose. -- for Pitt And embrace with the reserve crews,

:07:51. > :07:58.and just a reminder that Cambridge women won the reserves race after

:07:59. > :08:03.Oxford men won the reserve race. Yes, unusual to have that reverse in

:08:04. > :08:09.the decisions in the reserve races. Quite often you get the stronger

:08:10. > :08:14.squad and they will win both races. We should point out six in a row for

:08:15. > :08:21.Isis. Henry Hoffstot is getting into position to talk to Clare so let's

:08:22. > :08:24.talk to him now. There was jubilation for Cambridge

:08:25. > :08:28.because so many including Henry Hoffstot have been in this race

:08:29. > :08:34.before and lost it before, third time lucky, well done. I am at a

:08:35. > :08:38.loss for words. This is a feeling like nothing I've ever experienced

:08:39. > :08:44.before, I'm truly humbled. It is a lot of hard work that goes into

:08:45. > :08:48.this. We wanted it more today. We did a great job, there's so many

:08:49. > :08:53.friends and family I would like to thank. It is a spectacular day for

:08:54. > :09:00.the light Blues. Great negotiating of the course as well. Luke Juckett,

:09:01. > :09:06.we saw the most amazing celebrations from him who was pumping the air as

:09:07. > :09:10.became over. A quick chat with Ian Middleton, well negotiated, that

:09:11. > :09:15.course was tough today. Yes, Steve and I went out on the course

:09:16. > :09:19.yesterday when conditions were similar, we knew it would be a tough

:09:20. > :09:27.second half and we had to set up in the first half. Credit to the guys

:09:28. > :09:37.who responded to what I asked. And they put in a final push to really

:09:38. > :09:42.pull away from Oxford. Yes, Lance was talking to me the entire time,

:09:43. > :09:49.telling me they were sprinting. We wanted to open up as much as we

:09:50. > :09:54.could and take some lengths back that we lost the last few years.

:09:55. > :09:59.Tradition demands that you will be thrown into that water. It doesn't

:10:00. > :10:11.look very inviting. I'm already soaked so it doesn't matter! We will

:10:12. > :10:21.try and grab Ben and Luke. He was saying it is down to you, well done.

:10:22. > :10:26.He has led us well every time, and we responded and got what we

:10:27. > :10:30.deserved today. For a lot of them in that crew it was a matter of

:10:31. > :10:35.redemption. Absolutely, there's guys and off the back of two defeats, in

:10:36. > :10:40.their final year, so I know what it meant to them. I'm really glad I

:10:41. > :10:45.could be a part of that today. How much does it hurt in the middle of

:10:46. > :10:49.that when it is so rough and choppy? The conditions got crazy, it is just

:10:50. > :10:55.a case of managing the conditions. Often when the conditions are that

:10:56. > :11:00.bad it is not easy to work and it's a case of carrying on during those

:11:01. > :11:04.rough conditions and managing better than the other crew. Many

:11:05. > :11:15.congratulations, and let's grab the other two Americans, Luke and Ben.

:11:16. > :11:22.Actually wait a second, we will be hearing from Oxford first.

:11:23. > :11:29.Where do you think the race turned against Oxford? Probably coming

:11:30. > :11:33.under Hammersmith. Cambridge did a really good job getting ahead on the

:11:34. > :11:39.Surrey bend, and credit to them, they handled the conditions and

:11:40. > :11:43.deserved to win the race. It was probably a difficult situation for

:11:44. > :11:49.the boat club. The results in the winter perhaps hadn't gone against

:11:50. > :11:54.you in experience terms perhaps the dark Blues were less capable than

:11:55. > :11:59.Cambridge, is that a fair conclusion? No, we are part of the

:12:00. > :12:06.best boat club in the world, we will be back. Does this feel like the end

:12:07. > :12:13.of an era for Oxford? Absolutely not. Thank you. Fighting talk from

:12:14. > :12:27.Oxford, they will be determined to move on from this. But Luke and Ben

:12:28. > :12:35.with me now, how sweet does victory feel? Amazing. When we started

:12:36. > :12:40.coming through Barnes it felt like it might really be happening. You

:12:41. > :12:45.had enough energy to almost dance your way over the winning line, how

:12:46. > :12:50.did you have anything left? Adrenaline, three years of build-up,

:12:51. > :12:55.it really got me up and out of my seat ready to roll. We can show it

:12:56. > :13:01.to you actually because I have no idea what you were shouting and you

:13:02. > :13:08.probably shouldn't repeat it but it was fairly impressive moves there! I

:13:09. > :13:12.was just saying this is Cambridge really loud, it was a long time

:13:13. > :13:16.coming. The coach put together an amazing plan for the year and we all

:13:17. > :13:21.bought in and it was a collective effort all the way through. We are

:13:22. > :13:29.reaping the benefits now. Speaking to all of you, you have all

:13:30. > :13:35.mentioned Steve Trapmore because this is important to him. I guess.

:13:36. > :13:39.He wants to win as much as we do, which is amazing for a coach. It is

:13:40. > :13:44.his passion, and we all sat down around him and told him how much we

:13:45. > :13:49.appreciated what he had done this year. We wanted to do it for him

:13:50. > :13:53.because we think he is a great coach. I think he is finally getting

:13:54. > :14:03.the credit he deserves. You have done it for him, and yourselves as

:14:04. > :14:07.well. Let's got more reaction. I'm standing with Sam Collier. Do you

:14:08. > :14:13.think that was a fair reflection on Oxford, that results? I mean we

:14:14. > :14:18.really wanted that one to be our race so I don't know, we threw

:14:19. > :14:23.everything we had at its. The conditions played a part. It was a

:14:24. > :14:29.tough one. How much about those conditions did you know as you went

:14:30. > :14:32.on to the state boats? Our preparations were thorough, we knew

:14:33. > :14:39.it was something similar to that, really strong winds and we have some

:14:40. > :14:45.plans to try and deal with it that were clearly not effective enough.

:14:46. > :14:49.And just say a little bit about the qualities of the Oxford squad that

:14:50. > :14:54.you have trained with. I cannot commend these guys highly enough, it

:14:55. > :14:59.is an incredible team, an incredible setup. Morgan wasn't wrong, this is

:15:00. > :15:02.the best boat club in the world, there's no question about that.

:15:03. > :15:11.Thank you. Inc. We highlight the contrast on a

:15:12. > :15:19.day of contrasting weather, sunshine and storms as well. For Cambridge,

:15:20. > :15:25.absolutely everything. They seem reasonably excited at having won, as

:15:26. > :15:33.you would be. It just ends that spell, not an era of dominance, but

:15:34. > :15:35.three wins in a row for Oxford, and finished now by these men, who

:15:36. > :15:43.controlled it pretty nearly from the start. I say this with a sense of

:15:44. > :15:51.trepidation, but let's hear from Helen and Sean again. I think our

:15:52. > :15:57.eardrums just about burst, there was a lady who squealed so lovely, she

:15:58. > :16:03.was ecstatic. Yes, she has gone. I can do it for you, if you want.

:16:04. > :16:10.Cambridge! It was very similar to that. Ladies, was that the race you

:16:11. > :16:14.expected? Did it live up to the hype? Yes, because it was so close

:16:15. > :16:19.all the way through. The women's race were quite far apart but this

:16:20. > :16:23.one was tense to the end. It was dramatic enough for you. I'm trying

:16:24. > :16:30.to work out who you are supporting because you have an array of colours

:16:31. > :16:33.on here. Which one were you backing? I support both because I went to

:16:34. > :16:38.both universities so it has been mixed feelings going through the

:16:39. > :16:46.race. I feel bad for the Cambridge women, and very happy that the

:16:47. > :16:50.Cambridge men have won. In our cases, it has been a really good

:16:51. > :16:54.turnout. You are friends with the Cambridge ladies' cox so tell her

:16:55. > :16:59.well done from us. Plenty to celebrate down here.

:17:00. > :17:09.It is now time presentation for the Cancer research UK Boat Race, after

:17:10. > :17:14.the nastiest conditions bought a long time. On the presentation

:17:15. > :17:18.podium I'm joined by the CEO of Cancer Research UK, Harpal Kumar is

:17:19. > :17:24.the Palin Glover, part of Team GB, the executive director of the Boat

:17:25. > :17:29.Race company, Mitchell Harris, the CEO of investment management for BNY

:17:30. > :17:32.Mellon. Please show your appreciation for the effort and

:17:33. > :17:53.commitment of Oxford as they make their way to the stage.

:17:54. > :18:00.Morgan Gerlak the president is leading them off the stage after a

:18:01. > :18:05.tough afternoon and a tough day. As they said in the interviews

:18:06. > :18:11.afterwards they were determined to come back. The first time since

:18:12. > :18:14.2012, the Boat Race winners are Cambridge!

:18:15. > :18:28.Felix Newman leading the way up here. You will get your moment to

:18:29. > :18:33.lift that trophy. For some it has been a long time coming including

:18:34. > :18:37.the President Henry Hoffstot. His third Boat Race. And with Luke

:18:38. > :18:41.Juckett and fellow American Ben Ruble they were determined that this

:18:42. > :18:49.would be a winning race. They have come out on top. And a big mention

:18:50. > :18:55.for Ian Middleton the cox who is in front of me, how well steered

:18:56. > :18:59.through the choppy waters... And Steve Trapmore, their coach. A quick

:19:00. > :19:04.word, because everyone I interviewed of your crew were desperate to say

:19:05. > :19:10.how much they wanted to do this for you and how much they respected you

:19:11. > :19:14.and how much it will mean. Well, I have to say that I'm really proud

:19:15. > :19:20.right now, it was the guys out there doing it and we just try to set them

:19:21. > :19:27.up year round, giving them a bit of confidence. It was just epic. .

:19:28. > :19:34.Have you ever felt prouder? No, it's hard to put into words really. The

:19:35. > :19:38.emotion, you can hear it in his voice and see it in his eyes. One

:19:39. > :19:43.final word from the president, Henry, would you like to say

:19:44. > :19:47.anything? Thank you for your support it means more than I can express,

:19:48. > :19:53.for all ten of us, Steve included. Thank you, go Cambridge! The winners

:19:54. > :19:57.of the Cancer Research UK Boat Race, Cambridge!

:19:58. > :20:19.Fierce and wild celebrations and well-deserved, for Cambridge. The

:20:20. > :20:24.champagne spray, not the first spray they have had to deal with after

:20:25. > :20:27.this fascinating day on the river. Cambridge in the men's race have

:20:28. > :20:38.beaten Oxford and the conditions because as lively as it has been for

:20:39. > :20:43.many years, out on the Thames, some of them experiencing the race for

:20:44. > :20:47.the first time, Felix Newman, Ali Abbasi, Charles Fisher and the

:20:48. > :20:52.Austrian Clemens Auersperg. But then there is Luke Juckett and Henry

:20:53. > :20:58.Hoffstot, the American who says that he is lost for words but often

:20:59. > :21:03.isn't. And Ben Ruble, coming back. Lance Tredell, the stroke man, and

:21:04. > :21:12.Ian Middleton. And all of the celebrations are there. It was a

:21:13. > :21:15.very... It was quite a controlled race in uncontrollable conditions.

:21:16. > :21:19.They were very disciplined, keeping their length and rhythm even when

:21:20. > :21:25.conditions were awful and they did a great job to make it through on top.

:21:26. > :21:30.I totally agree. They were very relaxed, both of them really held it

:21:31. > :21:33.together well. Just looking at the shot from above, it looks like

:21:34. > :21:41.perhaps the Oxford women's cox Morgan Baynham-Williams might be

:21:42. > :21:45.about to go in there. We will not want to miss that. They will throw

:21:46. > :21:49.in the victorious coxes at the same time, one from Oxford and one from

:21:50. > :21:53.Cambridge but I wonder if they would do it separately? The more

:21:54. > :21:57.established tradition is this and Morgan Baynham-Williams is getting

:21:58. > :22:01.ready to be hurled, she will probably change direction at the

:22:02. > :22:05.last moment and go somewhere else! She is getting ready. Cambridge will

:22:06. > :22:12.do the men's at the same time. Ian Middleton in his third Boat Race, he

:22:13. > :22:20.has not experienced this. And Morgan Baynham-Williams in her first, they

:22:21. > :22:25.will go into the Thames! The winners of the Women's Boat Race, Oxford and

:22:26. > :22:36.the men's, Cambridge. One, two, three! Synchronised diving into the

:22:37. > :22:41.Thames. Yes!! Cambridge and Oxford together, isn't not a nice way to

:22:42. > :22:50.finish? As Ian Middleton said, he was wet enough already. After a hard

:22:51. > :22:54.day out on the river, that was rather ungainly. Ian Middleton got

:22:55. > :23:00.some good hide there. It was more a skimming stone from Morgan

:23:01. > :23:04.Baynham-Williams. Any other time that would be deeply unpleasant but

:23:05. > :23:09.I think any cox would like to go through that celebration after

:23:10. > :23:15.winning. For Cambridge today it is victory in the men's race, Oxford in

:23:16. > :23:19.the women's. And what a day it has been on the river. The sun is out

:23:20. > :23:23.now but we have had a bit of everything and all of the champagne

:23:24. > :23:31.for Cambridge. Your final thoughts? Great racing from all of the crews,

:23:32. > :23:37.well held together in those conditions that nobody wanted,

:23:38. > :23:41.frankly. Well done from everyone. Wayne, something you have

:23:42. > :23:46.experienced as part of a Cambridge crew in 2004, it means the world?

:23:47. > :23:50.Cambridge will be determined to show that their system is right and

:23:51. > :23:52.Oxford want to show that it was a one-off will stop congratulations to

:23:53. > :23:56.Oxford women and Cambridge in the men's. -- a one-off will stop Clare

:23:57. > :24:04.is still down there. Of course we have a whole afternoon

:24:05. > :24:08.of racing to reflect on and looking back to the Oxford win in the

:24:09. > :24:15.women's race. Christine Wilson, their carriages with me. Four out of

:24:16. > :24:18.four, 100%. It is. We are so fortunate to coach a remarkable

:24:19. > :24:22.women and we had a bit of a theme which was, whatever came today, they

:24:23. > :24:29.would be perfect Boat Race conditions. I'm not sure we expected

:24:30. > :24:31.something quite so perfect. They were extraordinarily tough

:24:32. > :24:35.conditions and I'm not quite sure what it looked like on the

:24:36. > :24:39.television, but they were rowing through the Pacific Ocean at times.

:24:40. > :24:44.That is what it looked like, believe me. There were times when Morgan was

:24:45. > :24:49.steering and people were thinking, what is she doing? Matthew Pinsent

:24:50. > :24:54.was with me in the following launch, and he kept telling me that it was

:24:55. > :24:59.OK. I was wondering if he was right because she could cross out of her

:25:00. > :25:02.station to one side of the river and then came back across but when she

:25:03. > :25:07.got over there, you could see the water she was in and it was a

:25:08. > :25:10.brilliant decision. Really brave, making that decision in the moment,

:25:11. > :25:14.internally she said she was thinking, Christine is going to kill

:25:15. > :25:19.me, but she instinctively knew that she needed to get into better water

:25:20. > :25:22.and she did the right thing. She did the right thing for them and they

:25:23. > :25:27.did the right thing in battling through because my word, they were

:25:28. > :25:30.good, they were committed, all of that training and the work you have

:25:31. > :25:34.done in getting their technique right, and for them to stay calm in

:25:35. > :25:38.the moment, almost not thinking of it as a race against another crew

:25:39. > :25:44.but a competition with themselves to be the best they can be. Yes, they

:25:45. > :25:48.certainly are very focused on figuring out how to move the boat.

:25:49. > :25:55.If it is lousy conditions someone has to do a better job of ploughing

:25:56. > :25:59.through that stuff. They're connected length and sense of the

:26:00. > :26:04.boat kept them at it, one stroke at a time. For you, as personal

:26:05. > :26:08.achievements go, where does it rank? I'm really proud of these women. I

:26:09. > :26:14.think the conditions didn't necessarily let them show how good

:26:15. > :26:20.their rhythm and base speed was, but I think they are an extraordinary

:26:21. > :26:26.crew, and they have got so much out of themselves this year, to really

:26:27. > :26:31.exceed all of our expectations. They did a great job. Congratulations and

:26:32. > :26:38.enjoy tonight. Her work for next year will probably start

:26:39. > :26:43.immediately. As the tide starts to come in and lap over your feet, take

:26:44. > :26:50.a step this way, I don't want you to ruin your shoes. As the days go,

:26:51. > :26:55.that was one of the more memorable. Dramatic. That sums up everything.

:26:56. > :26:59.We all want close races that people have to fight for, and today had it

:27:00. > :27:05.all and more. We did not think the weather would play such a huge role,

:27:06. > :27:11.but in both the men's and women's it was competitive and I think although

:27:12. > :27:15.Cambridge just survived to the end in the women's race, they were very

:27:16. > :27:21.tactically smart and never gave up even when they were sinking. It was

:27:22. > :27:24.amazing, that. Incredible looking back now, that they did actually

:27:25. > :27:28.managed to finish because that boat looked like it was going nowhere but

:27:29. > :27:32.down and it would have been a terrible end. They were never going

:27:33. > :27:35.to stop, the amount of training they have done, they are ready for

:27:36. > :27:43.anything and we know that this race can throw anything at the crews. The

:27:44. > :27:46.timing of it, being in March, means that they have to attack it all the

:27:47. > :27:51.way through the race and conditions were always going to be tough. There

:27:52. > :27:56.were moments when they regained a bit and came back at Oxford, and

:27:57. > :27:59.they were ready to see if there was an opportunity. Work to do that

:28:00. > :28:04.Cambridge women but for the Cambridge man, delight, because that

:28:05. > :28:08.is necessary in terms of the competitive nature of the race, it

:28:09. > :28:12.needed a Cambridge win. Absolutely, they have gone three years without a

:28:13. > :28:16.win and it is fantastic. I'm over the moon for them and I can't

:28:17. > :28:20.express enough how much they needed that, and how much they deserved it,

:28:21. > :28:25.frankly. They have had a great year with loads of things going right,

:28:26. > :28:28.loads of great training in place. On the day they were incredibly

:28:29. > :28:32.clinical and remained incredibly relaxed and composed at the start of

:28:33. > :28:36.the race. Even though conditions were horrific, I don't think they

:28:37. > :28:40.actually affected the men's race as much as the women's. That is

:28:41. > :28:46.testament to how well they prepared and executed today. Absolutely

:28:47. > :28:49.great. Constantine, we heard in the immediate aftermath from the Oxford

:28:50. > :28:54.crew that they will fight back. I'm sure. They still have that system in

:28:55. > :28:57.place. They have a lot of younger talent coming through the ranks and

:28:58. > :29:02.they will be right back at it next year. I agree with George, without

:29:03. > :29:06.my Oxford hat on, for the event it's good to mix it up and have

:29:07. > :29:09.competitive racing and have it going either way and if it means the odd

:29:10. > :29:15.Cambridge win we will have to be done with it! Very gracious! You

:29:16. > :29:19.guys are going back into camp and will be part of the GB team for Rio.

:29:20. > :29:26.Announcements being made soon. In two weeks' time? On the 9th of May

:29:27. > :29:29.we make the decisions on the European Championships, that is the

:29:30. > :29:33.first international race that the British team will compete in. We may

:29:34. > :29:37.may not change the boats before Rio and that will be the deciding

:29:38. > :29:41.factor. In June we will know for deficit. I hope it will be smoother

:29:42. > :29:46.water than this! It has been an amazing day, starting with a

:29:47. > :29:50.lightning strike and a tree bursting into flames down the river from us.

:29:51. > :29:54.We had rain storms and hailstorms and the choppy as water we have seen

:29:55. > :29:58.for ages which meant Cambridge nearly sank in the women's race.

:29:59. > :30:04.They made it to the end. Oxford victorious. And eventually a win for

:30:05. > :30:09.the Cambridge men. We will see you soon. Goodbye. This year is

:30:10. > :30:15.different. It is a challenge like no other. We go out and race because we

:30:16. > :30:19.love racing. This is our year. It's just an amazing thing to have the

:30:20. > :30:35.opportunity. It is the Boat Race and it is the only race that matters.

:30:36. > :30:40.The tension, go! -- attention. It is absolutely bucketing down here. In

:30:41. > :30:47.the shadows of Barnes Bridge, Cambridge are sinking and Oxford are

:30:48. > :30:55.going to win. It is the 162nd Boat Race. It is underway. Very smooth

:30:56. > :30:58.and very confident at this stage. Three years of dark blue turns a

:30:59. > :31:01.lighter shade.