The Boat Race 1873
| 30th Boat Race | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | 29 March 1873 | ||
| Winner | Cambridge | ||
| Margin of victory | 3 lengths | ||
| Winning time | 19 minutes 35 seconds | ||
| Overall record (Cambridge–Oxford) |
14–16 | ||
| Umpire |
Joseph William Chitty (Oxford) |
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The 30th Boat Race took place on the 29 March 1873. The Boat Race is an annual side-by-side rowing race between crews from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge along the River Thames. In a race umpired by former Oxford rower Joseph William Chitty, Cambridge won by three lengths in a time of 19 minutes and 35 seconds, the fastest time in the history of the event. It was the first time that rowers raced on sliding seats.
The Boat Race is a side-by-side rowing competition between the University of Oxford (sometimes referred to as the "Dark Blues") and the University of Cambridge (sometimes referred to as the "Light Blues"). The race was first held in 1829, and since 1845 has taken place on the 4.2-mile (6.8 km) Championship Course on the River Thames in southwest London. Cambridge went into the race as reigning champions, having defeated Oxford by two lengths in the previous year's race, while Oxford led overall with sixteen wins to Cambridge's thirteen.
Although the use of sliding seats had been considered the previous year, the then-Cambridge boat club president John Goldie disallowed the Light Blue boat manufacturer Harry Clasper from fitting them. However, for the 1873 race, both boats were, for the first time, fitted with the innovation.
Cambridge were coached by John Graham Chambers (who rowed for Cambridge in the 1862 and 1863 races, and was non-rowing boat club president for the 1865 race) Oxford's coaches was Robert Lesley, the non-rowing president of Oxford University Boat Club (who had rowed in the 1871 and 1872 races).
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