The Boat Race 1966
| 112th Boat Race | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | 26 March 1966 | ||
| Winner | Oxford | ||
| Margin of victory | 3 and 3/4 lengths | ||
| Winning time | 19 minutes 12 seconds | ||
| Overall record (Cambridge–Oxford) |
61–50 | ||
| Umpire | Alan Burrough (Cambridge) |
||
| Other races | |||
| Reserve winner | Isis | ||
| Women's winner | Cambridge | ||
|
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The 112th Boat Race took place on 26 March 1966. Held annually, the event is a side-by-side rowing race between crews from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge along the River Thames. The race was won by Oxford by three-and-three-quarter-lengths. Isis won the reserve race while Cambridge won the Women's Boat Race.
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. The rivalry is a major point of honour between the two universities, followed throughout the United Kingdom and broadcast worldwide. Oxford went into the race as reigning champions, having won the previous year's race by three-and-three-quarter lengths. Cambridge, however, held the overall lead with 61 victories to Oxford's 49 (excluding the "dead heat" of 1877).
The first Women's Boat Race took place in 1927, but did not become an annual fixture until the 1960s. Up until 2014, the contest was conducted as part of the Henley Boat Races, but as of the 2015 race, it is held on the River Thames, on the same day as the men's main and reserve races. The reserve race, contested between Oxford's Isis boat and Cambridge's Goldie boat has been held since 1965. It usually takes place on the Tideway, prior to the main Boat Race.
Two days before the main race and in inclement weather, the Cambridge boat began to sink and was pushed into barges and tugs moored below Beverley Brook. The crew were rescued and according to their boat club president Mike Sweeney, the incident would have no impact on the Light Blues: "we shall just get into our other boat and race in that". It was the first Boat Race vessel to sink since the 1951 race. The Light Blues would row in the same boat in which they won the 1962 and 1964 races, while Oxford's craft was manufactured by Swiss firm Stämpfli Racing Boats. Both boats were German-rigged, where the number four and five row on the bow side. The inclement weather continued until the day of the race, with further disruption predicted and the threat of postponement a real one. The race was umpired by the former Cambridge University Boat Club president and rower Alan Burrough who took part in Cambridge's victory in the 1939 race.
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