Universities lay down Boat Race challenge
Students aim to row themselves into the history books by taking part in the first Universities at Medway boat race. The race, due to take place on Saturday 26 May, will see teams from the universities of Greenwich, Kent and Canterbury Christ Church battle it out to become heads of the river in Medway.
The inaugural race will see the rowers tackling a three-mile course, starting in Halling and ending at Rochester Pier. The race has been organised by the Universities at Medway Students' Association, UMSA, which represents all students at the shared campus at Chatham Maritime.
UMSA's Activities Co-ordinator Sophie Bruschan said the contest had caught students' imaginations. 'It's a tough challenge, especially as few of our students have rowed before,' she said. 'But the fact they're all novices makes it even more exciting, and what better way than an old-fashioned race to get that competitive spirit flowing through the veins? In fact, the battle for local bragging rights has already started!'
To date, men's crews from Greenwich and Kent universities will be going head-to-head, followed by a women's race between Kent and Canterbury Christ Church, although there is still time for other students to come on board and join in the fun.
A colourful extravaganza is planned for the day of the race, with UMSA planning to provide spectators with live music, food and drink, and even have information stands about the universities.
Student rowers are being trained by coaches at Medway Towns Rowing Club in Rochester. The club's head coach Barry Pearson had nothing but praise for his young protégées. 'Despite their lack of experience I've been impressed with how hard they've all worked. They've been intent on listening and learning right from the start,' he said.
Ms Bruschan said she hoped the Medway Boat Race would be the start of something big for the region. 'It would be wonderful if we could start a proper boat race tradition here. We could be writing history, and we'd love as many people as possible to come along and witness it,' she said. 'The close proximity of the Medway campus to the river lends itself to sports such as rowing, and after the boat race we hope to set up a rowing club so that more students can get involved.'
The Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race dates back to 1829 and has been held annually since 1856 - stopped only by the two world wars. Oxford won the 2006 Boat Race but Cambridge lead overall by 78 wins to 73.
See also: 'Artist Unveils Boat Race Trophies'
For further information please contact:
Nick Davison, Press Officer, University of Greenwich, 020 8331 8092, n.a.p.davision@gre.ac.uk
Nick Ellwood, Marketing and Communications Officer, University of Kent at Medway, 01634 888879, N.J.Ellwood@kent.ac.uk