The Boat Race 1983
| 129th Boat Race | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | 2 April 1983 | ||
| Winner | Oxford | ||
| Margin of victory | 4 and 1/2 lengths | ||
| Winning time | 19 minutes 7 seconds | ||
| Overall record (Cambridge–Oxford) |
68–60 | ||
| Other races | |||
| Reserve winner | Isis | ||
| Women's winner | Cambridge | ||
|
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The 129th Boat Race took place on 2 April 1983. 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 pre-race preparation saw Cambridge threaten to boycott the race for the first time, following the inclusion of Boris Rankov in the Oxford boat. The crews were the two heaviest in the history of the event, and featured ten former Boat Race competitors. Oxford won the race by four-and-a-half lengths.
Isis won the reserve race, while Cambridge were victorious in 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"). First held in 1829, the race takes place on the 4.2 miles (6.8 km) Championship Course on the River Thames in southwest London. The rivalry is a major point of honour between the two universities and followed throughout the United Kingdom and broadcast worldwide. Oxford were the reigning champions, having beaten Cambridge by three-and-a-quarter lengths in the previous year's race. However, Cambridge held the overall lead, with 68 victories to Oxford's 59. The race was sponsored by Ladbrokes; the winner was awarded the Ladbrokes Trophy.
On 7 March 1983, Cambridge issued a statement suggesting that they might boycott the race following a dispute over Oxford's selection of Boris Rankov as a member of their crew. Veteran of the previous five Boat Races, all of which were Dark Blue victories, Cambridge argued Rankov was ineligible for inclusion as he was a lecturer at the university. Coach David Townsend of the University of London offered the services of his crew to provide an opponent for Oxford, should Cambridge refuse to participate. Rankov himself had offered to withdraw from the race, but the Dark Blues' committee rejected this. Cambridge finally agreed to race after they reached an agreement with Oxford to discuss and possibly tighten the eligibility criteria. This ultimately led to establishment of the so-called "Rankov Rule", which states that oarsmen will compete in the race no more than four times as an undergraduate and no more than four times as a graduate.
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