The Boat Race 1958
104th Boat Race | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date | 5 April 1958 | ||
Winner | Cambridge | ||
Margin of victory | 3+1⁄2 lengths | ||
Winning time | 18 minutes 15 seconds | ||
Overall record (Cambridge–Oxford) | 58–45 | ||
Umpire | Kenneth Payne (Cambridge) | ||
|
The 104th Boat Race took place on 5 April 1958. Held annually, the Boat Race is a side-by-side rowing race between crews from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge along the River Thames. The race was umpired by former Cambridge rower Kenneth Payne and featured the first cox to follow his father in steering one of the boats. The reigning champions Cambridge won by 3+1⁄2 lengths in a time of 18 minutes 15 seconds, the third-fastest winning time in history, and took the overall record to 58–45 in their favour.
Background
The Boat Race is a side-by-side rowing competition between the University of Oxford (sometimes referred to as the "Dark Blues")[1] and the University of Cambridge (sometimes referred to as the "Light Blues").[1] First held in 1829, the race takes place on the 4.2-mile (6.8 km) Championship Course on the River Thames in southwest London.[2] The rivalry is a major point of honour between the two universities and followed throughout the United Kingdom and broadcast worldwide.[3][4] Cambridge went into the race as reigning champions, having won the 1957 race by two lengths,[5] and led overall with 57 victories to Oxford's 45 (excluding the "dead heat" of 1877).[6]
Cambridge were coached by J. R. F. Best, James Crowden (who rowed twice for Cambridge, in the 1951 and 1952 races), Brian Lloyd (a three-time Blue, rowing in the 1949, 1950 and 1951 races), J. R. Owen (who rowed in the 1959 and 1960 races) and Harold Rickett (three-time Blue between 1930 and 1932). Oxford's coaches were Hugh "Jumbo" Edwards (who rowed for Oxford in the 1926 and 1930 races), J. H. Page, C. F. Porter and L. A. F. Stokes (who rowed in the 1951 and 1952 races.[7] The race was umpired for the sixth time by the former British Olympian Kenneth Payne, who had rowed for Cambridge in the 1932 and 1934 races.[8][9]
In the buildup to the race, Cambridge's P. D. Rickett was struck down by influenza for a week and was unable to train.[10]
Crews
The Cambridge crew weighed an average of 13
Cambridge's James Sulley became the first
Seat | Oxford |
Cambridge | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | College | Weight | Name | College | Weight | |
Bow |
G. Sorrell (P) | Christ Church | 11 st 13 lb | A. T. Denby | Magdalene | 12 st 4 lb |
2 | M. J. W. Hall | Lincoln | 12 st 5 lb | J. R. Giles | Emmanuel | 12 st 7 lb |
3 | J. H. Ducker | St Edmund Hall | 12 st 13 lb | J. A. Pitchford (P) | Christ's | 13 st 10 lb |
4 | S. F. A. Miskin | University | 12 st 3 lb | R. D. Carver | 1st & 3rd Trinity | 13 st 3 lb |
5 | F. D. M. Badcock | Christ Church | 13 st 3 lb | R. B. Ritchie | Corpus Christi | 14 st 2 lb |
6 | R. Rubin | Merton | 14 st 8 lb | P. D. Rickett | 1st & 3rd Trinity | 13 st 6 lb |
7 | J. L. Fage | St Edmund Hall | 12 st 13 lb | D. C. Christie | Pembroke | 13 st 12 lb |
Stroke |
D. C. R. Edwards | Christ Church | 13 st 2 lb | M. B. Maltby | Pembroke | 12 st 9 lb |
Cox | J. G. Rowbotham | Hertford | 9 st 0 lb | J. S. Sulley | Selwyn | 8 st 8 lb |
Source:[14] (P) – boat club president[15] |
Race
Cambridge, who went into the race as favourites,
A spurt from Oxford at the Crab Tree pub made no impression on the lead. Oxford were still out-rating by Cambridge three strokes per minute as they passed below
International selection
Jonathan Hall and Francis David Badcock (from Oxford) and Russell Carver (from Cambridge) were all selected for the England team for the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games later in the year; Badcock was a reserve for the eights.[19]
References
Notes
- ^ a b "Dark Blues aim to punch above their weight". The Observer. 6 April 2003. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ Smith, Oliver (25 March 2014). "University Boat Race 2014: spectators' guide". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "Former Winnipegger in winning Oxford–Cambridge Boat Race crew". CBC News. 6 April 2014. Retrieved 9 July 2014.
- ^ "TV and radio". The Boat Race Company Limited. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ a b "Boat Race – Results". The Boat Race Company Limited. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "Classic moments – the 1877 dead heat". The Boat Race Company Limited. Archived from the original on 28 October 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ Burnell, pp. 110–111
- ^ Burnell, pp. 49, 74
- ^ "Kenneth Payne Bio, Stats, and Results". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
- The Manchester Guardian. 1 April 1958. p. 3.
- ^ Burnell, p. 79
- ^ Burnell, p. 39
- ^ a b c d e Beresford, Jack (6 April 1958). "This crew should row for England". The Observer. p. 20.
- ^ Dodd, p. 337
- ^ Burnell, pp. 50, 52
- ^ "Can Cambridge's measured stride be shaken?". The Guardian. 5 April 1958. p. 6.
- ^ "Cambridge favourites on consistent form". The Times. No. 54117. 5 April 1958. p. 10.
- ^ a b c d "Cambridge lead all the way in Boat Race". The Times. No. 54418. 7 April 1958. p. 3.
- ^ "1958 Athletes". Team England.
Bibliography
- ISBN 0950063878.
- Dodd, Christopher (1983). The Oxford & Cambridge Boat Race. Stanley Paul. ISBN 0091513405.