Is the Thames safe to race in? The fallout of the Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race

The Boat Race 2024 saw the University of Cambridge romp to victory over their age-old rival Oxford, securing a double win in the men’s and women’s races for the fifth time in six years. Yet, it’s likely that the race won’t be remembered so much for this feat as it will be for the surely immortal comment made by Oxford’s Leonard Jenkins afterwards to the BBC – that “it would be a lot nicer if there wasn’t as much poo in the water”.

The revelation that organisers were officially warning crews before the race against entering the water due to dangerous levels of E.coli in the River Thames caught the attention of news outlets as far removed as France24 and The New York Times, in what cannot be the noblest of days for Britain’s water-sporting reputation. It’s sparked outcry at home too, as attention around the races has focused on the condition of the Thames and the practices of sewage dumping which have left it, and other rivers, in such a state.

Both of Cambridge’s Light Blue teams entered their races as underdogs, yet proceeded to utterly dominate their Dark Blue opponents

Ultimately, it’s a shame when, by all accounts, the races themselves that took place on 30 March were the best in years. Both of Cambridge’s Light Blue teams entered their races as underdogs, yet proceeded to utterly dominate their Dark Blue opponents in what proved to be brutally hard-fought contests.

There was no shortage of drama either; for the women’s race, Oxford at first took a narrow lead, yet Cambridge clawed back the lost ground over the course of ten minutes, drawing level with the Dark Blues right at the instance where both teams approached the Surrey Bend.

Apparently feeling that the Cambridge team had crossed into their path, Oxford’s cox Joe Gellett made the gamble of trying to force a bump with the Cambridge boat in a bid to disqualify their competitors. Yet, amid the furious roars of the umpire, Richard Phelps, the move failed to yield results, and seriously cost the Dark Blues their momentum.

From there, Cambridge’s victory seemed inevitable, and the Light Blues ended up crossing the finish line a full seven lengths ahead of their rivals. There followed a tense five-minute discussion as Gellett made his case to the umpire, but Phelps finally dismissed the appeal, upholding the win for Cambridge – to exultant cheers from the Light Blues.

Hours later, the men’s race saw Cambridge similarly defy their underdog status. There was not a moment’s respite for Oxford, who fell half a boat behind their opponents almost immediately.

Cambridge stroke Matt Edge appeared to have totally exhausted himself, keeling over in the boat

Powered on by the near-superhuman efforts of their stroke, Matt Edge, Cambridge seemed to glide through the choppy waters. At times the spectre of a similar clash to the women’s race arose as the two rivals drew dangerously close, prompting bellows from umpire Matthew Pinsent as oar struck oar. But by the ten-minute mark, the Light Blues had managed to pull well ahead, with Oxford needing a Hail Mary if they stood any chance of pulling it back.

They almost got it; as both teams neared the end, Cambridge stroke Matt Edge appeared to have totally exhausted himself, keeling over in the boat. The Light Blues began to visibly slow, prompting Oxford’s cox Will Denegri to urge his crew.

Happily for Cambridge, however, Edge had not passed out entirely, as has happened to past crews, but was able to continue going through the motions even if his oars barely skimmed the surface of the water.

Without a dead weight then, and on top of the commanding lead they had built up through Edge’s efforts earlier, Cambridge managed to cross the finish still three lengths ahead of their rivals. There were cheers from Cambridge’s supporters, as Edge was carried from the boat.

Since the race, many have asked what happened to Matt Edge, and why. As Warwick University Boat Club’s Senior Men’s Coach Gavin McWilliams explained to The Boar, Edge was an example of rowers pushing far beyond their limit by misjudging the pace needed for the race distance.

Though such an incident is rare, McWilliams told The Boar that it’s important for rowers to find their physical limit through training in a controlled environment He said, “You will have to hit that limit, so you know what it feels like to get there.”

Concerns over the safety of the Thames led Cambridge to avoid following through on the historic tradition of the winning team throwing their cox into the river

Edge’s teammates certainly didn’t think that Edge could have cost them the race. Cambridge bow Sebastien Benzecry had nothing but praise for his stroke: “Credit to Matt to go that deep, I’m sure a lot of that margin we took early in the race was him. He was putting down such a dynamic rhythm and that takes a lot out of you in the stroke seat. So proud of him.”

But if the Cambridge crew had faced physical challenges, Oxford’s crew had been through the wringer. At least, that was Leonard Jenkins’ argument as he spoke to the BBC afterwards: “This is in no way to take away from Cambridge”, he clarified, “we’ve had a few guys go down pretty badly with the E.coli.”

In the days after, Oxford University Boat Club confirmed that three of their crew had fallen ill on the week of the race, though refrained from directly blaming levels of E.coli in the river for this illness.

The concerns over the safety of the Thames led Cambridge to avoid following through on the historic tradition of the winning team throwing their cox into the river. The cox in question, Ed Bracey, did suggest he wouldn’t have minded – “We’ve been splashing about in that water for weeks” – but was immediately overruled by the men’s coach, Rob Baker. Luckily so, perhaps: raw sewage had been pumped into the Thames for nearly six hours just three days prior.

It’s a sad reality that … too many of our rivers are polluted with sewage and waste products. Sadly, that’s also the case for our stretch of the Avon

Bea Clark, President of Warwick University’s Boat Club

Water quality is an issue not just limited to the Thames, either, as Warwick University Boat Club’s President Bea Clarke told The Boar: “It’s a sad reality that … too many of our rivers are polluted with sewage and waste products. Sadly, that’s also the case for our stretch of the Avon.”

She added that members of Warwick’s crews had even fallen ill at times because of the splashback from the oars, but that the club was taking measures to mitigate risks through promoting hand hygiene after sessions, and using secure water bottles.

The Cambridge men’s coach Baker best summarised the feelings of all parties involved in an interview following his team’s triumph. “It’s obviously not a great situation,” he said pointedly. “We’d like cleaner waterways, I think that’s fair to say. We’d like to not have such a risk for our athletes.”