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Level 3 – Intermediate
The Varsity Boat Race
The Varsity Boat Race is the annual rowing contest between two of England's oldest and most famous universities, Oxford and Cambridge. They have been fighting over the four-and-a-quarter-mile stretch of the River Thames for 175 years.
The first race was held on 12 March 1829, when two student friends decided to hold a race between their two universities. Since then the race has become a major event on the English sporting calendar, and rowing has remained a tradition of university life.
Rowing is a true team sport and successful crews operate as a single unit. There is no place for the individual star performer on a rowing boat. Everyone has to move together, so as not to turn the boat over. There are nine crew members: eight oarsmen and a cox. The latter is the crew manager; he is the only one who looks forward in the direction of the finish line. He steers the boat and gives instructions to the other members. The race, which takes an average 20 minutes to complete, is held on a stretch of river between Putney and Mortlake, near London. There are many bends and currents in the river which make the cox's role essential.
The race is an important attraction and today it is broadcast to over 500 million television viewers worldwide. Over the years Cambridge have won about 10% more races than Oxford, with only one race, in 1877, ending in a dead heat.
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C2 Mastery
