Swansea University’s Senior Men’s Eight rowing crew retained the Welsh Boat Race trophy on Saturday (23 April 2010), beating their Cardiff rivals by two lengths.
This year’s Welsh Boat Race was held on the River Tawe in Swansea for the first time in the event’s five-year history, and attracted a large crowd of supporters who lined the city’s Sail Bridge.
The Swansea crew, who won the Welsh Boat Race for the first time last year, took advantage of Cardiff’s hesitation on the first stroke to take an early lead. Although Cardiff pulled back and managed to draw level after 500 metres, Swansea responded with a sustained push that Cardiff would prove unable to match.
In the day’s other races, Cardiff University’s Women’s Fresher crew proved too strong for their Swansea counterparts whilst, in the Men’s Fresher race, Cardiff took an early lead after a Swansea oarsman lost grip on his oar. The Swansea crew managed to regain some of the ground they lost, but were ultimately unsuccessful. In the Senior Women’s Eight, Cardiff pulled away from Swansea after 800 metres, and went on to win the race.
The Captain of Swansea University’s Rowing Club, Steven Gray praised the dedication of his crews and, despite the day’s losses, was delighted with the victory for the Senior Men’s crew. He said: “This is a massive achievement for the club and I hope this win will able us to attract sponsorship for next year!”
The President of Cardiff University Rowing Club, Morgan Bailey, was pleased with Cardiff’s wins: “All the tough training paid off for our fresher’s and women’s crews, and we’ll be back for that last trophy!”.
Hefin Evans, who coordinated the Welsh Boat Race, said: “Bringing the Welsh Boat Race to Swansea is a massive achievement that would not have been possible without the hard work of the event organisers and volunteers from Cardiff and Swansea Universities Rowing clubs.
“I’d particularly like to thank the event’s main sponsors, Barratt Homes, who made the day possible by ensuring funding was in place to support the safety of the competitors and supporters.”
The Welsh Boat Race is the first stage of the Welsh Varsity competition, the biggest student event in Wales. Swansea University will take on Cardiff University in over 20 different sports on Wednesday 28 April. The climax of the event is the evening’s Varsity Rugby match, which will take place at the Liberty Stadium.
