This Sunday, Easter Day, the day the clocks go forward is also Boat Race day. 4:30pm to be precise. I have watched the Boat Race since my earliest childhood. It is one of my earliest memories of watching sport, the others being Daley Thompson clearing the pole vault in the '84 decathlon and tuning in the TV to watch Argentina cheat at football.
The race is watched by millions each year, the vast majority of whom have never sat in a rowing boat, let alone have any sort of affiliation with either Oxford or Cambridge. My early viewing did at least have the excuse that Dad had been to Oxford, he'd even rowed, I have photographic proof. It is one of those rowing pictures that manages to capture eight different positions in the rowing stroke- the Russians tried and failed to reproduce syncopated rowing, they should have consulted the 1960 Exeter college 5th VIII.
I will watch it this Sunday and I will enjoy the race, the match nature of the race on a twisting tideway makes it more interesting than the majority of multi-lane International races. I am well aware that it could be over as a competition by Hammersmith Bridge, I understand that 80% of crews leading at that point go on to win. This statistic does not however take into account the increasing duration of the crews remaining 'in a race' due to ever improving training methods over the last two decades.
What I will find painful is the coverage. If possible I will stick to just the race as presenters and their producers always feel the need to fill out the hours of airtime set aside for a seventeen minute race with terrible fly on the wall documentaries or dreadful 'my journalist experiences of rowing' films. Usually this is sandwiched between roaming cameras capturing gafforing red trousered types hanging around the pubs in Hammersmith. I am sure that many people in red trousers are delightful but the coverage does reinforce an image that while true to life, is not in my opinion one that helps the sport grow.
The Boat Race is the one time in the year that rowing receives anything like publicity, true, we have had the Olympics but that is a once every four years fest that also includes distractions such as Sir Brad' and Lady Jess'. The Boat Race is an opportunity for rowing to showcase itself as a sport open to many but it is never the case. This is not the fault of those involved with the Oxford and Cambridge squads, they do a fabulous job, they are dedicated professionals, many of whom (the athletes) are amateurs but are still more professional than most highly paid sportsmen in other disciplines.
It isn't really a fault as my vision is idealist and not one that the governing body can force on the broadcasters. I believe it would be fantastic if the elite (elite being a good word indicating doing something well) nature of the event could be married with some rather more imaginative pieces on how young people can get involved in the sport. This event is about student athletes combining a dedication to a very high level of sport with dedication to a very high level of learning. That is something that should be lauded, the positive impact on the student athlete of managing this challenge is huge. This one moment in the limelight could be used to show how young people can get involved in the sport at clubs all over the country for very little cost- far less than joining a sports centre. The piece could be used to show how beneficial this can be to those young minds and bodies, it might even illustrate how a commitment to the sport can lead to improved results in the classroom and thus open up a route to a fantastic further education and an opportunity to compete in the event themselves, now that would be a neat piece...
Come Sunday afternoon, I suspect that this will not be the case, I do however suspect that my Father's allegiances will be satisfied.
The race is watched by millions each year, the vast majority of whom have never sat in a rowing boat, let alone have any sort of affiliation with either Oxford or Cambridge. My early viewing did at least have the excuse that Dad had been to Oxford, he'd even rowed, I have photographic proof. It is one of those rowing pictures that manages to capture eight different positions in the rowing stroke- the Russians tried and failed to reproduce syncopated rowing, they should have consulted the 1960 Exeter college 5th VIII.
I will watch it this Sunday and I will enjoy the race, the match nature of the race on a twisting tideway makes it more interesting than the majority of multi-lane International races. I am well aware that it could be over as a competition by Hammersmith Bridge, I understand that 80% of crews leading at that point go on to win. This statistic does not however take into account the increasing duration of the crews remaining 'in a race' due to ever improving training methods over the last two decades.
What I will find painful is the coverage. If possible I will stick to just the race as presenters and their producers always feel the need to fill out the hours of airtime set aside for a seventeen minute race with terrible fly on the wall documentaries or dreadful 'my journalist experiences of rowing' films. Usually this is sandwiched between roaming cameras capturing gafforing red trousered types hanging around the pubs in Hammersmith. I am sure that many people in red trousers are delightful but the coverage does reinforce an image that while true to life, is not in my opinion one that helps the sport grow.
The Boat Race is the one time in the year that rowing receives anything like publicity, true, we have had the Olympics but that is a once every four years fest that also includes distractions such as Sir Brad' and Lady Jess'. The Boat Race is an opportunity for rowing to showcase itself as a sport open to many but it is never the case. This is not the fault of those involved with the Oxford and Cambridge squads, they do a fabulous job, they are dedicated professionals, many of whom (the athletes) are amateurs but are still more professional than most highly paid sportsmen in other disciplines.
It isn't really a fault as my vision is idealist and not one that the governing body can force on the broadcasters. I believe it would be fantastic if the elite (elite being a good word indicating doing something well) nature of the event could be married with some rather more imaginative pieces on how young people can get involved in the sport. This event is about student athletes combining a dedication to a very high level of sport with dedication to a very high level of learning. That is something that should be lauded, the positive impact on the student athlete of managing this challenge is huge. This one moment in the limelight could be used to show how young people can get involved in the sport at clubs all over the country for very little cost- far less than joining a sports centre. The piece could be used to show how beneficial this can be to those young minds and bodies, it might even illustrate how a commitment to the sport can lead to improved results in the classroom and thus open up a route to a fantastic further education and an opportunity to compete in the event themselves, now that would be a neat piece...
Come Sunday afternoon, I suspect that this will not be the case, I do however suspect that my Father's allegiances will be satisfied.
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