“My entire body was vibrating. I’ve never felt anything like that in my life.”

55 beats per minute is the resting heart rate for a Boat Race rower. Yet Simon Hatcher was far from resting as he idled on the start line for the best part of 10 minutes, waiting for a piece of debris to be cleared. The American had spent an entire season preparing to peak at the precise time of 2:21pm, where just over 15 minutes of lung–busting legwork would separate him from unrivalled glory or ultimate defeat. Yet, as the clock painfully ticked towards half–past two, eighteen men still awaited their first stroke.

210 beats per minute is the maximum heart rate for a Boat Race rower. Searing down the Championship course, the first few minutes of any race are deliriously adrenaline–riddled. Contrary to the original lineup, Hatcher was not helping to set the early rhythm from the seven-seat for Cambridge’s Blue Boat; instead his blade crisply entered the Thames from the Bow–seat. A late tactical change perhaps, from mastermind coach Rob Baker? Not exactly.

An enforced reshuffle of the lineup was deemed necessary the night before the Boat Race, as Hatcher, a Brown University graduate, had fallen ill. “I had a really rough day; I lost my lunch a few times”, Hatcher admits to me. Evidently, coach Baker thought it best to tinker, moving Hatcher to a slightly less pivotal position and promoting Luca Ferraro to seven–seat. Ferraro, rowing in his fourth Blue Boat, was utterly unfazed by the change, strutting audaciously out of his side’s minibus upon arrival in Putney. Despite the bookies banking on a supremely talented Oxonian opponent, it was Hatcher who crossed the finish line first, as Cambridge coasted under Chiswick Bridge to complete a clean sweep, their second of the last three years.

Earlier, at 1:21pm, the women sprinted off, hurtling down the Championship Course. Two minutes later, they ground to a halt.

Standing at 183cm, the tallest woman in her race, Sophia Hahn’s vantage–point from the five–seat was sharply interrupted by a tremendous clashing of blades just minutes into the 79th Women’s Boat Race. The New Jersey native’s handle abruptly pinged over her head as Hahn caught a boat–stopping crab, induced by Oxford cox Daniel Orton’s adventurous steering. This Dark Blue infringement on enemy territory was almost enough to warrant complete disqualification, yet umpire Sir Matthew Pinsent’s decisiveness in restarting the race allowed Cambridge’s rowing to do the talking.

“I can’t believe I am a part of history now, carrying on the legacy of the women that came before me”

After the early aggression, Cambridge’s excellence came to the fore as they powered away to claim an eighth consecutive victory. 2025’s installment proved particularly special; Hahn gushed with pride as she marked the tenth year that women have raced on the Championship course. “I can’t believe I am a part of history now, carrying on the legacy of the women that came before me”. As 2027 approaches, and with it the centenary of the Women’s Boat Race, it will both be vital to celebrate the race’s legacy, yet stark to note that the world has only been able to follow the clash in the last decade. Progress is necessary as the sport plays catch–up – just this year Sarah Winckless became the first female umpire to take charge of the Men’s Boat Race on the Tideway.

In the race’s aftermath, amongst chugs of Chapel Down, exasperated sighs of relief and a smattering of glassy–eyed bewilderment, every single Cambridge rower I spoke to mentioned the club’s ‘culture’ – an amorphous word, yet one that clearly holds gravitas for the Cambridge team. Whether or not this winning ‘culture’ was instilled by coaches like Rob Baker, he is the first to admit that the “culture is carried on by the guys year after year. I don’t have to do that much, they carry the culture through.”

Cohesiveness, however, can be tested by external factors. The debate over the eligibility of certain students, which left multiple Light Blue rowers without a seat, cast a shadow over Cambridge’s preparation. It is therefore a testament to Cambridge that they were able to use this setback to their advantage. Baker firmly stated that the crew had used the drama as motivation, while Matt Edge, who had just stroked Goldie (the men’s reserve boat) to glory, went even further: “The whole way down that course, it felt like there were eleven men in our boat. Eleven against nine, how can we lose?”

“Even more impressive were the lightweight eights, who laid down a generational gauntlet as both men and women set course records”

As the Cambridge crews emerge from a celebratory daze, they will now have to grapple with what comes next. Many will enjoy priceless time with family and friends. Some will be back to the library, manoeuvring muscular frames under compact desks. Of course, the ergo is bound to beckon – as George Bourne and Gemma King tell me, project Henley is fast approaching! Ollie Boyne, on the other hand, who has been coxing at Cambridge since 2016, revealed that he is off. Off to move on to the “real world”, he explains. Not a bad way to bow out, I reply.

One question I was desperate to ask was directed to the men’s rowers from Peterhouse – would they be getting stuck in to May Bumps? Hatcher and Bourne said yes, and the prospect of that dynamic duo being joined by Luca Ferraro, Gabriel Mahler and James Robson in the Peterhouse boat would surely send ripples down the Cam.

Cambridge University Boat Club’s perfect weekend extended to all levels. Alongside the brilliance of the Blue Boats, there were vanquishing triumphs for both reserve crews, while even more impressive were the lightweight eights, who laid down a generational gauntlet as both men and women set course records. The joyful image of the entirety of CUBC crammed onto the podium is remarkable – every single person on that stage celebrating victory. It is impossible to top.

Signing off on his coverage of the 170th Boat Race, Andrew Cotter quipped, “again, the tide runs light, light blue”. Of course, with the current state of the sewage in the Thames, we all know that metaphor to be slightly uncomfortable. Yet with six victories from six, Cambridge might have temporarily tinged the Tideway with a touch of turquoise.