boat race

The Boat Race is a rowing race between the Oxford University Boat Club and the Cambridge University Boat Club. It is rowed annually each Spring on the Thames in London. The event is a popular one, not only with the alumni of the universities, but also with rowers in general and the public. An estimated quarter of a million people watch the race live from the banks of the river, and 2004's television audience of more than a half billion viewers makes the race one of the most watched sports events in the world, and almost certainly the most watched amateur sporting event in the world. The first race was in 1829 and it has been held annually since 1856, with the exception of the two world wars.