The Launch
“The Boat Race is older than New Zealand as a country” – a Kiwi in Oxford
Tom Mackintosh, the Oxford University Boat Club President for 2025, is a rarity. A President who has never rowed a Boat Race; a man who took Olympic gold in the eight, then moved into the single and won World Championship bronze in the slowest and loneliest of boats. Not many people have sat on an Olympic start line in the biggest and smallest boats. Tom was Olympic champion in the New Zealand eight in Tokyo 2020, before taking some time away from rowing. He returned in the single scull, won World Championship bronze in 2023, and finished fifth in Paris 2024. This unique blend of experiences, Tom believes, sets him up well to lead the athletes at Oxford.
Treasure from the Thames: The Boat Race Medallion Discovery
Many people who are fans of The Boat Race may have no connection with either university or to the sport of rowing but follow the beloved 200-year-old British national institution because of a passion for the River Thames and also for history and heritage. In such cases, it is also possible that they also follow the many social media and YouTube sites dedicated to ‘mudlarking’, the searching of the Thames foreshore at low tide for items lost or discarded anytime within the last 1,000 plus years – from Roman coins to Victorian clay tobacco pipes to McDonald’s plastic toys.
A Century Later: The Rowers Who Reached for Everest
In September, a little over one hundred years after George Leigh Mallory and Andrew Comyn ‘Sandy’ Irvine died in an attempt to scale the 29 035 foot high Mount Everest in June 1924, part of what is presumed to be Irvine’s remains, including his named sock, were found emerging from melting ice on the Central Rongbuk Glacier, just below the north face of the mountain, by a National Geographic documentary team. The pair were last seen alive on 8 June 1924 less than four thousand feet below the summit.
The Boat Race Signs JL Racing as Official Kit Supplier
JL Racing has been appointed the official performance wear sponsor by The Boat Race Company. The partnership will see Oxford University Boat Club and Cambridge University Boat Club outfitted with JL Racing’s custom performance rowing apparel for training and racing.
JL Racing Partners with Fulham Reach Boat Club
JL Racing has proudly announced a strategic partnership with Fulham Reach Boat Club. This collaboration aims to broaden access to rowing within their communities, particularly among those facing financial or social challenges, fostering their growth both on and off the water. Bringing together two prominent rowing organizations from the United States and the United Kingdom, this partnership seeks to enhance the rowing community on a broader scale. By reaching out to underserved communities, establishing connections within the rowing industry, and providing unique exposure opportunities, both parties aim to expand their impact.
