The annual Mutual & Federal University Boat Race took place in Port Alfred from 9 to 12 September and was a huge success.
All races held during the season were in preparation for the main event in which the strongest crew is decided.
The annual Mutual & Federal University Boat Race took place in Port Alfred from 9 to 12 September and was a huge success.
All races held during the season were in preparation for the main event in which the strongest crew is decided.
Seven universities took part, including the University of Cape Town, Stellenbosch, University of Johannesburg, University of KwaZulu-Natal, University of Pretoria, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and Rhodes University.
The rowers went through intense and lengthy hours of training for this regatta which featured a series of head to head duels with the best crews in men and women’s rowing.
The boat race was also an opportunity for the rowers to be selected for the South African rowing team in which they will be representing in Hungary next year.
According to Mandla Gagayi, the Rhodes University Sports administrator, “the show ran smoothly as there were no incidences, but also because the numbers of spectators had dropped in comparison to last year, so it was much easier to manage and control the crowd.”
The results of the races were presented straight after the show with the winners receiving floating trophies.
In the men’s A team, Pretoria University won with University of Johannesburg taking second place. In the men’s B team, Rhodes University came 3rd.
Rhodes had more luck in the women’s races, where they came 2nd in the women’s A team, with Witwatersrand coming first, and in the women’s B team, Rhodes took first place followed closely by Witwatersrand University.
There was however a guest women’s crew from Otago University in New Zealand, in which they finished 4th in the women’s A team.
The rowers had masses of spectators supporting them, with Rhodes students being the majority. Rhodes exceeded expectations, and rowed extremely well, especially since they were up against some of the elite rowers including the national rowers in the Pretoria crew.
Gagayi says “if the students and the universities can take the same measures form the boat race and transfer them to Inter-Varsity, I’m sure we’ll see greater improvements.”
