Alumnus completes 12 years at the helm of the Boat Race

St Catharine’s is delighted that Cambridge won both the 75th Women’s Gemini Boat Race and the 166th Gemini Boat Race on the River Great Ouse in Ely on 3 April. This year was special for the College because alumnus David Searle (1974, Modern & Medieval Languages) has confirmed that that it was his last Race as Executive Director on the Board of The Boat Race Company Ltd (BRCL).

As an organisation, The BRCL oversees the event on behalf of the competing student athletes to ensure operational excellence and showcase the event’s heritage to grow its reach and appeal. David joined in 2009 and has since spent 12 years working alongside the rival clubs and The Oxford & Cambridge Rowing Foundation to deliver a well-organised, safe race.

David himself raced in the Goldie boat in 1975, earned his Blue in 1976 and served as President of the Cambridge University Boat Club (CUBC) in 1977. He had also served on the CUBC committee for many years before joining the Boat Race team. He has therefore been able to draw upon decades of rowing experience to support the event’s development:

“The Boat Race has traditionally been run by amateurs out of their sheer love for the event. I have been proud to contribute to making the organisation of the Race more professionalised, while retaining that love and creating an inclusive and engaging experience for the wider Boat Race family. I gave up my CUBC affiliation once I became Executive Director, and I’ll admit that I was concerned about how hard it would be to stay neutral. In fact, it was remarkably easy to switch my allegiance to the Boat Race – the event itself had to come first.”

While this year’s successes are cause for celebration, memories from 2020 are still very fresh for David. On 16 March, The BRCL announced that it was cancelling the event due to take place on 29 March 2020, as a result of the rapidly changing situation with COVID-19 and concerns for the welfare of crews, spectators, staff and volunteers.

“That announcement in March 2020 was the worst day for me in all the last 12 years. Thanks to Professor Sir John Bell’s roles as Senior Member of Oxford University Boat Club and a leading medical advisor to the Government, we had a clear, real-time view of how the virus was affecting the country and were among the first spectator events to cancel. We felt it was essential to inform all crews in advance of the announcement, but it was still absolutely devastating after their hours and hours of intensive training.”

Attention quickly turned to when and how the event might be staged in 2021. Sadly, there was soon a major setback when the 133-year-old Hammersmith Bridge was closed from 13 August 2020 to river and other traffic due to safety concerns.

“Our priority for 2021 was the safety of everyone involved, including spectators. This meant we needed a route that reduced the risk of attracting crowds and now also avoided Hammersmith Bridge. We looked at many different venues but Ely soon emerged as the obvious location, with its good boathouse facilities and a course that offered the best shot of being able to host a closed event. I’m enormously grateful for the support of our established partners, and the additional public bodies, who all helped the event happen this year.”

“I take my hat off to all the crews for their outstanding performances on the day. Trials and training are difficult enough under normal circumstances, so it is remarkable that they were able to prepare alone from home or College accommodation during lockdown. The racing was exceptionally good and very tight, without clear water between boats at any point. The Women’s Boat Race was a particularly memorable one because the lead changed a couple of times before Cambridge crossed the line in front. I was impressed that Cambridge were able to outperform the favourites in the Men’s Boat Race, with the underdogs maintaining a lead over Oxford from the very start.”

Looking back, David is pleased with what the Boat Race has achieved and glad to be taking a step back:

“While my favourite Race was 2010 (the first Race when I was in charge of operations), I am especially proud that we were able to bring the Women’s Race to The Tideway in 2015, which was a really joyous day and saw crowds lining the water’s edge.

“The Boat Race has always been an important part of my life and I am looking forward to my return to being an enthusiastic spectator – and to actually enjoying the day!

“I am delighted to have contributed to the latest chapter in the rich history of St Catharine’s involvement in the Boat Race and CUBC: from the golden era of the 1960s brought to life in an article by Douglas Calder (1957, English) and the four CUBC presidents from Catz during the 1970s, to George Nash MBE (2008, Engineering) racing three times in the Blue Boat between 2010 and 2013 this last as President. George also brought huge credit to the College, and The Boat Race, with his gutsy Olympic Bronze Medal in the Coxless Pair at London 2012 and the glorious Gold in the Coxless Four at Rio in 2016.”

Reflections on this year's races from the College’s 2020–21 rowing captains

Fiona Connolly (2018, Medicine), John Hayton (2018, Natural Sciences) and Amelia Whitehead (2018, Medicine)

"Any race between Oxford and Cambridge places the pride of the universities on the line. This year, due to last year’s cancellation, compressed an additional year of effort into a single, 5km race.

"With any side-by-side rowing race, there is a huge advantage to being ahead, both physically and mentally. What surprised us the most was the ability of every crew (but particularly the Cambridge ones) to have confidence in their own power, rather than get distracted and focus on the other crew. This was evident in both races, but in particular the Women’s Race, where the women went down about four seats early on. Instead of panicking, and pushing immediately, they slowly brought it back over the course of the race, to win by almost a length.

"Both races were won by Cambridge by almost a length, the closest margins in the Men’s Race since 2003, and the Women’s Race since 2011. This is a great win for Cambridge but shows the excellence of all four crews from both universities, as no race was over until the finish line. It is all the sweeter as revenge for the last time the event was held on local water, a win by Oxford in 1944. Hopefully seeing Cambridge win so close to home, after a year of lockdowns, will inspire our current novices to return to the water in Easter term!"