10 June 2022

By Göran R Buckhorn

At last, after two Covid-19-ridden years without the races, tomorrow, Saturday 11 June, it is time for the Harvard-Yale Regatta (or Harvard-Yale Boat Race; whether you like to call it the Yale-Harvard Regatta/Boat Race because you are a Yalie, you are welcome to do so. As a simple rowing correspondent, I am of course unbiased).

“The Boat Race”, which is actually three races (or four!), will be rowed upstream on the Thames River in New London at the following times on Saturday:

3:45 p.m. – 3rd Varsity (2 miles), racing for the New London Cup
4:30 p.m. – 2nd Varsity (3 miles), racing for the F. Valentine Chappell Trophy 
5:30 p.m. – 1st Varsity (4 miles), racing for the Sexton Cup

Arriving before the races on Saturday, the spectators will be able to see which crew won the 4th Varsity’s 2-mile Combination Race on Friday, racing for The James Snider Cup. The winning crew earn the right to paint “The Rock” south of Bartlett’s Cove in the crew’s colour, red for Harvard or blue for Yale.

The last four 1st Varsity races – 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019 (the race in 2016 had no official result) – were won by Yale.

At the IRA National Championships on Mercer Lake a week ago, Yale V1 took a second place after Cal, and Harvard’s heavies came in on 6th place. Both Yale V2 and Yale V3 became national champions. Yale thereby claimed the Ten Eyck Trophy for heavyweight overall points for the first time ever.

For the 155th 1st Varsity race on Saturday, Harvard has 95 victories and Yale has 58.