Dark Blue vs. Light Blue

The University Boat Race, the race between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, is an annual national event in Britain. You watch the Boat Race even if you are not interested in rowing (or in sports, for that matter). 250,00 spectators watch from the banks of the river, the Thames, an estimated 15 million watch on TV. The race has been run since 1845. Cambridge have won 82 times, Oxford 79, but Oxford have won more frequently since 2000. Cambridge also have the longest unbeaten run in Boat Race history (1924-1936) and they also hold the course record: 16 minutes, 19 seconds (in 1998). Oxford were the winner of the closest race, winning by 30 cm only (in 2003). Curiously, the heavier crew is more likely to win (8 out of the last 11 races). There has been one dead heat, and six times a boat has sunk. The length of the course is 6.8 kilometres, and the race is rowed upstream and timed to coincide with the incoming flood, so that the crews are rowing with the fastest possible current. There are two different starting points: Middlesex and Surrey. There have been 75 wins from Middlesex Station and 73 from Surrey Station. Who starts from where is decided by tossing a coin. Though this is an essentially British event, the rowers come from a number of nations, six in 2013: UK, USA, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Czech Republic. What all Britons know (but hardly a foreigner) is what the colours stand for: Dark blue stands for Oxford, Light Blue stands for Cambridge.