The Boat Race 1972

The 118th Boat Race took place on 1 April 1972. Held annually, the Boat Race is a side-by-side rowing race between crews from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge along a 4.2-mile (6.8 km) tidal stretch of the River Thames in south-west London. Umpired by former Cambridge rower Philip Carpmael, the race was won by Cambridge, who passed the finishing post 9+1⁄2 lengths ahead of Oxford in a time of 18 minutes and 36 seconds, their fifth consecutive victory. The win took the overall record since 1829 to 66–51 in favour of Cambridge.

The race was variously described as an "anti-climax" and "a bore" given the ease with which Cambridge secured the win. Their crew was the heaviest in Boat Race history and included siblings for the first time since 1935. In the reserve race, Cambridge's Goldie beat Oxford's Isis, and in the Women's Boat Race, Cambridge were victorious.