Safety fears ends river challenge

Officials said conditions on the River Tyne were too rough

Freak weather conditions forced a river battle between rival universities to be abandoned.

The 2003 Northumbrian Water University Boat Race was scrapped at the last minute on Sunday afternoon after officials said conditions on the River Tyne were unsafe.

Umpires said the river course was too choppy to allow the race between Newcastle and Durham universities to go ahead.

It would have been the seventh annual challenge between crews from the two universities, won in 2002 by Durham.

Chairman of the boat race executive committee, Graham Rayner, said: "What we saw was the unique combination of the rising tide and a blustery south-westerly wind in direct conflict with one another.

"This created a significant amount of turbulence which made the conditions unsafe for competitive racing.

'A real shame'

"In these circumstances, the safety of the crews is the primary concern and so, regrettably, we the decision was taken to cancel the race."

President of Newcastle University Boat Club, Gareth Hicks, said: "The cancellation of the event was a real shame after all the hard work and dedication the crews have put in preparation for the race, which we really hoped would pay off.

"On the day, it wasn't to be, but watch this space for 2004!."

This is only the second time in its history that the Northumbrian Water University Boat Race has had to be called off.

The first time was on 4 June 2000, when extreme weather conditions and flooding swept the North East.

Despite disappointment at the cancellation of the showpiece rowing competition, some of the other entertainments went ahead as planned, with several thousand spectators watching the on-land ergo challenge, North East Boating Federation sail past and jet-ski displays.