Harvard, Yale shake off ’16 debacle
NEW LONDON, Conn. — Whether it’s over a traditional 2,000-meter distance or a mammoth four-mile slog; whether it’s flat, calm water or in a choppy swirl, make no mistake that Harvard and Yale maintain a rivalry in a class all by itself. This year, simple bragging rights have been replaced by a simmering feud as the 152nd annual Harvard-Yale Regatta takes place today beginning from beneath the Gold Star Bridge. The three-race card begins at 9:15 a.m., with the Third Varsity race.
Last year, Harvard’s boat sank beneath the turbulent Thames River only three minutes into the varsity race, but the Yale crew continued unimpeded.
Emotions are still raw after the debacle — Harvard argued in vain for a re-row, Yale has claimed a victory and the official record book lists “No Official Result.”
“Bad officiating opened a Pandora’s box and Pandora came out,” Yale coach Steve Gladstone said while sitting on the back porch at Gayles Ferry, the Bulldogs’ traditional training camp located a mile upstream from Harvard’s Red Top base. “The irony is that the best (press) coverage has come from a boat sinking. Maybe we should begin to do some things to enhance the event.”
Scotland-born and Australiaraised Yale captain Robert Hurn said, “I think the guys in the boat, and I was in the boat last year, consider it a victory. We were so far ahead, they were not going to win that race anyway. The best thing for them was in not finishing the race. It’s ‘no result’ and we’re a little bitter about it. Our guys feel we were robbed. This (year’s) race is for two years.”
Harvard senior James Johnston of Cape Town, South Africa, who occupies the No. 5 seat in the varsity crew, said, “I remember it well. The water was very cold. I always say, we would have liked to have had a re-row. I obviously believe that in the spirit of the regatta it was unfortunate that it didn’t end up that way. Hopefully, this year we can have a good race start-to-finish without any hiccups.”
Officials have apparently been working behind the scenes to alter the race procedures from operating on token handshakes and off-the-cuff decisions to a more comprehensive rules manual.
“The years are different,” said Harvard coach Charley Butt, admitting he did not want to venture down that rabbit hole. “There will be more attention on this year’s race because there was a historically strange outcome a year ago. Give the guys credit. They were ready last year to do it. It just didn’t work out.”
If the spring racing is any indication, Yale, with a 6-0 dual meet record, clearly looms as the favorite. The Bulldogs defeated the Crimson at the Eastern Sprints in the rain on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, by a 5:30.70 to 5:31.14 margin in early May.
Last week, at the IRA Regatta on Lake Natoma in Folsom, Calif., Yale (5:29.90) claimed its first national championship by edging Washington (5:29.96) and Harvard (5:33.45) in a superb performance.