Oxford go into this weekend’s Boat Race as the heavier of the two crews, although Cambridge remain narrow favourites with the bookmakers to make it two wins in a row on Saturday.

At the official Weigh-In yesterday at The Hurlingham Club in Fulham, the Oxford Blue boat crew weighed in at 786.6 kilograms, excluding the cox – some 43.2 kilograms heavier than their Light Blue rivals at 743.4 kilograms.

The heaviest individual on either boat is 23-year-old Australian Toby Medaris at 102.6 kg (16 stone 2lbs). He occupies the No.2 seat in the Oxford boat and is studying for an MSc in Management Research at Kellogg College.

He is just fraction heavier than his fellow crew member, American Aaron Marcovy (102kg) who is studying Fine Art at St Edmund Hall. Aaron, from Cleveland, Ohio, is one of four American oarsmen in the Oxford boat. The others are former Olympian and world champion Michael Wherley (Sun Prairie, Wisconsin), Charles Cole (Connecticut) and stroke William England (Marblehead, MA). The sole American in the Cambridge boat is stroke Shane O’Mara from Tampa, Florida.

The heaviest Light Blue is Peter Marsland, from Chiswick who weighed in at 101.8 kg. Peter, 23, is at No.5 in the Cambridge boat and studying Environmental Policy at Clare Hall.

Both Head Coaches declared themselves happy with the outcome of the Weigh-In. Sean Bowden of Oxford said he was surprised to have the heavier crew, but weight had played no part in selection, while Duncan Holland said that although historically the heavier crew normally wins, only half of the last 20 races have been won by the heavier crew and he had no problem with Cambridge being regarded as the underdogs.

The Cambridge Women’s Lightweights were the only Light Blue victors in last Sunday’s Henley Boat Races, rowed in stormy conditions. The Women’s Blue Boat lost by a mere half a length, putting paid to pre-race predictions of an easy win for the Dark Blues.

The Varsity Football Match returns to Fulham’s home ground, Craven Cottage on the Middlesex north bank of the Thames this Saturday, kicking off at 1pm. After the match spectators will be able to watch the Boat Race from the stadium’s Riverside Terrace.

The 154th Boat Race, sponsored by Xchanging, is due to start at 5.15pm this Saturday from Putney to Mortlake. Thousands of spectators will line the banks of The Thames and there will be live television coverage on ITV1 in the UK, beginning at 4pm.

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