Historic Melbourne-Sydney rivalry continues on the Yarra River

Both highly trained athletes and novice rowers will take to the Yarra River on Saturday 12 October in the annual rowing race between the Universities of Melbourne and Sydney. Both highly trained athletes and novice rowers will take to the Yarra River on Saturday 12 October in the annual rowing race between the Universities of Melbourne and Sydney. Now in its 11^th year, the 2019 Australian Boat Race is hosted by the University of Melbourne. Starting at midday, crews from the two universities will compete for bragging rights, racing more than 4km from Burnley to Princes Bridge in the heart of the city. The two rowing clubs first met informally on the Yarra River in 1860. A decade later the competition had become a regular feature of university life, in the spirit of the famous Boat Race between the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. The tradition was revitalised in 2009, heralding a new chapter in the 150-year-old rivalry between Australia's two oldest universities.