Dear Members and Friends,
What an epic battle of the Blues we had on the Thames this year. Cambridge came from behind to wrest victory from Oxford in a nail-biting 156th Boat Race as 130 alumni cheered, and mourned, in a ballroom 10,850 km away. Thanks to the BBC and technology, the race was beamed live into the Raffles Hotel Ballroom on 3rd April, with commentary by Dark Blues 1966 cox Jim Rogers and Light Blues 1984 president Stephen Berger. Race moderator Chelva Rajah SC kept the peace and made sure the cockroaches also kept their paces.
Our Annual Boat Race Dinner began with welcome remarks by Oxbridge Society President Prof Lim Chong Yah and the royal toast by His Excellency Paul Madden, UK High Commissioner. Then egged on by Event Coordinator and MC Nigel Yeung, the verbal fireworks started with the toss of a 1829 golden sovereign. Speaking on behalf of Oxford, Jim Rogers (Balliol) paid tribute to the indomitable spirit of the Oxonian. His 1966 crew had to buy their own kit and unable to pay for two pairs of shoes, a black and a brown as required, he improvised by wearing a dark brown pair and was almost thrown off the team. But good sense prevailed and he went on to cox the Dark Blues to victory.
Replying for Cambridge, Philip Jeyaretnam SC (Corpus Christi) revealed that Cantabs like himself tended to find themselves pressed into public service roles that others might shy away from, such as becoming President of the Law Society of Singapore and Member of the Public Service Commission. Cambridge boats occasionally do sink under the race pressure, but the Light Blues still lead Oxford in the series.
H.E. Paul Madden diplomatically declared the debate a draw and joined Sri Lankan High Commissioner Jayathri Samarakone, Joe Grimberg SC (Cambridge, Magdalene), Dr Irene Lim (Oxford, Somerville) and Chelva Rajah SC (Oxford, Lincoln), to judge another
Photos of the Boat Race Dinner can be viewed at http://picasaweb.google.com/YeungDukeofDover/The156thBoatRaceDinner?authkey=Gv1sRgCIbw7fzPm7OycQ&feat=content_notification#. To purchase high resolution photos or CD album, contact Nigel Yeung at nigeliyeungkk@gmail.com. Send proof of donations to your favourite charity: a minimum of $20 per photo or $50 for the album.