OXFORD I 1
SPORTS REVIEW 2015
OXFORD ON TOUR CUPPERS SPORTS SCHOLARS VARSITY RESULTS CLUB SEASON ROUND-UP BUCS SEASON REPORT www.sport.ox.ac.uk
2 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
I FOUND
a new way to get into
pole
position One of my favourite experiences was developing new oil formulations for cars on the Formula 1 grid. I worked directly with the engine manufacturers, so I got to pick up motorsport experience as part of my role. OLIVER TAYLOR, ENGINEERING, Pangbourne, UK
What will you discover? At BP, we offer the most exciting and challenging global opportunities for high performing graduates in engineering, science, business and trading.
Search for BP Careers www.sport.ox.ac.uk
SOME PARTICULARLY OUTSTANDING WINS CONTRIBUTED TO OXFORD’S FIRST OVERALL VARSITY WIN SINCE 2012.
CONTENTS
02 SPORTS SCHOLARS
The women’s Boat Race was held on the Tideway for the first time, and Oxford demonstrated their prowess with a ruthless victory of 19 seconds. The men’s blue boat also won their race for the 6th time in 8 years, with a clean sweep achieved through memorable victories from both second boats. At Twickenham, the Blues triumphed with the biggest win ever recorded: 43 - 6. Cambridge have now won just once in the last seven years. The 2015-16 season will play host to the first ever women’s Varsity Match at Twickenham - another historic achievement.
04 OXFORD & CAMBRIDGE V HARVARD & YALE 06 HIGH EXPECTATIONS
09 NEW PRECEDENT 10
OXFORD ON TOUR
12
VARSITY RESULTS
14
BUCS REPORT
15
CUPPERS RESULTS
17
A–Z CLUB REPORTS
The men’s lacrosse team exulted after their hard-fought victory over Cambridge and will celebrate a milestone 100th Varsity Match in a home Varsity next year – get excited!
46 IMPORTANT DATES 2015–16
The women’s football team had an emphatic 7-1 win, with the men’s match culminating in a nail-biting win on penalties.
Oxford reclaimed their position in the BUCS top-10 rankings for the first time since 2010; finishing 9th - ahead of Cambridge in a distant 12th place. This achievement was the result of strong performances from both teams and individuals. The fencing squad notably contributed over 10% of our total points, winning women’s sabre gold in the individual as well as impressive team results. Significant contributions also came from the badminton, cricket, hockey, lacrosse, squash, tennis, volleyball and waterpolo teams who all managed to score over 100 points. Looking ahead to next year, we aim to cement our position in the top 10 and encourage as many sports as possible to get involved – we’re hoping to see contributions from the surfing, golf and windsurfing teams. Although it is early days, Oxford’s sporting season is gradually getting underway. There’s no more to say except: here’s to a strong start to the season, and the best year possible for sport at Oxford.
I WISH YOU ALL THE BEST OF LUCK FOR THE COMING YEAR IN PAINTING THE COUNTRY #DARKBLUE! Important dates for the coming year can be found on the back page.
Lucy Harris
Sports Federation President 2015-2016 Cover photo: Getty Images
‘A huge thanks to all of the Annual Review contributors, and to Vincent’s Club and the Development office for their continuous support!’
Funded by: Oxford University Sports Federation Oxford University Development Office Vincent’s Club Atalanta’s Society Editor: Lucy Harris, Oxford University Sports Federation President 2015–16 Contributors: Arran Davis, Jowita Mieszkowska and Rebecca Lane Design: Andrew Harvey www.harveygraphic.co.uk Printing: Lynx DPM Ltd www.lynxdpm.com
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
2 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2013
SPORTS SCHOLARS Clubs selected for 2015/16 For the first team, we are able to offer some clubs additional support. Each club is awarded £1000 to enable them to support their athletes as much as possible.
Archery
The club competes at the BUCS events (indoor and outdoor championships) and in the BUTTS league (a highly competitive regional league composed of eight universities), as well as the annual Varsity match. In the BUCS Indoors Championships 2014 they won the experienced team Silver, and in the Outdoor Championships 2014 they won experienced team Gold, Individual Silver and Bronze, and had 5 archers in the respective top 10 individual rankings. Last year, in the BUCS Indoor Championships they won experienced Gents team Silver, Experienced Ladies team Gold, individual Gold, individual Silver.The club is currently in need of a 1st team coach. Despite recent success they are the only club competing in the BUTTS league that does not employ a 1st team coach They are also hoping to employ a dedicated novice coach, both to further improve the competitive success of the novice squad as well as to elevate the pressure on the first team who currently coach as well as compete, meaning they get significantly less training time than the teams of other clubs.
Women’s Football
The women’s football won their Varsity match last year by the biggest margin in the fixture’s history. They also had an impressive 52-week winning streak from March 2014 to March 2015, and reached the final of the BUCS women’s football trophy, winning their league (Midlands 1A). They are looking at repeating their impressive performances in both their BUCS league and the Varsity match, and are hoping to develop their outreach work, including hosting sessions to encourage girls to play football as well as improving their links with local women’s football teams.
Lacrosse
The men’s lacrosse team have gone from strength to strength in the past 18 months – 2013 saw the arrival of 2 coaches, a first in the club’s history. Coupled with the purchase of large amounts of kit, this facilitated a big recruitment drive, whilst still providing advanced players with intense and skilled coaching. These developments laid the foundations for an immensely successful 2014/2015 season. The establishment of a regular Iroquois (2nds) team was a first in recent history and allowed newly recruited players weekly game time to learn the sport. Meanwhile the Blues dominated both their leagues. Their undefeated SEMLA season ensured they were East 2 champions and a similarly impressive BUCS performance earned them the title of BUCS South Premiership champions, resulting in a position in the BUCS Premiership semi-finals. Varsity 2015 saw continued success – a 4th consecutive win from the Blues and a close draw from the Iroquois. Building on the Blues victory in SEMLA 6s from 2014, the Iroquois went on to win their division in SEMLA 6s 2015. With regards to individual achievements, two players from the 2014-2015 season successfully trialled for the English Universities team and consequently played at the British Championships. Performance goals include the continuation of the Iroquois team to encourage new players into the sport, as well as a top 3 finish in the BUCS South Premiership and a top 5 finish in SEMLA East 1, the division to which the team was promoted to as a result of success in the 2014-2015 season.
Yachting (Dinghy)
This was an extremely successful year for Oxford University Yacht Club. Membership increased significantly to nearly 200, demonstrating the broad appeal of the club and an increasing focus on getting novices into sailing. The dinghy first VI took second place in BUCS, first place in the Oxford Invitational Trophy and first place in the Cambridge Cup. Furthermore, the second VI took ninth place at BUCS, whilst the women's VI finished sixth, showing the impressive level of depth in the club. After several days of close racing in Northern Ireland, the women's VI beat Cambridge at Varsity, but sadly Cambridge took the remaining titles. We hope to see a very strong performance this year.
@oxfordunisport
I 3
Sports Scholars for 2015/16 selected I am delighted to announce that once again we are this year offering Sports Scholarships to assist some of our top athletes financially. Each Sport Scholar receives a £500 bursary to assist with training and competition expenses, in addition to complementary membership to the PULSE gym, Powerlifting gym and Rosenblatt Pool.
BNY Scholar – Louis Rawlings, Athletics – 800m
Louis is an 800m runner who has represented France at U18 (2013 IAAF World Youth Championships) and U20 (2015 International Meeting Fra-Ita-Ger) levels. He has represented OUAC throughout the cross country, indoor and outdoor seasons; and in all three Varsity events. In the Fresher’s Varsity Match he won the 800m and the 400m, and set championship records at the VFEAR indoor competition as part of the 4 x 800m and 4 x 400m relays.
BNY Scholar – Rowan May, Athletics – Pole Vault
Rowan was ranked 12th in the UK for Pole Vault in 2014, and 21st in 2015.
BP Scholar – James Parkinson, Orienteering
BP Scholar – James Parkinson, Orienteering James is ranked 11th in the GB Senior Orienteering rankings, and came 3rd in BUCS last year. He is also a hockey Blue.
BP Scholar – Charlotte Birch, Archery
Charlotte is 8th in the GB Senior National Rankings for the Recurve class. She was the highest scoring lady on the Varsity team in 2014 and 2015.
BNY Scholar – Dani Chattenton, Modern Pentathlon
Dani is a member of the Athletics, Cross Country, Fencing, Modern Pentathlon and Triathlon university clubs. She represented Oxford in the Athletics Freshers Varsity match, FEAR, BUCS and Blues Varsity match. In the Freshers Varsity match, she competed in the 400m hurdles, 1,500m and 4x400m relay, achieving 1st, 2nd and 2nd places respectively. She also represented OUCCC at BUCS, achieving 92nd place and team 7th as the 3rd Oxford runner. Whilst being at Oxford she has competed in, regional and national Modern Pentathlon competitions, with an individual 1st place at BUCS.
BNY Scholar – Elena Backhouse, Lightweight Rowing
Elena represented GB Universities at European Universities Games 2014, winning gold in the lightweight quad. She also competed in the Blue Boat for 2015 Lightweight Women’s Boat Race and represented the university at BUCS Regatta 2015, winning gold in the lightweight eight, and silver in the lightweight quad. She trialled for the GB Rowing U23 team throughout the year, finishing 3rd U20 (11th U23) of the lightweight women at the November assessments, and 2nd U20 (9th U23) at the February assessments.
BNY Scholar – Leila Denniston, Ultimate Frisbee
Leila was part of a team that came 1st at Women's Outdoor Nationals out of 30, and was awarded Most Valuable Player of final by the organising committee. She was also voted most spirited player at Women's Eastern Outdoor Regionals, where they came 1st. She was awarded a half blue for taking part in both the indoor and outdoor Varsity matches (awarded HalfBlue). She was voted Most Valuable Player at the South Eastern Indoor Regionals, and her goals for the 2015/16 season include finishing in the top 8 at every tournament.
Blackwell Scholar – Sophia Saller, Triathlon
Sophia hardly needs an introduction, with a string of impressive results that include 10th in the ITU World Triathlon, London, 31 May 2015, 4th in the ITU World Triathlon, Cape Town, 25 Apr 2015, 1st in the German Elite & U23 Championships, sprint distance, Maschsee-Triathlon, Hanover, Germany, 6 Sep 2014 and 1st in the U23 World Championships, ITU World Triathlon Grand Final, Edmonton, Canada, 31 Aug 2014. Representing Oxford, she was 1st in the Varsity Sprint Triathlon 2015, 19th in BUCS Cross Country 2015 and 1st in the BUCS Duathlon in 2014.
BP Scholar – Tamara Davenne, Cycling
Despite only recently taking up the sport, Tamara was 1st in the MTB Varsity, and 1st in the Road Varsity (as part of OUCC 3 best times). She also came 4th in the BUCS 10 mile time-trial, 1st in the BUCS 23 mile 3-up team time trial, and was 2nd in the individual and team in the BUCS 25 mile time trial – on a borrowed bicycle. She came 4th in the BUCS 80 km road race, 1st in the BUCS crit race and 1nd in the Bristol university hill climb. These races have led to her being awarded two half-blues (1st in Varsity MTB and road) and a full blue (1st in Varsity road and medal at BUCS) for 2015.
BNY Scholar – Peter Miles, Judo
Peter was ranked 17th in the U21 World rankings, 7th in the EU U21 rankings, and is 2nd U21 in Britain, and 4th overall in the British Senior rankings.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
4 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
OXFORD & CAMBRIDGE OXFORD’S Iffley Road running track is steeped in athletics history thanks to Sir Roger Bannister’s groundbreaking sub four-minute mile in 1954. And on June 29 the track, which is named in Bannister’s honour, added another chapter to its annals by hosting the oldest international series in history. That meeting was the 45th Oxford-Cambridge versus Harvard-Yale Varsity athletics match – a rare event where the Dark Blue and Light Blue universities join forces. The transatlantic contest began for men more than 100 years ago, with women joining the fray in 1981. Both teams were chosen following the respective universities’ inter-varsity competitions. The top two athletes from each event, regardless of university, were chosen to compete for their combined teams.
Both the men’s and women’s team from Harvard and Yale were victorious on the day. Scored on events won, the Harvard-Yale men beat Oxford and Cambridge 13-7. The women’s match was even more lopsided, with Harvard-Yale winning 19-2. These results mark a continuation of a larger trend, with the HarvardYale side leading 31-14 and 13-4 in overall victories for the men and respectively.
women
Nevertheless, all events were competitive, and the final score perhaps represented more a discrepancy in funding and resources, rather than talent and determination. The US system of collegiate athletics boasts full-time head coaches as well as events coaches, offers athletes scholarships to compete, and provides state of the art training facilities.
I 5
V HARVARD & YALE This is a major difference to the British system, which provides only a small fraction of the scholarship, coaching, and facility funding seen in the United States. Considering these discrepancies, the achievements of the Oxford athletes at the 2015 match are even more impressive. Leading the way was the 2014-2015 Oxford men’s Blues team captain Sam Trigg, who set a match record with a triple jump of 15.74m. Trigg also won the long jump, finishing with a best distance of 7.19m. Trigg has graduated from Oxford and will be pursuing his goal of a place on Team GB while enjoying the benefits of the US collegiate athletics system as he completes a Master’s degree at the University of New Mexico. He is currently ranked 11th in the UK triple jump standings.
Trigg’s counterpart and 2014-2015 women’s Blues captain, Montana Jackson, also won the triple jump at the match with a jump of 12.07m. Jackson is ranked 16th in the UK women’s standings. She too has graduated and plans to continue training with the coaching of former Oxford Blues captain and England parathlete Daniel Hooker. Jackson also hopes to one day compete at the international level. Other victories claimed by the Oxford University included a high jump success for former British international heptathlete Grace Clements, who won the event with a jump of 1.73m. On the men’s side Louis Rawlings, captain of the Blues for the 2015-2016 academic year and former member of the French national team at the junior level, won the 800m in 1min 52.87secs.
American and Oxford D. Phil student Arran Davis won the men’s javelin throw, finishing with a best effort of 54.22m. Rounding out the Oxford victories on the day was Sri Lankan fresher Nithesh Ranasinha, who won the high jump with a height of 1.96m. The Roger Bannister track will also host this season’s athletics Varsity Match in May. – the 142nd contest between the universities. Oxford lead the overall series on the men’s side, which began in 1864, with 74 wins, compared to 60 for Cambridge and seven drawn matches. Cambridge have a commanding lead in overall victories in the women’s match, which began in 1975, heading Oxford 30-11. The 142nd Varsity Match will be used to select a team of Oxford and Cambridge athletes to compete for the Achilles Club in the 2017 Americas tour, which will consist of multiple matches against Ivy League universities in the USA.
The Achilles Club offer membership to all Oxford and Cambridge students who have competed in a Varsity Match. The club play an integral part in organising transatlantic events, such as this year’s Oxford-Cambridge versus Harvard-Yale match. With the cooperation of American Ivy league athletics programmes, the Achilles Club hope to continue fostering Oxford’s long-standing tradition of transatlantic competition and camaraderie.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
6 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
Oxford University Women’s Volleyball Club could not have dreamed of a more successful season in 2014-15.
EXPECTATIONS That is the view of the players, who helped Oxford finished third in the BUCS Cup – ranking them as the best non-scholarship team in the country Volleyball in the UK has rapidly grown in popularity since the 2012 London Olympics, with more and more universities recruiting top international players into their squads. In light of this recent drive to improve the sport, the achievements of the Oxford University Women’s Volleyball Club have been huge.
I 7
The season began with high expectations and a drive to better the achievements of 2013-14 – fifth place in BUCS and the Volleyball England Student Cup plus winning the Midlands Conference. The previous year’s Varsity Match had been particularly tightly fought, with Oxford narrowly losing a thrilling five-set encounter (16-25, 25-23, 19-25, 25-11, 12-15).
The creation of the new Premier League for volleyball also set the bar higher, with tougher opponents and more matches. Despite this initial fear, the first half of the season saw the first team make a very strong start, securing victories against Bournemouth (3-0), Exeter (3-0), Cambridge (3-0), Sussex (3-2) and King’s College (3-1) to enter the Christmas break undefeated and top of the southern division. This streak continued after Christmas, with Oxford securing another four wins to take the title with a 100 per cent record. Entering the Varsity Match, the team felt confident they could avenge the bitter defeat of the previous season. Having won both league matches against Cambridge 3-0, they were the clear favourites. Although both the men’s and women’s second teams lost their respective matches, the Blues did not follow suit with both sides securing 3-0 wins. It had been a very long time since Oxford took both Blues team victories, so it was a relief to see that the hard work and hours of training put in by all athletes had finally paid off. The season was, however, not yet over as Oxford’s women automatically qualified for the BUCS finals as southern Premier League champions.
Oxford progressed to the semi-finals after finishing second in Group A thanks to victories over King’s (3-0) and Edinburgh (3-1) plus a defeat to Durham (0-2), the eventual runners up. The draw pitted Oxford against Northumbria, the current National Volleyball League champions, who included a number of London 2012 Olympians and members of the GB young senior squad. Oxford did not stand much of a chance against the UK’s top players, but fought a brave match in going down 2-0. Northumbria then went on to beat Durham in the final. Finishing in third place, however, was more than Oxford could have expected at the start of the season. And it was also the top result of any Oxford women’s volleyball team in the club’s history, leading to the award of Full Blues. With the majority of the starting squad now having left, continuing Oxford’s success will be down to the second team and new players. This will be a hard season to better, but volleyball in Oxford is continually growing and with new beach volleyball courts opening in the city, it is also expanding its horizons. www.sport.ox.ac.uk
8 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
I 9
With the Open-weight women breaking tradition and setting a new precedent, Oxford University rowing has increasing been in the public eye. The calibre of women’s rowing has improved significantly across all squads, not only with the move of the Women’s Boat Race to the Tideway, but also with stand out performances from Oxford University Women’s Lightweight Rowing Club. The 2014-2015 season also represents new recognition for lightweight women’s rowing, as OUWLRC was officially upgrade to a Full Blue sport in acknowledgement of the dedication and achievements of the female athletes.
NEW PRECEDENT Off the back of three consecutive Henley Boat Race wins with considerable margins up to 4 ½ lengths, the club had a successful regatta season in 2014. This lead to the selection of OUWLRC for the lightweight women’s quad at the European University Championships in Rotterdam. The crew of Rebecca Lane, Sophie Philbrick, Ellie Backhouse and Sarah Robinson took part in the 3 day international regatta where they surpassed expectations, winning not only the lightweight event but also recording a time which would have beaten winners of the Open-weight counterparts, Reading University Boat Club. The high performance of the lightweight quad on an international platform demonstrates the professionalism and tenacity of the athletes at OUWLRC.
Lightweights was dramatic. Cambridge won by a mere 3ft. The slight advantage taken by Cambridge off the start was held by them through to 1800m, where the Oxford crew began to row through them, unfortunately leaving the sprint too late. This result, however, was not accepted as final. OUWLRC and CUWBC Lightweights met once again several weeks later in the Lightweight Women’s VIII event at BUCS Regatta. The outcome was very different this time with Oxford named National Champions. OUWLRC crossed the finish line with Durham closely following in second, more than a length ahead of Cambridge who came third. Similar successes were also had in the lightweight coxless four and
lightweight quad, where the Oxford crews earned silver, losing only to Durham. The lightweight pair narrowly missed out on a medal, placing in 4th position. The club has continued to have a strong cohort entering local regattas throughout the summer to gain experience in the sculling categories which are often more competitive in lightweight rowing to reflect the events available at international level. Moving in to the 2015-2016 season, with returning Blues aiming to better their results at national trials and strong contenders for the Blue boat entering the squad to challenge the returners, the season looks to be strong for OUWLRC. May there be more success on the horizon.
The strength and potential of the athletes at OUWLRC was further recognised this season with noteworthy performances at national trials in the lightweight single scull over a 5km time trial. Ellie Backhouse placed 2nd in the U20s category and 9th in U23s, with novice sculler Hannah Farley achieving 11th in the U23s category in her sculling debut. As the first time OUWLRC has sent a number of athletes to national trials, the results achieved by individuals hint towards the high performance development in recent years. Although individuals have shown outstanding athleticism, performance across the squad even early in the season showed promise. This was reflected in the record number of wins at Bristol Head in November; 8 of the 9 crews entered either won or came second in their event and a new course record was also set by the Women’s Intermediate 3 Coxed Four. Despite the success of the squad moving in to the last months of the 2015 Henley Boat Race campaign, the Varsity race against Cambridge University Women’s’ Boat Club
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
10 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
OXFORD ON TOUR T DAPES U B – BALL
FLOOR
CKE
ICE HO
CANOE
G– IMMIN
SW
SPAIN
ALL – FOOTB
WALES – K A D KAY
AN
RANCE F – G ROWIN
L RTUGA
– PO LETICS
ATH
JUDO –
OLM
OCKH Y – ST
PARIS
Oxford Judo took a trip to Paris in December to compete in an international student-organised competition. Both a men's and a women's team went to compete against teams from France, Germany and Spain. Both teams fought extremely hard, and came home with the Bronze trophy in both categories. It was a great experience to compete abroad, fight different players with varied judo, and it certainly helped prepare the teams for BUCS and Varsity. The French hosts were extremely hospitable, organising masses of food, and a crepe-party after competing!
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
AL
ROW
G PORTU ING –
JAPAN
I 11
ROCCO O M – SURF
Our week was in Morocco was a perfect mix of surfing in the morning, followed by either naps or souk shopping or some cultural activity in the afternoon. Food, made by our host (Abdel, the African surfing champion) was incredible, from his homemade tagine to the fresh fruit and orange juice in the market. The surfing, our reason for being there, was excellent: a gentle swell that was easy enough for our beginners but still fun for the more experienced surfers. The atmospheric castle fort that loomed over the beach was a nice distraction from the slight cold . A makeshift crewdate halfway through the week ensured we were all close friends by the end, despite a large variation in ages and interests. All in all it was an amazing experience - a perfect mix of culture, surf, food and friends. We can't wait to go back next year!
G ROWIN
LANDS R E H T – NE REA
O RY – K E H C R A
OKYO SE – T
S LACRO
B
E
NERIF
–TE OXING
G– ROWIN
N
BOSTO
Every January, Oxford University Amateur Boxing Club go to Tenerife for a week of intensive training. Waking up at 6am for a morning run followed by sprints on the beach and training during the rest of the day may not be everyone’s idea of fun, but everyone always looks forward to the trip and holds fond memories of it. The aim of the training camp is to get the squad members ready for Town v. Gown, where Oxford students fight non-students, and the important Varsity against Cambridge. As well as fitness, the camp focuses on technique and also gives those who may not have had the chance to practice their boxing the opportunity to spar, either with other club members or with members of the gym where OUABC train. This year for the first time, the club trained in a gym, receiving help from both the coach and the Walsh brothers who were training there at the same time! What is perhaps the most important part of the training camp has nothing to do with the actual boxing. The trip helps to bring people together in - and that is as important as having good training in getting through the two difficult months ahead preparing for their fights.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
12 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
VARSITY RESULTS 2014/15
CLUB
DATE
VeNUE
RESULT & SCORE
American Football 1st December 2015 Cambridge Rugby Club LOST 0-16 Archery 9th May 2015 Christchurch Meadows WON Athletics - Men 16th May 2015 Wilberforce Road, Cambridge LOST 94-118 Athletics - Women 16th May 2015 Wilberforce Road, Cambridge LOST 86-118 Aussie Rules 7th March 2015 St John's College, Cambridge LOST 22-55 Badminton - Men 7th March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre WON 9-6 Badminton - Women 7th March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre WON 12-3 Basketball - Men 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre LOST Basketball - Women 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre LOST Boat - Men 11th April 2015 The Tideway, London WON 6 1/2 lengths Boat - Women 11th April 2015 The Tideway, London WON 6 1/2 lengths Boxing - Men 1st March 2015 The Corn Exchange, Cambridge LOST 3-6 Boxing - Women 1st March 2015 The Corn Exchange, Cambridge LOST 0-1 Canoe & Kayak - Men 9th-10th May 2015 Oxford (Various) WON 5-4 Canoe & Kayak - Women 9th-10th May 2015 Oxford (Various) WON 4-0 Cheerleading 14th February 2015 Genting Arena, Birmingham LOST Clay Pigeon Shooting - Men LOST Clay Pigeon Shooting - Women WON Cricket - Men - 4 day 1st-4th July 2015 Fenner's, Cambridge LOST Lost by 6 wickets Cricket - Men - 1 day 27th June 2015 Lord's, London WON Won by 43 runs Cricket - Men - Twenty20 12th June 2015 Fenner's, Cambridge LOST Lost by 4 wickets Cricket - Women - 1 day 27th June 2015 Lord's Nursery Ground, London WON Won by 107 runs Cricket - Women - Twenty20 12th June 2015 Fenner's, Cambridge WON Won by 129 runs Croquet 18th June 2015 The Hurlingham Club, London WON 7-2 Cross Country - Women 6th December 2014 Wimbledon Common WON Cross Country - Men 6th December 2014 Wimbledon Common LOST Cycling - Men - Road 25th April 2015 Ellesmere Road, Cambridge LOST Cycling - Men - MTB 8th March 2015 Porridgepot Hill Race WON Cycling - Women - Road 25th April 2015 Ellesmere Road, Cambridge WON Cycling - Women - MTB 8th March 2015 Porridgepot Hill Race WON Dancesport 2nd May 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre LOST 1833-1947 Eton Fives - Men 1st March 2015 Eton College LOST 1-2 Eton Fives - Women 1st March 2015 Eton College WON 2-1 Fencing - Men 7th March 2015 Guildhall, Cambridge LOST 107-134 Fencing - Women 7th March 2015 Guildhall, Cambridge LOST 124-134 Football - Men 8th March 2015 Abbey Stadium, Cambridge WON 1-1, win on penalties Football - Women 7th March 2015 Abbey Stadium, Cambridge WON 7-1 Gaelic Games - Women 7th March 2015 London WON Gaelic Games - Men 7th March 2015 London WON Gliding 4th September 2014 Gransden Airfield, nr Cambridge WON 525-478 Golf - Men 20th March 2015 Royal Liverpool Golf Club WON 9-6 Golf -Women 20th March 2015 Royal Liverpool Golf Club LOST Gymnastics - Men 8th March 2015 Marriott Gymnastics Club LOST Gymnastics - Women 8th March 2015 Marriott Gymnastics Club WON Handball - Men 31st January 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre WON 31-24 Handball - Women 31st January 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre WON 31-21 Hockey - Men 8th March 2015 Southgate Hockey Club LOST 2-2, won on shuttles Hockey - Women 8th March 2015 Southgate Hockey Club LOST 2-1 Ice Hockey - Men 7th March 2015 Planet Ice, Peterborough LOST 3-12 Ice Hockey - Women 8th March 2015 Planet Ice, Peterborough WON 25-0 Jitsu WON Judo - Men 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre WON Judo - Women 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre LOST Karate - Women 8th Februaryurary 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre LOST Karate - Men 8th Februaryurary 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre LOST Kendo LOST Kickboxing - Men 7th March 2015 Oxford WON Kickboxing - Women 7th March 2015 Oxford WON Korfball 21st February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre LOST 11-19 Lacrosse - Men 7th March 2015 St John's College, Cambridge WON 13-10 Lacrosse - Women 7th March 2015 St John's College, Cambridge LOST 15-5
@oxfordunisport
I 13
CLUB
DATE
VeNUE
Lifesaving Lightweight Rowing - Men 5th April 2015 Henley-on-Thames Lightweight Rowing - Women 5th April 2015 Henley-on-Thames Modern Pentathlon - Men 3rd - 5th April 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Modern Pentathlon - Women 3rd - 5th April 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Netball 1st March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Orienteering - Men 28th March 2015 Hampsfell, Lake District Orienteering - Women 28th March 2015 Hampsfell, Lake District Pistol - Men - Full Bore 24th October 2014 Bisley, Surrey Pistol - Men - Small Bore 1st March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Pistol - Women - Full Bore 24th October 2014 Bisley, Surrey Pistol - Women - Small Bore 1st March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Polo 7th June 2015 Guards Polo Club Pool and Snooker Powerlifting 8th March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Real Tennis - Men 27th February 2015 Lord's, London Real Tennis - Women 27th February 2015 Lord's, London Riding 7th-8th March 2015 Brooksby Equestrian Centre Rifle - TR Rifle - MR Rugby Fives - Men 21st February 2015 St Paul's Rugby Fives - Women 21st February 2015 St Paul's Rugby League 6th March 2015 Honourable Artillery Co, London Rugby Union - Men 11th December 2015 Twickenham Rugby Union - Women 7th March 2015 Grange Road, Cambridge Ski & Snowboard - Women 20th December 2015 Tignes, France Ski & Snowboard - Men 20th December 2015 Tignes, France Squash - Men 14th February 2015 The Royal Automobile Club, London Squash - Women 14th February 2015 The Royal Automobile Club, London Swimming - Men 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Swimming - Men - Open water 28th June 2015 Henley-on-Thames Swimming - Women 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Swimming - Wom - Open water 28th June 2015 Henley-on-Thames Table Tennis - Men 8th March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Table Tennis - Women 8th March 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Taekwon Do - Men 22nd February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Taekwon Do - Women 22nd February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Tennis - Men 6th July 2015 Moor Park Tennis - Women 6th July 2015 Moor Park Trampolining 8th March 2015 Iffley Road, Oxford Triathlon - Men - Sprint 17th May 2015 Belvoir Castle, Nottinghamshire Triathlon - Men - Duathlon 7th March 2015 Eton Dorney Lake Triathlon - Women - Sprint 17th May 2015 Belvoir Castle, Nottinghamshire Triathlon -Women - Duathlon 7th March 2015 Eton Dorney Lake Ultimate Frisbee - Men 22nd February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Ultimate Frisbee - Women 22nd February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Volleyball - Men 14th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Volleyball - Women 14th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Waterpolo - Men 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Waterpolo - Women 28th February 2015 Cambridge Uni Sports Centre Windsurfing 21st February 2015 Farmoor Reservoir, Oxford Yachting - Dinghy - Men 1st-3rd July 2015 Stanford Lough, Northern Ireland Yachting - Dinghy - Women 1st-3rd July 2015 Stanford Lough, Northern Ireland Yachting - Fleet Race 28th-29th March 2015 The Solent
OVERALL STANDINGS
OXFORD
59
CAMBRIDGE
54
RESULT & SCORE LOST LOST 4 feet LOST 3 feet WON WON LOST 25-17 WON LOST LOST WON 2160-2144 LOST WON 2064-2047 WON 14-2 WON 52-38 LOST LOST 0-6 LOST 2-4 LOST LOST 1096.83 - 1148.102 LOST 772.33 - 831.71 LOST 23-300 WON 60-2 WON 40-0 WON 43-6 LOST 0-47 LOST LOST WON 3-2 LOST 0-5 WON 57-33 WON WON 53-34 WON LOST 3-7 LOST 0-10 WON 3-2 WON 3-2 WON WON WON 453.7 - 451.7 WON 15sec WON 1min WON 24min LOST 9min LOST WON WON 3-0 WON 3-0 LOST WON DRAW 3-3 LOST 0-4 WON 4-3 LOST
s n o i t a l u t a congr teams g n i n n i w l l a 1 to
DRAW
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
14 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2013
BUCS Roundup Oxford University continued their drive towards the top of the table - and their efforts were rewarded with a well-deserved top-ten finish. This achievement was a culmination of high-level performances and excellent effort levels from all teams, following last year’s 13th-place finish out of the 145 competing institutions. The top three featured the University of Edinburgh for the first time, joining Loughborough and Durham in first and second place, respectively. Cambridge climbed two places from last year to finish 12th. Within the Midlands region, Oxford finished fourth out of 28 institutions including the likes of Loughborough, Birmingham and Nottingham. Students faced teams from far and wide in the knockout rounds and individual competitions, travelling around the country to locations ranging from Newcastle to Exeter - in their valiant attempts to paint the country Dark Blue.
BUCS League
Some 50 Oxford teams competed in leagues across all levels, including the Premier South. League winners included men’s second (M2) tennis, women’s first (W1) netball, men’s first (M1) lacrosse, W1 volleyball, W1 cricket, W1 football and men’s third (M3) football. Both W1 netball and M2 tennis managed to secure the double with cup wins, whilst W1 football, W2 squash, M1 badminton plus M1 and W1 fencing all reached finals. A special mention should go to the women’s first football team, who went undefeated all season until the final week. Fencing had yet another fantastic year, securing 10.8 percent of the total BUCS points awarded - the largest contributor of any sport. Tennis bagged 8.24 percent across six teams, whilst their W1 side also secured promotion to Premier South. Lacrosse achieved the third-largest amount of points at 7.46 percent and hockey was fourth with 6.77. Badminton, squash, volleyball and basketball all racked up over 100 points. Special mentions must be made for basketball, fencing, hockey, lacrosse, squash and lawn tennis which each brought over 100 points to the overall table.
BUCS Individual and Team Championships
An impressive spread of sports took part in the individual competitions – ranging from athletics, canoe, judo, rowing and snowsports. With so many excellent performances and limited space to write, it was very difficult to choose the best ones! There were excellent performances in cycling’s women’s 25-mile time trial from Tamara Davenne, who finished second, Imogen Kempton (12th) and Olivia Withers (14th). This came alongside their victory in the three-up time trial championships. Despite only entering three competitors, boxing walked away with two gold medals and a silver. Dani Chattenton won the women’s modern pentathon championships, closely followed by Katie Hickson in third, while Alex Fraser finished second in the men’s event. Alex Smith finished second in the men’s indoor and outdoor archery championships for the recurve discipline, with Ciprian Zahan securing fifth place in the indoor event. Charlie Birch won the ladies’ indoor recurve competition and was second outdoors, while teammate Amaryllis Barton came fifth indoors.
Archery also achieved great team success, with their ladies’ side winning both the indoor and outdoor non-compound events. Oxford’s men finished second and fourth respectively in their equivalent competitions. There were strong performances in other competitions, such as the sailing team racing championships in which Tom Steavenson, Edward Scallan, Ben Gratton, Ben Rahemtulla, Sam Jenkins and Lottie Rapson finished second in a nail-biting final. Looking ahead to 2015-16, Oxford must continue to improve to edge closer to the top of the table. Oxford’s closest competitors in the BUCS table, Leeds Beckett University, finished just 81 points behind, but eighthplaced Northumbria University were 488 points ahead. The upcoming facility development will provide more opportunity to participate and broaden training regimes, while two additional teams (water polo M2 and ultimate) have entered into BUCS leagues. The Oxford spirit continued to be one of the driving forces and students must keep striving to do Oxford proud and cement their position in the top ten. Rifle club have already kicked off the season with a secondplace finish in the fullbore championships.
CHANGE RANKING UNIVERSITY FROM 2013/14
LEAGUE POINTS
LEAGUE INDIVIDUAL TOTAL KNOCKOUT CHAMP. POINTS POINTS
- 1 Loughborough University - 2 Durham University 2 3 University of Edinburgh - 4 University of Bath 2 5 University of Birmingham - 6 University of Exeter - 7 University of Nottingham - 8 Northumbria University 2 9 Oxford University 1 10 Leeds Beckett University
2047 2204.5 1394 1512 1592.5 1767 1779 1335 1120 1211.5
1008 1061 311 495 679 755 706.5 707 415 488
2823.2 828.2 1544.5 1112.75 837 526 520.5 618.75 637.5 391.7
5878.2 4093.7 3249.5 3119.75 3108.5 3048 3006 2660.75 2172.5 2091.2
I 15
Cuppers ResulTs 2014-15 Overall College Scores Magdalen Keble LMH Pembroke New Catz Jesus Worcester Balliol Oriel St Anne's Brasenose St John's St Peter's St Hilda's Univ St Hugh's Hertford Queen's Wadham Corpus Somerville St Cross Lincoln Merton Linacre Osler Exeter Christchurch St Benet's Harris Manchester Green Templeton St Anthony's Wycliffe Hall Mansfield Kellogg Regent's Park
45 44 41 39 34 34 31 30 29 27 27 24 24 23 22 22 20 20 19 19 14 14 14 11 11 10 7 6 6 6 5 4 4 4 4 0 0
Winner 5 points
2nd
4 points
3rd
3 points
4th
1 point
ALTS Keble Magdalen Corpus Jesus Archery St Hugh's Brasenose Lincoln Worcester Athletics Jesus Hertford Exeter Univ Badminton - Men Univ Badminton - Women St Anne's Basketball - Men New / Jesus Univ St Anne's/St Cross Teddy Hall Basketball - Women Hertford St Anne's/St Cross St Peter's Brasenose Canoe & Kayak St Anne's Linacre Merton St Peter's Cheerleading St Peter's Mansfield St Hugh's Cricket - Men Cricket - Women Univ Catz Worcester Balliol Croquet Magdalen Oriel Trinity St Benet's Cross Country - Men Univ Somerville St John's Worcester Cross Country - Women Catz Magdalen St Anne's Jesus Dancesport Magdalen Keble Jesus Eton Fives Wadham St Peter's LMH Queen's Fencing Worcester Somerville St Hugh's St John's Football - Men Balliol Pembroke LMH New Football - Women Foxes Pembroke/Corpus Keble/ Hertford Queen's Golf St Benet's New Queen's Magdalen Gymnastics Handball Hockey - Men Worcester Teddy Hall/Pembroke Oriel Keble Hockey - Women Queen's/ St Hilda's New/ Pembroke Catz Teddy Hall/Keble Karate Linacre St Cross St Hugh's Teddy Hall Korfball Magdalen LMH Osler Teddy Hall Lacrosse Teddy Hall Wadham/ St Anne's Keble St Hilda's Lawn Tennis - Open New Worcester St John's Merton Lawn Tennis - Women's Catz Keble Pembroke Magdalen Lightweight Men St John's Wolfson St Anne's New Lightweight Women Trinity Hertford Exeter New Modern Pentathlon Magdalen Queen's Lincoln Balliol Motor Drivers Balliol Teddy Hall Magdalen Netball Somerville Keble Teddy Hall New Octopush Lincoln St Hilda's Orienteering St John's Wadham LMH New Pistol Polo St Peter's Wycliffe Hall Balliol St Anthony's Pool & Snooker Brasenose Balliol Catz Christchurch/ Linacre Powerlifting - Individual Catz Jesus St Hugh's Powerlifting - Team Balliol Pembroke Jesus Riding Catz St Hilda's St Cross Rifle LMH New Hertford Rowing - Summer Eights - Men Oriel Christchurch Pembroke Magdalen Rowing - Summer Eights - Women Wadham Pembroke Magdalen Univ Rugby Fives - Men Harris Manchester LMH Magdalen St Hilda's Rugby Fives - Women Corpus Brasenose St Hilda's Hertford Rugby - League St Peter's Brasenose Catz Wadham Rugby - Mixed Touch Keble Osler LMH Catz Rugby - Union Keble Teddy Hall St Anne's/ St Johns Corpus/ Somerville Ski & Snowboard Oriel Keble Teddy Hall Christchurch Squash - Men Oriel Merton Green Templeton Brasenose Squash - Women Queen's Jesus St John's New Swimming - Men LMH Teddy Hall Worcester Swimming - Women Teddy Hall Jesus LMH Swimming - Mixed Magdalen LMH Worcester Jesus Table Tennis Oriel Pembroke St Anthony's Green Templeton Triathlon Keble LMH St Hilda's Corpus Ultimate Balliol St John's New Pembroke Volleyball Waterpolo Worcester St Anne's New/ St Hugh's St Hilda's Yachting - Dinghy Brasenose Pembroke Merton Univ www.sport.ox.ac.uk
Vincent's Club The Vincent’s Club Award Scheme was created to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the Club. Applications are welcome from all members of the University, and those who are about to come up. The scheme is designed to encourage and support outstanding scholar athletes. Scholarships are generally awarded for the entirety of a student’s time at Oxford, bursaries for particular needs. Both are worth up to £2,500 p.a. The awards are available to both undergraduate and postgraduate students who display qualities including: Strong academic attainment coupled with sporting achievement and potential. Strength of character, fellowship and leadership potential. An interest in participation in broader activities, including outreach and the promotion of sport at Oxford. A commitment to helping those less fortunate.
Evidence of financial need is also an importance criterion of selection. Details can be found in the application material on the Vincent’s website: www.vincents.org. Vincent’s awarded 2 scholarships and 5 bursaries, to a total value of £12,000 for 2014/15 and three scholarships (one split between two candidates) and 5 bursaries to a total value of £15,000 for 2015/16.
Vincent’s Club also runs an Outreach programme, establishing a regular summer camp for local Oxfordshire children in the final years of Primary Education, in addition to engaging in Outreach activities in the local and wider community. These programmes aim to encourage the scholar athletes of the future, promoting the important role that competitive sports play in a balanced lifestyle. For more information please peruse the website (http://vincents.org/outreach/) or contact our Outreach Officer (outreach@vincents.org).
VINCENT'S CLUB, 1A KING EDWARD STREET, OXFORD OX1 4HS
WWW.VINCENTS.ORG
I 17
CLUB REPORTS AIKIDO
ALTERNATIVE ICE HOCKEY
AMERICAN FOOTBALL
It was another great year for Oxford University Aikido Club, welcoming a lot of new members, particularly among graduate students who take advantage of the close links with the city club to train year round. With five senior instructors regularly attending the dojo, the club has the benefit of a vast wealth of aikido knowledge. A friendly atmosphere within the dojo allows complete beginners to train alongside seasoned veterans.
Alts had a successful year. Turnout was high and seemed to remain consistently high throughout the year. This can be attributed to a thriving freshers’ fair and building better connections with OUIHC and OUWIHC to try and increase the accessibility of ice hockey to all ability levels. Hopefully the attendance will continue to grow over the next year, building on the success of this one and we will see Alts making a profit for the first time in a number of years.
Peter Megann, one of the highest ranking instructors in the UK, continues as our senior local instructor, with individual classes run by Nick Belshaw, Richard Martin, Graham Jones and Bill Jackson, each offering a different perspective on aikido. Beginner's class on Mondays continued to attract the most student members, with Richard taking over from Nick in the new year. The mixed class on Saturday mornings is popular with students too, however, and lunchtime classes on Wednesday and Friday have provided dedicated attendees with excellent focused tuition.
Cuppers was also a triumph with 25 competing teams, Keble being the victors in a closely fought tournament played until 4am. Magdalen took the silver and Corpus Christi the bronze.
2015 brought a coaching change, which saw Andrew McKenzie take over the position of head coach. Since then, he has an unbeaten record. The Cavaliers Cup match, which is now in its second year, was played against the Oxford Brookes Panthers. This year Oxford ran out 13-6 winners and claimed the cup for the first time. The season was finished off with an impressive 7-6 victory over the UEA pirates and a 33-12 win away at Essex Blades.
The club would like to thank the rest of the outgoing committee for their support and hard work and would also like to thank the staff at the Oxford Ice Rink.
Trinity Term saw the return of the Lancers Flag Football Cuppers in which we hoped for a large turnout to introduce new people to the evergrowing sport.
It has been a great year for Alts and the club looks set to prosper in the next.
The Lancers are looking to build on the success of this season and carry the momentum on to the next.
The season began with a first and record win of 62-0 for the Lancers over the Anglia Ruskin Rhinos. This was swiftly followed by a narrow 7-6 away loss to Kent, and a disappointing two-score defeat to the Cambridge Pythons in the Varsity Match.
We continue to be fortunate to enjoy regular visits from the British Aikido Federation's technical director, Minoru Kanetsuka, who was recently promoted to 8th Dan. Kanetsuka-Sensei is a phenomenal force on the mats, and never fails to deliver an entertaining, if punishing, class. Members of the university club have travelled to Bristol, London and Chepstow to attend his courses, as well as the annual summer school in Chester. These efforts have paid off, with a successful grading taking place in February, alongside friends from the Southampton Aikido club. With a wide selection of courses planned in year ahead, the Oxford Aikikai is looking forward to another successful year, and we hope to see many new faces in the dojo in the coming months.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
18 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
ARCHERY This year the club had many major successes as well as a thriving participation and novice engagement section. We started the year with over 400 novices trying the sport in Michaelmas Term. By the end of the year we still had a relatively high number of members training and competing regularly. The major success for the club did, however, come from the experienced first team. Firstly, at Varsity the team not only managed to win both the Novice and Experienced categories, but individuals managed to break the Individual Experienced Women’s record, the Men’s Experienced record (twice), the Novice Women’s record (twice), the Novice Team Varsity record and the Experienced Team Varsity record, thus beating Cambridge by the highest margin in memory. Following this, our major results also included team victory at the BUCS Outdoor Championships, despite one archer having a broken ankle and another an injured shoulder, along with Individual silver in the women’s category. We also won first placed team at the BUTTS (Midlands) League Championships along with first placed Individual in both men’s and women’s categories, breaking a national record and a league record respectively. During the indoor season our team managed a host of excellent results. These included second places in the Midlands League and at the University Team Championships, where the side managed to break the records for the highest ranking score, highest match score and highest cumulative score ever. At BUCS, we managed to further this success with Individual and Team women’s gold, and an Individual and Team men’s silver. The club also sent two sides to the European Club Team Championships. Notably at the National Championships (open), we had a top-32 finish in the women’s event and a top-eight
@oxfordunisport
finish in the men’s. The club has also managed to have two members qualify for the shoot-offs for the GB international team, with one member representing the country and qualifying for the World University Games.
ATHLETICS Freshers Varsity Match: There were a number of strong performances from the new members of OUAC, but Cambridge ultimately came out on top, narrowly winning both the women's and men's matches. FEAR (Field Events and Relays): The indoor fixture versus Cambridge was the first time that the clubs were able to see the talent of their opponents for the coming year. The men did well to draw the track 3-3 and the field 4-4 (although we were unfairly disqualified from the 60m hurdles on the track). The women lost the track 4-2 and the field 5.5 - 2.5 with a depleted squad. Warm Weather Training: 32 members of OUAC travelled to the Algarve in Portugal. The trip was successful with very few injuries and lots of improvements made across the whole squad, with athletes representing most of the events. BUCS: Lots of athletes participated in the outdoor BUCS competition. Special mentions should go to: Miles Unterreiner (second, 10,000m), Montana Jackson (sixth, triple jump), Alex Howard (sixth, steeplechase) and the men's 4x400 squad (seventh, with a steeplechaser on last leg). The annual Varsity match was held in Cambridge, and ended up something of a disaster with us losing all four matches. We travelled to the match thinking that we were favourites on the men's side and about even for the women, but the squad failed to deliver the promised performances on the day. On the men's side, the losing margins in the track events were extremely small and the overall result certainly doesn't do justice to the quality of the team. It was a similar scenario on the women's side, with a few dubious decisions going against us.
Overall, the year was extremely promising. The team are very disappointed not to have come out on top after Varsity, but we have a strong squad with a positive committee to lead us over the next 12 months. Varsity victory is very much a possibility for each of the four teams.
AUSSIE RULES The Oxford University Australian Rules Football Club had a tough year on the field after suffering the loss of several key players from previous seasons. Heavy recruitment efforts led to many new players joining the club, however, setting us up well for seasons to come. Whilst many OUARFC members are Australian expats, this year saw many non-Australians taking up the game for the first time. Our first match saw more than half the team play their first ever game of Australian rules football. We played several matches in Oxford over the course of the year, with visits from teams based in London, Birmingham and Cardiff. The club also participated in an inter-university tournament held in Birmingham - the first of its kind in England - and secured third place. After a winning streak of nine years, OUARFC went down in this year's Varsity game against a far more experienced Cambridge team. The club finished the season with a trip to Germany, playing a friendly, but hotly contested game against the Munich Kangaroos.
BADMINTON OUBaC had a very successful year, despite the turnover of players with a large number of club stalwarts having left. Our men's Blues consolidated their place as one of the best performing teams in the University, finishing a creditable second behind traditional powerhouses Bath. This was followed by a run to the BUCS
I 19
Championships quarter-finals where they were knocked out by a strong Sheffield Hallam team for the second year in a row. The women's Blues secured their position in the Midlands 1A division comfortably and the men's second team, who felt last year's exodus of players harder than anyone, narrowly escaped relegation - in the same league as the Cambridge first team - on the last day of the season. Our women's second team did well to secure their position in the top flight of the local leagues and next year will be joined by our men's third team, who secured promotion from Division 2. The mixed team competed in the top tier of the Oxfordshire District Leagues, finishing in second place, despite only losing one match all season due to a lack of court time. Having a team in the top tier of the men's, women's and mixed leagues shows the strength throughout the OUBaC squads relative to the local county. Individual plaudits go to Claire Weaver who again secured a bronze medal at the BUCS National Championships at EIS in Sheffield. In doing so, she beat many national junior players training full-time at England High Performance Centres such as Loughborough, Bath and Leeds Beckett before being ousted by a former Thai international in the semi-finals. As ever, the highlight of the year was the Varsity Match where all five teams compete. By consolidating last year's clean sweep with a 4-1
victory away from home at the new Cambridge Sports Centre, the club successfully defended their overall title for the fifth consecutive year, with the men's Blues winning for a tenth time in a row,
BASKETBALL This was an OK year for the Oxford University Basketball Club, although our women's Blues had strong performances on the court. There was overwhelming team commitment and great participation at the college and seconds level. In addition, we extended work from last year by forging new and promising bonds with more of our alumni. For our men's Blues, the captain also valiantly worked as coach, which hampered his and the team's ability to achieve their full potential on the court. This was further hindered by injuries and missing key players as we finished fifth in BUCS Premier South. However, this does ensure another season at the highest league possible, and due to recruiting efforts, suggestions that next year will be better. Unfortunately, Varsity ended with a loss, but this will hopefully be avenged by next year's squad. After losing some talented players over the summer, there were worries about the season for the women's Blues. However, one player returned to coach the side after leaving Oxford, which shows the evident team chemistry. With very strong performances, they were able to make the BUCS quarter-finals at the highest level.
Unfortunately, there was a loss at Varsity. The men's second squad was strong this year, focusing primarily on the development of new talent although a few players from past years had stayed. Due to the nature of many first-year undergraduates and postgraduates, this bodes well for the future. Without key injuries, the men’s seconds were on track for promotion until quite late into the season. Being on the women's seconds is about developing as a player. Everyone trained hard to do just that, with great success in the league. Another close Varsity game was extremely frustrating, but there is a lot to build on next year.
BOAT CLUB – MEN OUBC cemented their dominance over Cambridge by achieving the first hat-trick of Boat Race wins since the 1990s and by winning the reserve race for the fifth successive year. With strong showings at other external competitions against more varied opposition, the club also demonstrated that they have the leading men’s rowing programme in the country. This can be put down to a number of factors including the unrivalled expertise of our coaching team, the commitment of our athletes and the generous sponsorship of BNY Mellon. Along the way the club recorded wins at the Fours Head, taking the elite coxed fours pennant ahead of experienced international competition, and raced a tightly contested Trial Eights,
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
20 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
the Charles Regatta in Boston MA. The crew performed exceptionally to finish fourth overall, and second university crew – an incredibly respectable result at such an early stage in the season and against the strength of US Collegiate women’s rowing. This result set up the team well for the next big challenge, the Head of the River Fours Race, held over the championship course. The top two coxed fours finished first and second, some distance ahead of the fastest Cambridge crew, while our third boat, a quad, won the intermediate title in a very fast time. The end of the Michaelmas Term saw the team divided into half to race in trial eights. A close contest was had over the full Boat Race course, with the crews remaining in contact until the Band Stand (1,500m out from the finish). gaining invaluable experience over the Boat Race course. After a productive training camp in Bordeaux, the Blue boat, unable to find top quality crews to take on in their pre-race fixtures, dismissed all their opposition with greater ease than might have been hoped for by the coaches. Nonetheless, the Blue boat delivered a consummate performance on race day to row away from Cambridge around the outside of the big Surrey bend and take the win by five lengths. Isis won in some style, overcoming a clear-water deficit a mile in to win eventually by three lengths. Amidst this success, the club was deeply saddened by the death of coaching legend Dan
@oxfordunisport
Topolski on February 21, 2015. Dan rowed for Oxford in the 1967 and ’68 Boat Races and coached Oxford from 1973-87, winning 12 of 15 races, including an unbeaten run of ten. He was the beating heart of the club right up until his death, advising the coaches, cajoling oarsmen and guiding coxes around the notoriously tricky Tideway course. He will be sorely missed by everyone involved with Oxford rowing.
BOAT CLUB – WOMEN OUWBC made history as both the Blue boat and Osiris (our reserve crew) took to the Tideway for the first time to race Cambridge. In October we raced an eight at the Head of
Our new year’s training camp in Saubadia was a great success. All athletes made really good progress and some initial selection races were conducted. This set us up well for the final run in to the Boat Race, which began with both crews racing the Quintin Head. Osiris had a strong race and the Blue boat finished as the highest placed women’s crew in the event’s history. Both the Blue boat and Osiris were dominant in their fixtures. Osiris had large victories over the lightweight women and Oxford Brookes, while the Blue boat dispatched strong crews from Molsey and Imperial in a similarly emphatic fashion. The Blue boat also tested their speed against the Eton College second eight and the GB women – posting an exceptionally fast time in the latter fixture.
I 21
These results understandably gave both crews confidence heading into the Boat Race. Osiris were merciless in their approach and relentlessly drove more distance into their margin over Blondie, ultimately winning with a margin of 15 lengths (45 seconds) – even more impressive given they were racing with a spare in the crew due to illness. The Blue boat raced well, and had control of the race from the outset, going on to win the first ever women’s Boat Race on the Tideway by six and a half lengths.
BOXING It was another intense year for the members of OUABC. Michaelmas Term saw the gym packed with new recruits wanting to try this fantastic sport. For those who had the grit and determination to stay, it’s been a rewarding year as the club really developed - with ten boxers making their debuts. Special mentions must go to Andros Wong, who put on an impressive and technical display at the Kassam Stadium to win his first bout. Similarly, Tianhao Xu, who despite being in the unusual position of making his debut for the club at the Varsity Match, demonstrated tremendous power and accuracy to win by knockout. The annual Town versus Gown event was hugely successful again and gave many of Oxford’s hard working boxers the chance to showcase their abilities in the Student Union. This year also saw an increase in the number of clubs present at the event and the standard of boxing really was exceptional. As such, despite not winning, OUABC were able to gain a lot of experience. Highlights of the evening included next year’s men’s captain
Matt McFahn taking the first of his two victories this season in an impressive unanimous verdict, and an exciting inter-club bout between Charles Hardstaff and Mark Hamblin. Varsity was held on Tabs’ territory this year and though demonstrating fantastic skills, OUABC, with only one returning Blue, couldn’t quite snatch victory from Cambridge’s more experienced team. We went down fighting hard, though, with some strong performances – Matt’s 23-second knockout deserves a mention! Consequently the Varsity standing is currently 52-all, making Varsity 2016 and the return to Oxford’s home ground all the more exciting. Each year the Women’s team goes from strength to strength and this year was no exception. All three athletes entering BUCS came home with
medals. Outgoing captain Lucy Harris won a silver medal, losing a close-fought contentious final to a boxer from Coventry. Incoming captain Mariya Lazarova won gold with a unanimous decision, and Claudia Havranek, our incoming president, also won gold. The club are also proud of vice president, Isra Hale, who competed at both Town versus Gown and Varsity. Moreover, we successfully changed our Blues statues so that now up to three awards can be made at the captain’s and coaches’ discretion to any women who compete in Varsity and have at least three full terms of boxing experience. OUABC are looking forward to drawing on last year’s vast array of experiences to put Oxford back in the Varsity lead.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
22 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
CANOE AND KAYAK Michaelmas Term saw a successful beginners' trip to South Wales, which gave new members the opportunity to try their hand at whitewater kayaking for the first time. All the newcomers have gone on to participate in further whitewater events in Michaelmas and Hilary. General sessions at Port Meadow were well attended throughout the year, as were social events. On a more competitive level, we entered a ladies’ canoe polo team into Division 2 for the first time. This provided us with regular match experience. This was critical to our 4-0 success in the ladies’ canoe polo Varsity Match. There were other tournaments throughout the year that enabled members to experience play against a range of teams. Despite this, our men's team narrowly missed out on a Varsity victory, with a final score of 5-4 to Cambridge. Marathon training has proceeded throughout the year. This has been possible thanks to a partnership with Falcon Canoe Club who have provided weekly sessions for OUCKC members headed up by our marathon representative. Both men's and ladies' teams won the Marathon Varsity races. Finally, two of our men picked up prizes at the National Student Rodeo, the largest kayaking freestyle event in the UK (and possibly the world). Christopher Booth finished
@oxfordunisport
third in the men's Intermediate category, and Ben Coulton was awarded second in the men's Expert event.
CAVING Cheerleading has seen a huge growth in the UK in the recent years. This was noticed here as well by 350 people signing up at Fresher’s Fair and more than 75 people turning up to the first taster session. The increasing recognition of cheerleading meant that we have had a great number of men trying out for the squad as well. To provide for this growth in interest, a second large competitive team was set up. Thus the Oxford Sirens competed with two large teams, one mixed and one all-girl, and two smaller stunt groups. In all we had 50 competing members, which was an increase of 40 per cent on the last year and a mixed team where 12 out 25 were male. The teams took part in two competitions. At the last one we did particularly well with first place for the new all-girl team, second for the Level 4 stunt group and fourth for the mixed team in a close division, only missing out on first place by one point out of 100. The squad also held their first ever showcase, which was attended by more than 100 people. It
was a great opportunity to show people in Oxford what cheerleading is all about. The event also helped fundraise for the new mats that have now been acquired.
CHEERLEADING Cheerleading has seen a huge growth in the UK in the recent years. This was noticed here as well by 350 people signing up at Fresher’s Fair and more than 75 people turning up to the first taster session. The increasing recognition of cheerleading meant that we have had a great number of men trying out for the squad as well. To provide for this growth in interest, a second large competitive team was set up. Thus the Oxford Sirens competed with two large teams, one mixed and one all-girl, and two smaller stunt groups. In all we had 50 competing members, which was an increase of 40 per cent on the last year and a mixed team where 12 out 25 were male. The teams took part in two competitions. At the last one we did particularly well with first place for the new all-girl team, second for the Level 4 stunt group and fourth for the mixed team in a close division, only missing out on first place by one point out of 100. The squad also held their first ever showcase, which was attended by more than 100 people. It was a great opportunity to show people in Oxford
I 23
what cheerleading is all about. The event also helped fundraise for the new mats that have now been acquired.
CLAY PIGEON SHOOTING OUCPSC enjoyed another year of growth. Having more regular shoots meant that we could get a lot more freshers coming along and as such we had a lot more staying on into Hilary and Trinity Terms, with four competing in the Varsity Match. We have mainly been to the Oxfordshire Shooting School as they have provided us with a good deal and their tuition is fantastic. Both beginners and experienced shots have improved and we gave Cambridge a run for their money at the Varsity Match, winning the men's second team and women's first team contests. Our team, which went to BUCS, shot a range from mid 50s to high 70s at a very hard ground, all finishing in the top half, with Harry Touch coming 22nd. It was generally an excellent performance. We were very pleased to be given half Blue status in Hilary Term. We hope that this will help to bring more experienced shots out of the woodwork. Everyone who shoots with us leaves having had a nice day out, relieved some stress and maybe even had a bacon sandwich - the best reasons to get out of Oxford!
CRICKET - MEN The 2015 Blues squad had high expectations following the triumphant 2-0 victory in the 2014 Varsity series. To follow a successful pre-
season tour to Sri Lanka, which proved a hugely promising start, the Blues had a rather mixed early season with a couple of disappointing results against the University of Bristol and St Edward’s. Later on in the season we were also lucky enough to play in a more competitive tour match against the University of Sydney cricket club, whom we managed to beat. The BUCS games were particularly difficult this year, as is often the case, because of the fact that many of the fixtures coincided with exams, leaving a slightly depleted side. The depth of the squad was clear though, best shown against Bath where, in a must-win game to avoid relegation, freshers Tom Claughton and Jack Harrison put together a useful partnership on a tricky batting surface before Haines, Matt Bowen and Will George did the damage with the ball. It is also important to mention the excellent work of Sam Westaway who stepped in as captain for many of the BUCs games when Matt Winter and Jonathan Marsden (Vice-Captain) were on exam duty. The pinnacle of the season was of course the Varsity Series, which began with the Twenty20 match at Fenner’s. The Blues were bowled out for 140: just below par. Nevertheless, Abi Sakande began our bowling innings with a maiden before Tom Williams capitalised on this early pressure, removing one of Cambridge’s openers. Despite the pressure that Marsden, Sakande and Haines put on the batsman and a helpful run out from Claughton, Cambridge just about got over the line to win. Interestingly, the Lord’s game took a similar shape to the Twenty20 as Oxford got off to a good start, being 53-0 after 13 overs, before
collapsing to 83-5. Perhaps the most memorable performance came from wicket-keeper Westaway, who took six catches and a stumping; a record at Lord’s. With the success of Lord’s behind us, hopes were high for the Four-day match at Fenner’s. The Blues got off to an excellent start as freshers Hughes and Claughton put together a first wicket partnership of 71. However, Oxford collapsed, losing three wickets for 0 runs, ending up on a paltry 156. Yet again, Marsden and Jones made key breakthroughs, removing both openers early on. Unfortunately, Cambridge still managed to reach 346. Oxford got off to a brisk start in the second innings, Claughton falling in the sixth over with the score already on 48. What came after was a great partnership of 112 between Winter (56) and Hughes (116), who made a truly outstanding century. Despite these efforts, our first innings collapse put us in a very difficult position and the match ended on the 3rd evening, Oxford unfortunately suffering a five wicket loss.
CRICKET – WOMEN This has been a very successful year for OUWCC. In addition to Varsity victories, we came first in our BUCS Midlands 1A league defeating Loughborough, Cambridge, and Nottingham featuring a superb 104 by Ellie Ingram, leaving us unbeaten in all our Blues games. Success in both Varsity games was built on dominant batting performances and effective bowling that restricted the opposition despite the flat batting tracks at both Fenner’s and Lord's.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
24 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
Put in to bat after losing the toss at Fenner’s in Cambridge for the T20 varsity, our openers made a formidable total of 217-0 in 20 overs. Sian Kelly's blistering 127 not out off a mere 72 balls was ably supported by Sarah Atrill's 57no. Backed by a tight performance in the field, our bowlers restricted Cambridge to 88-4 (Helen Baxendale 2-11) giving us a comfortable 129run victory. Once again we were put in to bat after losing the toss in the 50-over Varsity Match at Lord's. Despite an early breakthrough for Cambridge, we put on 288-7. Opener Sarah Attrill continued her prolific form from the T20 and once again carried her bat through the innings, scoring a remarkable 140 not out, supported by solid partnerships with Ridhi Kashyap (32) and Brett Rosenberg (22). Cambridge responded positively in their innings reaching 136-0 off 31 overs before a vital breakthrough off Ridhi Kashyap's spin halted their momentum. Tight bowling spells from quicks Immy Brown and Helen Baxendale, who picked up two wickets in two balls in her second spell, restricted Cambridge to 183-4, giving us a comfortable 105-run victory. Sadly the rain forced us to cancel some matches including our much-anticipated Town versus Gown game. In our other friendly, we were outplayed by a competitive and high profile MCC side in The
@oxfordunisport
Parks, which included England captain Charlotte Edwards and Claire Taylor as well as other county players in their ranks. The game was a fantastic learning experience for the team with a chance to play with world-class cricketers. This season was our second consecutive time participating in the Oxfordshire Cricket Board's Midweek League. Given the growing interest in women's cricket in the university, this allowed our less-experienced squad members to gain constructive match experience against local club teams. Overall, the 2015 season was a very successful one for the OUWCC and we look forward to more milestones in the upcoming campaign.
CROQUET The 2014-2015 season was a good campaign for Oxford University Croquet Club. Membership increased to more than 40 people, with applications still coming in. The club won the Southern Federation Handicap League, Northern Division. After a successful play-off against the Southern Division winners in early October, we once again qualified for the national Secretary's Shield competition, to be played during the long vacation in 2015. The club also made it to the Secretary's Shield in 2014 and reached the final, but unfortunately we lost as one of your players was unable to play due to an illness.
In Trinity 2015, the club again participated in the regional handicap league, snatching three wins and two draws. Other matches in the league were mostly still to be played, but the club had a fair chance of winning. Within Oxford, Cuppers has been a great success, with a participation of more than 1,500 students. The numbers of both casual and competitive players have increased, with tight competition for spots on the Varsity team, which won 7-2. Two players had the necessary handicap of six or below to qualify for a Half Blue.
CROSS COUNTRY It can safely be said that OUCCC made large strides forward as a club last year. With almost all of our senior runners and committee leaving the previous year, when we lost both Blues Varsity Matches, the outlook looked somewhat bleak. Despite this, the men's side of the club has seen a stark upturn in fortunes, forming a very strong team which managed to beat the strongest lineup Cambridge have fielded in the Blues’ Varsity Match for many years, containing multiple GB internationals. In a women's match that was sadly marred by the majority of runners losing the course, Oxford did manage to produce the winner in Sophia Saller, who was well clear when those behind her took a wrong turn.
I 25
Unfortunately though, our young teams struggled in an away IIs-IVs Varsity Match in Cambridge, when it seemed that many were stronger on paper than their counterparts. However, Oxford produced individual winners in all but one race thanks to Dan Mulryan, Louis Rawlings, Hannah Plaschkes, and Simone Paulson. We continued to operate during Hilary, where runners competed in a range of races both for the University and their home clubs. Having peaked for Varsity, our men's team were understrength at BUCS, where we would have hoped to challenge for a medal, due to a variety of injuries and loss of form. The women however produced a strong performance to finish well inside the top ten, with standout individual performances from Sophia Saller and Kate Niehaus, who both finished within the top 20. Will Christofi achieved likewise in the men's race. The club continued to organise the Teddy Hall Relays and BMC Iffley Miles with great success. Both events run from Iffley Road track and attract large crowds of national and international level athletes, the BMC event being one of the premier middle distance meetings in the country.
CYCLING The club increased in strength for the second year in a row. All aspects of the club were on the increase compared with the previous season. The year saw the first training camps for both road and mountain biking. Clear training plans were composed at the start of Michaelmas, which gave members the structure needed to develop their skills. Hard work from this paid off with the club winning three out of four Varsity Matches against Cambridge. A solid performance from the women gave victory over Cambridge in the BUCS 25-mile time trial and the mountain biking results did not disappoint with both the men’s and women’s cross country races bringing home wins at Deepcut. Cambridge have been fielding extremely strong men’s teams for several years and serious work is needed to shorten the gap between our sides. The club had success at BUCS on the women’s side, with the team taking fouth in the ten-mile time trial, second in the 25-mile time trial and first in the team time trial. Individually, they recorded 16th in the hill climb, fourth in the ten-mile time trial, second in the 25-mile time trial, fourth in the road race and victory in the criterium race. The men’s team had less success, but an even performance across the year. They were 15th in the hill climb, 13th in the ten-mile time trial, 17th in the team time trial and 13th at the 25mile time trial.
As a result a high number of Half Blues have been awarded this year with one member achieving a discretionary Full Blue.
DANCESPORT Oxford University Dancesport Club had a fruitful year, marked by unity and growth. Comprised of over 650 members, they remain among the largest clubs in the University, providing classes and training in 16 styles of dance. This year, OUDC hired Alejandro Hernandez to fill a vacancy as consultant Latin coach. In Michaelmas Term, OUDC’s salsa team –the Rueda Komrades – joined forces with the Oxford University Salsa Society to fundraise for Cancer Research UK. The fundraiser was headlined by a non-stop ten-hour Rueda marathon and accrued over £5,000 for the charity. Through the first four competitions – at Nottingham, Warwick, Birmingham, and Sheffield – the results were very positive. Couples consistently made semi-finals and finals and the
team were pleased with their performance. At Sheffield, Oxford won the Team Knockout Match, a fast-paced one-on-one elimination style tournament. Sadly, Oxford could neither tame the Cambridge beast nor rally for second place; the team finished in third, also behind Imperial. At the Varsity Match the team faced a similar fate. Though closing the gap compared to the previous year, the Dark Blues fell short of the strong Cambridge side, 1944-1830 – a relatively close match. The club were excited to award 14 Half Blues. In spite of Varsity, there was much to celebrate. The Rock n Roll team won their nationals for the third consecutive year and the club held a variety of successful Trinity Term events. Cuppers featured over 220 participants for the second straight year and the annual OUDC Ball – “A Night in Casablanca” – provided an opportunity for 120 members and friends to dance the night away in style.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
26 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
ETON FIVES The 2014-2015 season saw a significant change of personnel for the men’s team, as three of last year’s top six players left us. The litmus test for our progress was of course the Varsity Match, and the second team continued their form by comfortably seeing off Cambridge. The first team were unlucky to come away with a 2-1 loss, especially in the tightly-contested second pair match. All in all however, these results represent an improvement on the previous year’s performance and other highlights included reaching the semi-finals of the EFA trophy and the Mixed Universities. The Town versus Gown clash was won 2-1. After a very successful previous season for the women’s team, this year was always going to be a challenge. Despite this, the team came runners up in the universities, quarter-finalists in the under 21s and semi-finalists in the ladies’ nationals. Unfortunately the first team lost a hotly contested Varsity 2-1, but the second team showed the strength the club now have with a dominant performance. Especially encouraging last year was the increase in participation and quality of fives, thanks to an enthusiastic recruitment team and our coach. The future of the club looks bright for next year.
FENCING It was an all-round successful year for OUFC. We enjoyed success on the piste in BUCS and the general development of the club has progressed well. Both Blues teams finished second in the BUCS Premiership divisions and runner-up in the knockout BUCS championships - fantastic results.
Additionally, both second teams finished third in their divisions and made it to the quarterfinals of the BUCS Trophy. These were very solid results and especially good for the men’s seconds who consolidated their exceptional previous season when they were promoted. The only blemish on our teams’ record were the Varsity Matches, unfortunately we lost all four. However, this was testament to Cambridge’s strength, especially for the Blues, shown by their BUCS results. There were a number of notable individual achievements. Emma-Tina Segall made it into the top ten of the national women’s foil rankings for the first time. Justin Bewsher reached the top 50 of the men’s foil rankings to gain his Full Blue. Gabriella Smyth progressed to the last eight at the BUCS individuals for her Full Blue. Harriet Dixon won the BUCS individuals for the second year running and came third in the British championships. Additionally, Harriet travelled to Largs, Scotland for the Commonwealth Fencing Championships where she joined four Old Blues - an historic representation for OUFC at a more senior level of fencing. Our beginner section is flourishing as always and we recruited a new coach from within the student body to continue the programme from Chris Jones, who is leaving after many years at the club.
FLOORBALL It was an exciting year for Oxford Floorball, with many ups and downs. We had a few popular socials such as the BBQ in Botley Park with friends and family members and the potluck in St Hugh's College. To increase the club's presence in UK floorball, we organised friendly matches against other
university teams, including Warwick and Bristol. The club's first team, which plays in the Midlands League, Division 1 - the most competitive in the UK - managed to reach the play-offs, and subsequently the nationals, which only the top 12 teams in the UK play in. This was a remarkable feat as we had lost most of our experienced club members the previous year, yet the morale was high and the team rallied. Our goal was also to expose club members to a much higher level of floorball in a foreign league. To that end, we organised our first ever international club tour to Budapest, Hungary. During the five days there, we trained with a second division team, and watched a league game to experience a higher level of floorball. We also played a friendly match against the Hungarian national champions in the men's elite division, the Dunai Krokodilok. As expected we lost (10-1), but it was a fantastic game.
FOOTBALL – MEN The Blues had a successful season on the pitch, finishing up third in a league of six teams in the second tier of British university football, with five wins, one draw and four defeats. They were level on points with second place and just four points off the eventual winners, Nottingham Trent. A strong first half of the season saw them on top spot over Christmas, but the title challenge faded following defeats against direct rivals Trent and Birmingham. This dip in form also saw them go out in the second round of the cup to Essex. Fortunately they recovered in time for Varsity, eventually and deservedly prevailing against Cambridge on penalties, after a 1-1 draw in normal time at the Abbey Stadium in Cambridge. The victory saw them end a run of three consecutive Varsity defeats, two of which were also on penalties. The Blues also went on tour to Japan and played
I 27
against the University of Tokyo, University of Kyoto, University of Osaka, and Keio University. It was a great year for the OUAFC Centaurs. An uneasy first half of the season in BUCS was put to bed with a strong finish to the campaign, finishing third in a strong group. This was supported by a fruitful tour to Barcelona, where the Centaurs beat University of Barcelona’s first team 5-3. The highlight of the season, though, was undoubtedly a crushing 3-0 victory in the Varsity Match, with particularly strong performances from two of the goalscorers, Roly Carter and Dan Brown. The team showed great commitment and strong unity throughout the season, which fittingly culminated in success at the end. The old “Dev Squad” were re-christened the “Colts” and entered BUCS leagues for the first time. The team, coached by the superb Kim Cowan, took the league by storm and successfully disposed of the competition with a number of 8-0 and 9-0 victories. The Colts’ achievements were exemplified in a brilliant 4-2 victory over Oxford Brookes’ second team, which saw them clinch the league title at the first time of asking. Disappointment followed with a narrow Varsity defeat, but that should not detract from a hugely impressive season, which evidenced OUAFC’s strength in depth.
FOOTBALL – WOMEN Having been promoted to Midlands 1A at the end of the previous season, last year was always going to be more challenging for the Blues. Nevertheless, they found winning ways from the off, most notably beating Cambridge 5-0 in just the second match of the season. Despite some disappointing draws at the end of Michaelmas, the Blues' fine form and unbeaten streak continued throughout the season. In the last league match of the year they snatched the title from contenders Nottingham; though level on points, the Blues came out on top in the head-to-head record between the two teams, having won 3-1 and drawn 2-2 during the season. When the Varsity Match arrived in March, the squad's unbeaten run stretched back 11 months and, with the memory of last year's 2-0 loss in the back of their minds, the team were hungry for a big win, and got just that. The 31st Annual Women's Varsity football match ended 7-1 to the Dark Blues, with goals from Sophie Cooper (3), Nadia Haven, Caroline Ward, Anna Green and Becca May. A remarkable cup run also contributed to a memorable season, with the team's desire to win helping them prevail in closely-fought matches in the early rounds of the competition. However, their unbeaten run ended in the final in a 3-1 loss to Sheffield Hallam.
The Furies’ season was marked by great team spirit. The intensity of their training moved up a gear from the previous season and the squad got stronger and stronger over the course of the campaign. They reaped the rewards in an emotional, hard-won 3-2 victory over rivals Birmingham City University in February. Despite a 3-0 loss to the Cambridge Eagles, their performance in the Varsity Match also did them proud and the scoreline was not deserved.
GLIDING In the last week of August 2014 we flew our Varsity match against Cambridge at Gransden Lodge in Cambridgeshire. In the competitive two-day event, we won by a large margin - 525 to 478. This marked OUGC’s fourth victory over Cambridge in five years. Last year we offered many more gliding trips than in the years gone by, with a total of six. Students went on trips to Portmoak, Scotland, the Black Mountains in Talgarth, Wales, the Varsity Match against Cambridge and the interuniversity competition among others. We also offered several cocktail parties and pub evenings as socials, to help encourage an espirit de corps amongst the glider pilots at Oxford. We had three pilots go solo, which brought the number who can compete for OUGC against CUGC to nine.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
106 High Street, Oxford, OX1 4BW www.oushop.com
I 29
GOLF In Hilary Term the Blues were able to get in a multitude of fantastic fixtures at some of the country’s most prestigious courses to sharpen their games for the 126th University match at Royal Liverpool Golf Club. Here, Oxford got off to a quick start, leading 4-1 after the first day. The match was a closely contested one, but Oxford eventually prevailed 9-6 to make it six consecutive Dark Blue wins. The University second team, the Divots, also enjoyed a full and prosperous season. After achieving mixed results in their regular season matches, the Divots turned up to Delamere Forest full of confidence before their match against the Cambridge Stymies. Unfortunately the match did not go as planned as Cambridge managed to secure a comfortable victory. Similarly, the ladies had another successful year, once again under the captaincy of Lise Loerup. Having lost several of their big players the year before, it was always going to be a difficult task to beat a strong Cambridge side in the end of year Varsity Match, but a spirited effort from all of the ladies made it a very close contest.
GYMNASTICS The year was an exciting one with gymnast Eric LeGresley gaining a full blue. As a team we competed in the annual Gymnastics Varsity Match, which took place in Cambridge. The girls’ A team came first overall, but unfortunately the men's team narrowly lost out. Another exciting result from the Varsity Match was that two of our members earned individual medals. Beth Andrew finished first in the girls’ competition and Eric LeGresley was third in the men's. We
had a number of socials, all of which had great attendance. It was an extremely successful year and thoroughly enjoyed by all.
HANDBALL Oxford University Handball Club (OUHaC) enjoyed a very good season. The number of members kept growing and our teams performed very well in all competitions. The club also benefitted from the addition of a new evening training slot. Both men´s and women´s teams won the regional rounds of the university championships. The men lost in the quarter-finals to the eventual champions, while the women reached semi-finals and only lost to the winners, Middlesex. After two consecutive national titles for the male squad in 2013 and 2014, this time the women´s team also managed to get a bronze medal and earned a spot on the podium. The second Varsity event was held at the new Cambridge sports centre. Again both teams performed extremely well and brought two crushing victories back to Oxford: 31–21 (women’s) and 31–24 (men’s). Both our club and Cambridge will work on maintaining this tradition and collaborating to reach Half Blue status in the near future. The women´s team also won the South Development League organised by the English Handball Association after winning all their matches against strong and experienced opposition. For the first time, we also had to chance to enter the National Beach-Handball Championships and enjoy this spectacular version of the sport.
HOCKEY The 2014-2015 season was a successful year for Oxford University's hockey club. The men’s Blues, after losing a large proportion of the previous year’s team, entered relatively unknown territory at the beginning of the season. However the new team gelled well and managed to put in some strong performances in the BUCS league to finish third. They encountered stronger opposition in the Saturday league with many of the teams having improved dramatically over the summer, and did well to finish in mid-table. In addition the Blues closely lost out to Cambridge in the Varsity Match, taking it to penalty shuttles, but unfortunately encountering a very strong Cambridge goalkeeper. After receiving a strong contingent of freshers at the start of the season the women’s Blues looked to build on the success of the previous year. In terms of results it was a mixed season, with a slightly disappointing fourth-place finish in the BUCS league and a close loss 2-1 loss to Cambridge. However the team put in many impressive performances and came third in their Saturday league following their promotion to the South Premiership. Both the men’s Occasionals and Infrequents had very successful seasons. The Os, benefitting from the presence of an external coach, secured promotion to London Division 1, narrowly missing out on a first place finish. Furthermore, five years since their previous victory, they also managed to claim a Varsity win. Likewise the Is, who had a strong squad this year, also beat Cambridge at Varsity. Besides this, they also came second in their BUCS league and are looking to improve on this with sights set on a league win this coming season.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
30 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
The women’s Radicals had a difficult start to the season with the team finding it hard to capitalise on well-worked play to score goals. However the team continued to improve throughout the season and were later able to convert their good play into results, achieving a mid-placed finish in the Saturday league as well as a Varsity win. The Mavericks had a very successful season. While unlucky not to win Varsity, they had a particularly notable run of wins in their Saturday league, resulting in both promotion and a first-place finish. Off the field, the 120-member strong OUHC continues to become an ever more integrated and social club with high hopes for the coming season.
ICE HOCKEY This year saw excellent results for the women's Blues. They achieved their highest standing since joining the British Ice Hockey Association, Division 3, and they won their Varsity match. The women's Blues captain successfully requested from the Women's Blues Committee that ten Blues be awarded regardless of Varsity results. Previously only five were awarded in defeat. The men's Blues played their first season in Division 1, performing competitively to retain their place. The men's Blues successfully requested reinstatement of their Blues status from the Men's Blues Committee, so this is the first year that they awarded Blues since 2012. In Trinity 2015 the club began a new website designed by Melissa McCoy in the Said Business School. The project is scheduled for completion during Michaelmas 2015 with the URL www. oxforduniversityicehockey.com The Cambridge and Oxford Men's Blues' teams were able to play an official match in Cambridge for the first time since 2012. This should ensure that Varsity matches will continue to be played by both teams in the future.
@oxfordunisport
JITSU Oxford University Jitsu Club had a busy year with three regional gradings, two national competitions and the Varsity Match against Cambridge. The club saw a wide range of advancement with two higher grades taking a step closer to the black belt, and a record number of 15 white and eight yellow belts moving up to the next grade. We are immensely proud of all their efforts. In the national competitions, we have brought home two gold medals, a silver and two bronze making it one of our best performances as a club. It was a great experience for those who didn’t win medals as they got to test their mettle against some great fighters and put on a really good show. The Varsity Match in Cambridge saw a victory for Oxford in a very close and hard fought competition. That said, particular kudos goes
out to our new members, who despite being novices, stepped in and fought opponents vastly more experienced than themselves. Considering the tough competition, Oxford did a brilliant job to keep hold of the trophy for another year.
JUDO OUJC had a strong year and laid foundations for future success. The Men's A team extended their Varsity winning streak to keep the Matsudaira Cup in Oxford for a fifth consecutive year. Six of the seven judoka in this team were current or former internationals and the quality was undeniable. Our women's team were boosted by a strong intake, and we are working to build depth in the team. Two beginners, Sanna Ndj and Sarah Murray, bravely represented Oxford and put in performances of which they can be proud. Beyond Varsity, OUJC sent men's and women's teams to compete at the Paris Universities
I 31
competition, facing French, German and Spanish opponents. Both teams fought hard and each came back to Oxford with well-deserved third place trophies. Individual highlights from the year included Pete Miles winning the English Junior Open, taking silver at the English Senior Open, claiming a bronze at the British Senior Championships and winning BUCS. His fellow GB International, Will Johnson also recorded fantastic results, which included becoming British Senior Champion and winning silver at the English Senior Open. Finally, our outgoing men's captain, Vidar Benjamin Skretting, secured some fantastic results either side of a knee injury that ruled him out of BUCS and Varsity. He is currently the Norwegian and the Nordic Champion. Our less experienced members, including beginners, have also made a mark on the competitive scene. Most recently, at the BJC Nationals, every single Oxford competitor brought back a medal, making a total of 13. Similarly, at BUCS, both our experienced and less experienced judoka put in some fantastic individual performances to bring back a total of two gold medals and three bronze medals.
a view to building up a strong team that can reclaim the Varsity trophy.
OUJC continue to invest in OUR members to ensure success. Last year, the club supported three experienced judoka through the BJA Level One coaching award. This allowed them to promote club development by sharing their technical knowledge and by leading additional competitive sessions.
KARATE It was another busy, fun and successful year for Oxford University Karate Club. The men’s and women’s A teams and the mixed B team all performed very well in the Varsity event, but there were also some very impressive performances on Cambridge’s side. The women’s A team kumite was particularly closely contested and ended in a draw, but Cambridge claimed victory in the other events. We’re now all the more determined to bring the trophies back where they belong next year. Rachel Bell
Commitment to early morning fitness and gym sessions, and to training in general, has been remarkable, contributing to a cohesive and supportive atmosphere in the club. Beginner retention was particularly high and we aim to continue this trend. Next year, the focus will be on attracting more women to the club, with
There have also been many individual successes. Nicola O’Toole, Simon Chelley and Carlos Rios Ocampo all won medals at Japan Karate Association tournaments, an impressive feat considering the standard of the events, which often attract national squads from overseas. Carlos was selected for the JKA England squad, an achievement which recognised his talent and expertise. He competed in the JKA European Championships in Prague in March 2015. Other highlights of the OUKC calendar included BUCS and Cuppers, both held in Hilary Term. Cuppers was a fun event, notable for the diverse range of styles of karate performed by competitors.
KARATE DO SHOTOKAI The Club started off attracting a few new people
at the Freshers' Fair. Of them, two decided to stay and became members. An introductory course was also given at the University Club at the beginning of Hilary Term. A grading was held on with all participants passing successfully. The club also organised three visits to attend courses at Keele University, in Southampton and in Norwich. The club instructors, together with members, also gave a course in Bedford. Finally the club hosted a national course in Oxford.
KENDO Oxford Kendo Club showed an explosive increase in membership, a corresponding improvement in infrastructure, and continuing success in national competition and individual advancement. At the British Universities Taikai (Kendo Tournament), Oxford won both the men's open and women’s kyu (beginners) individual categories, as well as third place in the open teams. Our kyu team, the first entered by Oxford in many years, also performed admirably. Despite being edged out of the Varsity team match, Oxford won first and third place in both open and kyu Varsity individuals. The club additionally made a strong showing at the London Cup, the largest and most prestigious taikai in the UK. Our A team reached the quarter-finals and our captain Rick Collins took third place in the individual event. In addition to the competitive success, we have seen high levels of recognised personal improvement. An impressive number of members attained first kyu or higher at shinsa (kendo
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
32 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
gradings), including our instructor Yasuyuki Hiyama, who recently achieved seventh dan – the second-highest rank in kendo. The club had a stellar year, both in and out of practice. We look forward to continuing this success in the coming year. s
KICKBOXING
The year was an especially strong one for OUKbC as we managed to attract a large number of new members. This shows the continually growing recognition of the sport, and its benefits on fitness and discipline as well as being fun. Members of OUKbC competed in a number of events, including two local fight nights in Witney as well as our resounding success in Varsity. The centrepiece of the year, Varsity 2015, was held in Oxford, and was another incredibly close contest, in which the final deciding fight ended with Oxford coming out victorious in a well fought contest. We hope to repeat this victory next year in Cambridge. Aside from training, the club had a number of successful socials. We will continue to try to expand this side of the club, as well as creating an alumni list to inform past members about events and for fundraising purposes. We also plan to establish new competitions, perhaps with a couple of universities in London. The club would like to thank our coach Jan Treska for
@oxfordunisport
his extensive support and tireless hard work in both training and competitions.
K.O. KRAV The Oxford K.O. Krav Club had a successful year, with a record number of new students joining, and a record number grading for their colour belts. We carried out a self-defence seminar for an Oxford-based community group in May and built a new website for the club, which has increased our visibility around Oxford, and we hope will result in many new members over the coming months. Overall, the club are now firmly established in Oxford, and we hope that the increase in membership will allow us to broaden our activities and liaise with similar clubs in other universities.
KORFBALL The year saw Oxford University Korfball Club go from strength to strength. We had many new faces joining our ranks and new and exciting events such as a Town versus Gown match and summer tournaments were added to the schedule. At the BUCS regionals, the first team narrowly missed out on qualifying for the national championships, but still produced a valiant performance despite missing a couple of players and were seeded in their qualification for the BUCS national trophy. At Varsity, our success
was not reflected by the scorelines – the second team narrowly missed out on a victory and in the first team also lost. The BUCS competitions concluded in Hilary with the second team coming 14th in the national shield. The first team finished ninth it the national trophy and won five out of their six matches. Individually, Ally Glennie was awarded Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the BUCS national trophy – out of all of the players in the 16 teams. Elliot Sparling scooped MVP in the BUCS national shield. Both made the club incredibly proud! Furthermore, David Sinclair, president in 201314 and first team member for two years running, was awarded a high profile achievement award by Wolfson College for his outstanding contributions to the sport. Finally, we look forward to our inaugural Town versus Gown match coming up in May. In summary, 2014-15 was an exciting year in Oxford korfball and we hope next year will be equally as enjoyable and even more successful. We’ll work hard to win those Varsity trophies back.
LACROSSE The season was one of excitement and success across the board for OULC, culminating in the Varsity Matches held in Cambridge in March.
I 33
On the day, every Oxford player displayed tremendous drive and determination. While the women’s Blues lost to the Tabs, the Swifts came back from 2-7 down to win 8-7. Meanwhile, the men’s Blues won convincingly 13-10, and the Iroquois drew 12-12. Unfortunately, the mixed team lost their match, but felt they had developed significantly since the year before and are hoping to improve even more next season. Because the men's Iroquois had won the previous year, they walked away with the trophy again. This therefore meant Oxford triumphed overall with three wins. Aside from Varsity, this year was a huge success for OULC, but special mention must go to the men's squad. They came out on top in the BUCS South Premiership league, losing only one match, and they were undefeated in their SEMLA East 2 league, winning 14 games. Having a consistent second team helped the men's Blues go from strength to strength and develop their talent. The women's Blues finished fourth in the South Premiership, whilst the Swifts came second in Midlands 1A, just missing out on the top spot behind Cambridge.
the way we approach our tennis. Arguably, in recent years, OULTC had been so focused on the individual teams that we lost sight of the club’s tremendous potential and what it meant to us as a whole. Last year we tried to address this with unity, efficiency and passion. Thanks to a fantastic new sponsorship deal with Morgan Stanley, we were able to spend a far greater amount of time on court, particularly indoors in the winter. The results were staggering. The BUCS campaign saw the women’s Blues winning a three-way play-off, securing promotion to the Southern Premier League.
This was particularly sweet as they had toiled in Midlands 1A for the last few years, consistently missing out on promotion by an agonising margin. However, the highlight of the BUCS season had to be the men’s seconds completing a magnificent league and cup double. They secured promotion by topping the Midlands 2A division before defeating Birmingham first team in a thrilling shoot-out in the cup final. Moving onto Trinity Term and Varsity, creating history in this away year at Fenner’s was very much the theme. The men’s fourths, playing in their very first Varsity Match, secured a magnificent 7-2 victory. The women’s thirds played
We are now looking ahead to next season already and are in the early stages of planning the Oxford University Lacrosse Club's 100th Varsity Match next March, which we hope will be huge.
LAWN TENNIS Last year saw great change for OULTC; to our outlook, the way we manage the club and
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
Martha Maclaren
34 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
a two-day event for the first time, winning 13-8. Despite a solitary 14-7 loss in a fiercely competitive women’s seconds match, the men’s thirds and seconds were comfortable winners, 12-9 and 17-4 respectively. For the first time in Varsity history, the Blues’ match was held at the wonderful venue of Moor Park, where the teams were made to feel extremely welcome and enjoyed a great atmosphere. The women’s Blues bounced back from defeat the previous year in a tight affair, pulling away from 8-8 to win 13-8. The men’s Blues had an even greater uphill struggle, heading into the 2015 match on a nine-year losing streak. However, history was not to repeat itself as they sealed a 13-8 victory to ensure that both Oxford’s men’s and women’s Blues won in the same season for the first time in over 60 years! Winning six out of seven Varsity matches to go with our BUCS trophies was the perfect way to top off a great year.
LIFESAVING
LIGHTWEIGHT ROWING – MEN Highlights of the first term included Wallingford Head, where we were pleased to be within 0.1secs of winning the Intermediate 3 Eights and Trial Eights in late December, in which ‘Carpe Diem’ beat ‘YOLO’ in what was a hard fought run over the race course. Over New Year was our training camp in Soustons, where we put in ten days’ good work before returning to the UK for the start of Hilary Term. We selected our Blue boat at the end of January, before beginning a series of match races against top domestic club crews. We improved every race and our final match against the Tideway Scullers first VIII was an honours event - this was a crew, which came tenth at Head of the River. We also raced at Henley Fours and Eights Head where we were pleased to win Intermediate 2 Eights.
We saw a promising growth in membership, with the size of the club more than doubling. We also saw more participation in competitions, with Oxford being able to field two teams at the Varsity match.
We then competed at the Heineken Roevierkamp in Amsterdam and stayed for a short camp in Tilburg, before returning to the UK. Conditions were tricky for most of the final week, but by race day we were satisfied with our preparation.
Disappointingly, Cambridge won in an incredibly closely fought competition. There was also a large growth in interest in BULSCA league competitions, and we've shown some promising form in the speed events at the league competitions we did manage to get to. All in all, it was a good year for the club, and the future is very promising for coming seasons.
The Lightweight Men’s Boat Race on Easter Sunday was exceptionally close, going down to the last few strokes, with a dramatic blade clash across the line. Devastatingly for us Cambridge were given a verdict of four feet.
@oxfordunisport
Following the Henley Boat Races, we competed at the BUCS regatta – the highlight for Nephthys. Despite being disappointed not to win
a medal, we came within a quarter of a length of Imperial for the bronze in the Eights and gained a series of fourth and fifth places, which was a good standard to build on for next year. Sitting here with another Boat Race loss for the club is pretty gutting to say the least. Had we been but five feet quicker in that contest and one quarter of a length faster at BUCS, we would have had two significant results to define our season. However, we are confident we moved in the right direction last year and we look forward to the next where Alec Trigger will be taking the reins.
LIGHTWEIGHT ROWING – WOMEN OUWLRC began the season as European University champions after the lightweight quad’s success in Rotterdam the previous summer. In Michaelmas Term, we started with 30+ athletes and the club won multiple regional races at the Upper Thames and Bristol Autumn Head. We also performed well on the national scene at the British Championships and Scullers Head. For the first time in many years we sent two athletes to the GB rowing team trials. After Christmas 19 athletes and three coxes were invited to a ten-day training camp in Coimbra, Portugal, where seat racing for the Blue boat and Tethys began in earnest. After selection, the Blue boat competed favourably in match fixtures against some of the top Eights in the country such as Molesey (who came sixth at the Women's Head of the River, WeHoRR) and Headington (14th at WeHoRR). We
I 35
also undertook a mini training camp at Wimbleball in preparation for the Henley Boat Races.
women’s competition. In the team event, OUMPA took second place behind Cambridge.
Tethys, our second eight, raced at Reading and Hammersmith Head in preparation for WeHoRR and an inaugural fixture with Oxford Brookes on the Henley reach.
After the success at BUCS and the disappointment of the previous year, the 2015 Varsity Match was hotly anticipated as Oxford sought to avenge defeat in the team events. Both the men and women’s competitions started well with fantastic fencing rounds and that dictated the atmosphere and ultimately the points for strong team competitions.
Cambridge fielded a very strong Blue boat, with multiple returners, whose experience helped them to an agonizing, but well deserved three-foot victory, in one of the closest and most exciting races in the lightweight boat race history. After a devastating defeat the Blue goat used the invaluable racing experience and regrouped four weeks later to win the gold medal in the British University Championships, beating Cambridge by three seconds in the final in a memorable victory. The club followed this up with two silver medals in the championship lightweight four and quad, and looked to have qualified for the European University Games again.
MODERN PENTATHLON The season started well with victories in both the men’s and women’s Novice Varsity Matches hosted in Oxford. This success continued with Alex Fraser and Dani Chattenton winning the 2015 BUCS Modern Pentathlon individual titles, with Katie Hickson securing third spot in the
After a year of intensive riding training, Kouji Urata pulled it out of the bag on the day and took the title of best ride. Going into the combined event both the men’s and women’s teams had very strong leads and Oxford looked to regain their titles. The men’s combined event was narrowly lost by Hugo Fleming, but solid running from captain Simon Mousdale, president Toby Ryan and treasurer Dan Fox saw the men’s title recaptured in style. In the men’s individual competition Alex was extremely unlucky as he narrowly beaten to second place - one fencing bout would have moved him into first. Katie ran her way into first place and retained the women’s individual title for the second year. The girls cruised in to take the women’s match for the first time in four years. The reserves team matches were also won by Oxford.
This was a fantastically social year for the club with social secretaries Vicky Rees and Alex Robertson performing above and beyond. The club are in a great position to continue the sporting success and spirit that was achieved last year.
MOTOR SPORT The 2014/15 season has been a prosperous one for OUMDC, as once again our primary focus was to compete in the increasingly competitive British Universities Karting Championship (BUKC). After much improvement the previous year, the A team took one step further and secured a raft of podium finishes, including several wins. Callum Hughes drove exceptionally well throughout the year, finishing 2nd no less than 4 times, before finally landing the victory he so thoroughly deserved. The B team also put in some solid performances, and the C team gained valuable experience competing in the Rookie Championship, which will no doubt help those drivers to move up the ranks in future years. Aside from the BUKC, the club has run a number of events during the year. At the start of term, we had trials for the university teams, and midway through Michaelmas was our annual Fresher’s karting event, put on with the aim of introducing new people to the club and those that run it. It took the form of a 2hr endurance race in teams of 4, at the indoor track in Aylesbury, and whilst we saw a slight dip in popularity this year, we will be advertising the event much earlier next time, to ensure we get back to previous levels of interest. Then, during Hilary, was the all important cuppers event, which was also a 2hr team endurance race. After narrowly losing out the previous year to Balliol, St. Edmund Hall came back hungry for revenge, along with 13 other teams that made up a competitive field. However, after a costly error from St. Edmund Hall, Balliol took the title for the 2nd year in what looks to be a long run of cuppers domination for them. Varsity was unfortunately not as fruitful as the previous year, and we suffered a fairly convincing defeat to Cambridge. The event was held at Buckmore Park in Kent, in the same Club100 karts that we use in the BUKC. Despite one of our drivers winning the race, we were missing several important members of the team and therefore lacked the strength in depth that we needed. It was a very disappointing result, and one that we will be keen to rectify next year.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
36 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
Overall though, a hugely successful year for the club, in which we produced by far the best results we have ever had in the BUKC.
MOUNTAINEERING OUMC remained one of the largest and most active mountaineering clubs in the country, now with around 300 members. The staple of the club’s year is, of course, the weekend meets to crags around the UK during term time. As always, the freshers’ meets were extremely busy. Over the first three weekends of Michaelmas Term, almost 40 aspiring mountaineers headed out to the Peak District and Portland for their first taste of British rockclimbing. The rest of the year followed in much the same manner with almost all of the meets being very well attended. Due to the introduction of two dedicated gear, courses and competition secretaries, we were able to run more courses than ever before. We continued to run the previously popular courses such as the navigation and mountain skills, ropework and Advance Mountain First Aid 1 (AMFA1). We also introduced a climbing technique workshop as well as a more in depth first aid course (AMFA2). Club members entered a number of competitions, the highlight of which was our bouldering competition at Iffley with almost 30 participants. In BUCS we faced a large number of more indoor-orientated clubs and placed around the middle of the field for both men’s and women’s teams. The women’s Varsity competition was extremely close, with Oxford missing out on victory by only one point. Congratulations to Sabine Richert, who gained the top individual score. The year saw a resurgence in the hosting of mountaineering talks. In Michaelmas, Kenton Cool, the British record holder for the most ascents of Everest, and Neil Gresham, one of
the UK’s top sport climbers, both gave lectures raising money for Paldorje Education Fund, a Nepali children’s charity. In Hillary an OUMC alumnus, Steven Venables, the first British person to summit Everest without supplementary oxygen, gave a talk in aid of mountain rescue. In Trinity the club hosted an expeditionplanning seminar, in aid of the DEC Nepal Earthquake Appeal, giving members valuable advice about going on expeditions overseas. This year we aim to continue our success in encouraging new members to the sport, training them to become proficient climbers, while maintaining OUMC as a platform for world leading mountaineering achievements.
NETBALL OUNC continued to go from strength to strength. We were fortunate enough to keep our fantastic coach Tricia Kilzynski, alongside occasional coaching sessions from Tash Watson and Alice Moger. We were also able to appoint a strength and conditioning coach, Sean Morris, for the season - we now pride ourselves on our onelegged squats! For the first time ever, OUNC introduced a third team, the Emus, who played in the Oxfordshire Netball League. This was a fantastic development for the club, as it is important that players are able to progress from college level netball into the university squad. OUNC plans to keep the Emus for the 2015-16 season. Our second team, the Roos, despite being made up largely of new members following trials at the beginning of Michaelmas, maintained a strong hold in Midlands 3, losing to only two teams all season, and beating the other universities in their division comfortably. The Blues, relegated from Midlands 1 the previous year despite a very strong fight, took Midlands 2 by storm and won promotion back at the first attempt.
Of course, for any Oxford sports team, the season culminates in the annual Varsity match. Last year saw an away Varsity as we faced Cambridge, who undoubtedly had a much stronger side than in previous years. Their home advantage, combined with clear hard work to improve their standard, led to an overall loss for OUNC. This did not deter us, however, and the following week, the Blues faced the Cambridge Blues in the semi-final of the BUCS Midlands Conference Cup. It gave us great pleasure to record a Dark Blue win. This was perhaps the most memorable match of the season - every goal mattered and both teams were determined until the very end. The Blues then went on to win the final, beating Birmingham at the end of Hilary Term. Although Varsity will always be seen as the ultimate competition in Oxbridge sport, an achievement like this is arguably more impressive as it requires a consistently high standard and successive victories over the whole season.
OCTOPUSH Oxford University Octopush Club (OUOC) had one of their most successful years in recent history. The club faced a tremendous challenge due to the closure of their home training pool, dire financial situation and a rapidly dwindling membership base. However, thanks to work by the current committee, the Sports Federation, and in particular Charlotte Louise-Harris, the fortunes of the club were completely reversed. Membership was boosted to over 30 members, and for the first time in recent memory the club now have a strong female backbone that has brought depth and a different skill set to our game. This allowed us to send two teams into the national competitions, making us one of the biggest student sides in the country. The club successfully transitioned back into the University of Oxford Sports centre and now boasts at least one session a week. This stability allowed us to invest heavily in the club and we now have a reasonable supply of equipment and kit. In terms of results, the OUOC novice team won the Kraken Winter tournament and OUOC came seventh in the country. Looking forwards, Cuppers is planned for the first time in the club’s history and plans are also afoot to try and organise the inaugural Varsity Match with a long-term aspiration to raise the club to Half Blue status.
ORIENTEERING Oxford's men set a Varsity Match record of eight consecutive victories, with a comfortable win over Cambridge in the Lake District at the end of March. Aidan Smith was the standout performer, taking the individual title by over three minutes in an Oxford one-two. The women struggled due to the unfortunate absence of some key runners,
@oxfordunisport
I 37
but strong performances from a number of new recruits holds promise for the future. BUCS was held in Edinburgh, and the long minibus journey hampered our efforts to field a full-strength team. Despite not having a full set of counting runners, the women who did travel ran excellently to finish ninth out of 24 universities – beating many full teams. The men, led by individual bronze medallist Jamie Parkinson, were more successful and ultimately finished third behind the Orienteering powerhouses of Edinburgh and Sheffield, pulling Oxford up to fifth place overall. Away from the major races it was a strong year for the club. Attendance at weekly races and training was good, whilst individually club members were crowned British junior champions and Southern senior champions, amongst other honours.
PISTOL It was a really good year for OUPC. Cuppers last Trinity was a great success with more than 80 non-experienced shooters across 20 colleges involved. The number of people showing interest in pistol shooting is increasing rapidly. Our training regime continued to be very successful. New members agree to a relatively high level of commitment from the start of their time in the club, giving them the best possible chance of being of a good enough standard by the time of the Varsity Match. We won all three smallbore matches against Cambridge with teams comprised of freshers. Our fullbore shooting, though less successful, is continuing to improve, and at the Imperial meeting we stood a good chance of winning a number of the inter-university competitions including the fullbore Varsity Match.
POLO Oxford University Polo Club enjoyed a very successful and popular year. Thanks to hard work by the committee, our membership more than doubled and we now have over 70 active members, who attend lessons mostly on a weekly basis. The club took part in 25 fixtures, including the Winter Nationals. The crowning glory for the club this year was an emphatic victory against the Tabs at our Varsity Match on June 7. In the summer term our first team beat the Army at Sandhurst and also defeated Kirtlington Polo Club. Cuppers was held by popular demand each term with up to eight colleges fielding teams at each. The social side of the club was also exceptionally well supported and we held the inaugural White Tie Polo Club Ball at Blenheim Palace in Hilary. This sold out in 48 hours and was attended by 180 guests. After the overwhelmingly positive reception this year we
look forward to this becoming an annual fixture. Our team headed off to China to contest the Metropolitan Intervarsity Polo Tournament in July where they competed against Harvard, Yale, Stanford, London and Cambridge.
POOL & SNOOKER The closure of our weekly practice venue at the start of the year was a major setback before term had started, however this season still proved a particularly successful one for the club. At the end of Michaelmas Term we entered two teams into the Southern England Universities Pool Championships where our first team beat Southampton in the final and the second team lost in the last 16 to the defending champions. A strong show in the individual competition made us the most successful club at the tournament. We also entered another regional competition in which the second team came second in the plate event and the first team finished third. Adam Smith, OUPSC captain, was the runner-up of the singles event here.
In Hilary, we convincingly won in the first snooker Varsity since 2003 and matched our bronze medal in BUCS snooker from last year. BUCS pool was another successful competition. The first team lost in the championship quarterfinals to the eventual winners and the second and third teams performed well in tough groups. A strong performance in the individual competition from players in all three teams rounded off a strong week in Great Yarmouth. As we moved into Trinity Term we had Varsity in our sights. We went in as favourites and managed to live up to this as we ran out 52-38 winners in Cambridge. At the end of the year we had to say goodbye to a number of key members and have some big shoes to fill. Fortunately we picked up a few very promising players who will play a huge part in the club next year.
POWERLIFTING OUPLC enjoyed another bumper year, as membership grew considerably and wider publicity gave the club a more prominent profile within Oxford sport. A big change to the training
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
38 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
Despite the disruption to smallbore, the fullbore side of the club remained strong. The fullbore taster day on March 1 was a great success with 14 novices shooting. There was an excellent turnout of 18 members at the annual fullbore training week over Easter. Twelve shooters attended the Imperial Meeting - consisting of individual target rifle competitions - at Bisley in July, including ten for the Hopton - individual match rifle competitions. The MR Varsity saw two new shots representing OURC. OURC shot valiantly, but the more experienced CURA team took victory with 831.71v to OURC’s 772.33v.
schedule was the hiring out of Magdalen College School gym on Sunday evenings, which enabled us to cater for a much larger group of lifters and helped promote a cohesive team atmosphere. Many of the new lifters gained the opportunity to train with the more experienced members of the club. The club also saw a large increase in female participation, benefitting from the wider trend of more women getting involved in weight training. A highlight of this was the 'Lift Like a Girl' video, devised by our women's captain Abi Willet, which was viewed more than 60,000 times. The video featured women from OUPLC talking about why they love lifting and tied in with the 'Like a Girl' campaign that has swept across social media recently. Our two main competitions were the University Championships and the Varsity Match, both held at the new Cambridge sports centre. Unfortunately for us, Cambridge continued their recent form of exceptional lifting, with three of their lifters posting scores of over 400 Wilks. Despite having one of the strongest teams in recent years, OUPLC were unable to match them. Highlights from the Oxford team were Atamli Ahmad and David Jia scoring 382 and 380 Wilks respectively to earn their Full Blues and Florence Walton posting 341 Wilks to become the first female lifter from OUPLC to earn her Half Blue. Further Half Blues were earned by Morio Hamada, Jamie Vickers, Andrew Choi and Jonathan Turner, all scoring over 340 Wilks. With many lifters still at Oxford, we look to build on this performance and really bring it to Cambridge in 2016.
REAL TENNIS A challenging year for both men and women. Only one man and one woman remained from the 2013-14 teams. Recruiting new members is always difficult as so few students play the game before coming up. Cambridge had a significant advantage in handicaps in both men’s and Womens teams. Regretfully we lost all matches in both first and second team matches. Overall recruitment was slim in number and all new recruits will require significant coaching if they are to obtain reasonable handicaps.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
RIDING This year was a successful one for OURC. October saw the launch of the new Varsity horseracing event, which took place at Newmarket racecourse. With over 10,000 spectators and Channel 4 covering the race, pressure was on our team, who only took up horse racing some three months before. The girls put in outstanding performances on the day, suffering a narrow defeat to Cambridge. Luck was not on our side, as sadly Cambridge drew the two fastest horses, which came home first and second. We also ran two teams in the BUCS league, competing in dressage and showjumping. Both teams put in some sterling performances throughout the year, narrowly missing out on regional qualification. A special mention must go to Katie Paul, who in her first year at Oxford, qualified for the individual regionals,, securing her Half Blue. Both the first and second team suffered narrow Varsity defeats against a very strong Cambridge, but assured we will be back fighting this year. Cuppers was once again popular, with St Catherine’s coming out victorious. The club again provided weekly lessons for OURC members at Hall Place Equestrian Centre and we were treated to cocktails socials, hosted by our men's rep Neil Sanghvi at St Hilda’s.
RIFLE OURC are no stranger to the adversity of losing a smallbore range. Indeed, last year was the first time that the club had no members remaining from their previous move. With the closure of our range in January, we were now back to our nomadic roots. Our smallbore Varsity results were very strong given the team hadn't had many chances to practice in Hilary. OURCs’ Helsop team scored 1473 to CUSBCs’ 1521, Andy Brooker and Henry Lee leading the side with 191 each. The OURC ladies’ team scored 687 to CUSBCs’ 746.
The day for the TR Varsity then came. The shooting at 300x was superb on both sides. After the first distance there were only a few points separating the teams. However, as they fell back to 500x and 600x the gap grew and CURA emerged victorious with 1148.102v to 1096.83v.
RUGBY - MEN Season 2014/15 saw records set, changes aplenty and challenges met head on – just another year in the history of OURFC. On the field The Men’s Blues created yet another piece of history at Twickenham in December 2014 when they won a fifth consecutive Varsity Match by a record 43 points to 6 score, and in the process narrowed the overall gap to just three behind Cambridge in the 133 matches played to date. The challenge now is to do what neither club has ever done before, make it six in a row! In the other men’s Varsity matches, the Greyhounds unfortunately lost for the second year in a row to a strong LX Club at Grange Road, but the Under 21’s and Whippets enjoyed outstanding results with an aggregate 90 points to 22 success over their respective Cambridge opponents. A fantastic to way to bring the curtain down on 26 years of U21’s rugby at the two clubs. The Colleges XV also lost their to a strong Cambridge side at Iffley Road at the end of November. At the end of Hilary Term the Women’s Blues travelled to Cambridge having had a somewhat disrupted
I 39
season, with their original coaching walking out halfway through Michaelmas Term. Fortunately members of the men’s teams stepped up to take on the coaching so the women arrived at Grange Road in good heart. However, a well-coached and strong Cambridge Blues side proved far too strong for the Oxford side and ran out 47 point to nil winners. The Panthers however did another comprehensive demolition job on the Tigers, with a 25 points to 7 win, to make it three in a row. The big news of early 2015 was the decision to take the Women’s Varsity Match to Twickenham in December, to replace the U21’s match as the curtain raiser to the Varsity Match. In a year when the Women’s Boat Race took to the Tideway and a year after the England Women’s team lifted the Rugby World Cup, this is a another huge step forward for women’s sport and a big statement by Oxford University for sporting equality. Alongside this move, was the decision of the women’s club to merge with OURFC to for ‘One’ club, which will further help to raise the profile and standard of women’s rugby across the university and the two sections are now working hard on the integration process. Alongside these changes the men’s section took the opportunity to review its own team structures and for the 2015/15 season will run a 1st, 2nd and 3rd team structure with no age restrictions on the teams, but also run an U20’s programme in Hilary Term as an ‘academy’ team to help develop and integrate our younger places into the full OURFC team structure. As such for next season OURFC will run the following teams: Men’s Blues, Women’s Blues, Greyhounds (Men’s 2nd XV), Panthers (Women’s 2nd XV), Whippets (Men’s 3rd XV) and Men’s U20’s. There will be a full review of this structure in April 2016 and changes made if necessary or where appropriate for season 2016/17. Coaching Once again the OURFC men’s coaching team did an outstanding job in not only preparing the players for their respective Varsity Matches but also looking to the future development of each individual. Fortunately James Wade will be continuing to head-up the coaching structure in 2015/16 as OURFC continues to develop a
culture which allows all players to maximize their potential whilst at Oxford. In 2014/15 we were once again fortunate enough to have the likes of Charlie Hodgson (kicking & attack), Kernan Myall (line-out), Wayne Thompson (scrum) and Tom Varndell (attack) on hand to assist with the regular coaching team and the results of their work were there for all to see in December. Lynn Evans and his team delivered fantastic results with the age group squads – as seen by their total dominance of their Cambridge counterparts at Varsity. Whilst the women, had a difficult season with coaching in 2014/15, the positive news for 2015/16 is that they have appointed the highly successful former England women’s coach Gary Street to head up their coaching team, he will be assisted by Ali Mortimore who has been involved with Henley for many years and Oakley Cox. Representative Honours Juggling academic and OURFC rugby commitments is a tough combination, but George Messum, Lewis Anderson and Nick Gardner all managed this successfully when they were called up to represent England Students with Ian Williams doing the same of Wales in Hilary Term. George played in the England fixtures against Portugal and Wales, Nick against France and Wales, unfortunately Lewis was unable to play due to a shoulder injury and Ina played against his two Oxford teammates in the Wales v England fixture. Four times Blues and now an integral part of OURFC history, Sam Egerton, joined up with Yorkshire Carnegie in January and played nine matches scoring seven tries before signing an 18 month contract with England 7’s taking him up to and beyond Rio 2016. He joins another former Blue Tom Mitchell in the representative squad and we wish them both all the best for the 2015/16 IRB 7’s series and the hopefully the Olympics in the summer of 2016. In June Gus Jones left OURFC after three highly successful years to sign with London Welsh, yet again demonstrating that choosing university over an academy contract at the age of 18, is not necessarily the end of ones rugby career aspirations. Proving that playing college rugby at Oxford can also be a pathway to representative honours, was St Catherine’s student Marshall MacLeod who was called up by Scotland for their National Mixed Touch Rugby training camp. His skills at this version of the game were very much in evidence at the Annual OURFU Mixed Touch Competition in June. We wish him all the best and look forward to hearing more of his progress. Of the field Whilst continuity was the name of the game in 2014/15, unfortunately looking ahead there will be some changes forced upon the club as it looks to establish a position of financial stability for the future. In September 2015 a change to the office structure will see Assistant Administrator Sally Wright leaving the club after almost ten years as the welcoming face of OURFC and we thank
her for commitment and hard work during that period and wish her all the best for the future. Club stalwart Sean Morris moved on from his position as RDO in March 2015, having signed a professional rugby league contract with London Broncos in November; again we wish Sean all the best for the future and hope he can forge a successful career in the ‘other’ code! Fortunately we have managed to replace Sean with Joe Winpenny as RDO, and in the two months Joe has been with us he has shown enough to suggest he will also create his own chapter in OURFC history. The pitch and grounds continued to be maintained and nurtured by our groundsman Carl ‘Buddha’ Wright, and despite the club having to cut costs we hope to continue unchanged for next season. John Carter slipped seamlessly from the role of captain to Director of Operations and has been of enormous support and help as together we have faced up the challenges the club faces both now and moving forward. The experience and passion for OURFC he brings are unquestioned and he can help to take the club forward and create a sustainable business for the future security of the club. The committee have continued to work tirelessly behind the scenes and we are indebted to the support they give to everyone involved in OURFC.
RUGBY - WOMEN Season 2014/15 was one of mixed success on the pitch. The Blues finished 5th in the BUCS South Premiership, therefore finishing in the top 16 university teams in the country. They unfortunately lost their Varsity Match to a strong and experienced Cambridge team, 47-0. The Panthers, however, were able to continue their winning streak and secured a 26-5 win over the Cambridge Tigers. With many Blues leaving at the end of last season, the focus for the 2014/15 preseason was the recruitment of new players. This proved successful and at Varsity we were able to field two completely separate squads of 22 for the first time in many years. The season got off to a difficult start as we lost our Head Coach following our first BUCS match. However, the squad continued to commit to all aspects of training and we were able to minimize any disruption to our BUCS season and Varsity preparations. By the beginning of Hilary Term we had a new coaching team in place, with Will Boardman as head coach, Fergus Taylor as forwards coach and Oakley Cox as our Panthers coach, who aided us in maintaining our place in the BUCS Premiership for the coming season. The big news at the start of 2015 was the move to Twickenham in December for our Varsity Match and the decision to merge the club into OURFC which is continuing apace as we write this report. By this time next year we hope to be fully integrated into OURFC with a ‘one club’ policy and attitude. The move to Twickenham this year has meant we have restructured our season; we will now train for three terms each year, starting in Trinity. Over Easter we put in place a new coaching team of former England Women’s World Cup winning
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
40 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
is encouraging, though, that we had a larger permanent intake than previously, with good numbers returning to train for the year after these sessions. We also enjoyed a good year for gradings, with seven successful candidates out of seven and more scheduled. Further, these successes were earned by a variety of club members, from the more experienced kenshi to those who took their first grading.
coach, Gary Street, Henley Hawks Women’s coach, Ali Mortimore, and our returning Panther’s coach Oakley Cox. The term started with a large recruitment drive, which has brought over 30 new players to the club. The focus was on building the core rugby skills amongst this group of new players and developing the skills of our returning players. We clearly identified our weaknesses following the Varsity defeat in March and have begun working on these specific areas in anticipation for December. We would like to thank OURFC for their continued support, and we look forward to working together more closely given the merger of the two clubs. We are hugely enthusiastic for the coming season and our Twickenham debut.
RUGBY FIVES Having lost our top four players at the end of the previous season, the year began with a vigorous recruitment drive and an intense training regime. As a result, the club had the largest membership seen for some time, and the ladies' side grew to be a significant part of the club. After a slow start to the season's competition at the West of England Championships and National Singles Qualifiers, results started turning in Oxford’s favour. The Oxford partnership of Matt Hale and Ollie Sale won the doubles plate at the British Universities and Student Fives Championships – beating another Oxford pair in the final. Thomas Hoskins also went on to win the doubles plate at the under 25s in Oundle, with his partner Tom Watkinson, on loan from Winchester College. Other highlights included very close fixtures against Oxford Past at the annual Past versus Present match, a narrow win against an up and coming Winchester side, and the start of a new Winchester Fives fixture against Cambridge. Oxford faced an exceptional Cambridge team at the Rugby Fives Varsity Match, suffering a heavy defeat. However, the first ever ladies’ Varsity fixture was a very different affair, with Oxford thrashing the Cambridge side 60-2. Hopefully this will be the first of many ladies’ fixtures at the Varsity Match, with many more closely contested matches to come.
@oxfordunisport
RUGBY LEAGUE It was very much a season of two halves for the Blues, who competed at the highest level of the student game in Premier South. Despite defeats at the hands of student rugby league giants Loughborough and Gloucestershire All Golds, the Blues learnt a lot in a busy Michaelmas Term under the watchful eye of head coach Dan Garbutt. A number of injuries to key personnel mean that we developed considerable strength in depth. The success that our second team, the Maroons, enjoyed is testament to that. The Blues defeated Nottingham Trent in a tight game, playing some good rugby league in the process despite a number of injuries. They also put in a great effort in a close defeat to eventual league runners-up Gloucestershire, getting narrowly beaten at the end of the game. The hard work that the lads put in with our strength and conditioning coach Matt Queralt was evident in these matches. The Blues played Varsity on March 6 at the prestigious HAC in London. With excellent weather and a strong crowd, the Blues had a good chance of maintaining the series lead. A strong defence, despite some poor discipline, meant the team were able to hold Cambridge to nil - the third time in four years. A strong attack, good support and weather that suited their game meant the Blues were able to score 42 points, a fantastic achievement that is a testament to the work the lads put in. Credit must also go to the stewardship of Garbutt who propelled Oxford to their first series lead since the early 80s. The great work of John Hobart as assistant coach did not go unnoticed either. The assistance of Matt Queralt in the gym during the early morning sessions and Gemma Queralt’s physiotherapy were crucial in contributing to the victory. The women’s team, who play in Trinity each year, continued to grow in strength last season. The club look forward to another successful season as we approach our 40th anniversary in 2016.
SHORINJI KEMPO Oxford University Shorinji Kempo enjoyed a good year, which began with the Freshers’ Fair. As always, a large number of people signed up, and many of them came to one of the introductory sessions the club runs. It
OUSK attended several seminars throughout the year in various parts of the country. We attended the National Student Seminar, which ran for a weekend in Durham, as well as two trips to Southampton. We also hosted a seminar in April, which ran all day in the sports hall at Iffley Road. It was a well-attended event and widely enjoyed by everyone there. Overall, the club are running smoothly and we all look forward to more of the same this year.
SKI AND SNOWBOARD OUSSC had a challenging year, largely due to snow conditions. In early September, the season started with the annual summer training camp to Saas-Fee on a high altitude glacier in the Swiss Alps. Meanwhile the freestyle team travelled to Tignes where they were able to push themselves on their in-air tricks, making use of the soft, forgiving summer snow to land on. The summer training was very beneficial for the freestyle athletes, who had their first interuniversity competition of the year (BUDS) early on in Michaelmas Term. Tim Beevan came 19th in slope style out of a pool of 150 male skiers. Michaelmas Term culminated in a disappointing Varsity trip. All racing events were moved up 1000 vertical metres to allow for very thin snow coverage at Tignes and unfortunately, there was insufficient snow to build the freestyle course. The heavier Cambridge racers were able to capitalise on the flat sections of the course, maintaining speed. However, incoming men's captain Alex Jelicic raced exceptionally, securing the secondfastest overall alpine racer position. The women's Blues came very close to victory, but suffered for similar reasons. The freestyle side really picked up in terms of the depth of the squad, the number of participants and the quality of the athletes. After negotiations with our Cambridge counterpart, a date was set for the first indoor Varsity competition where the snowboarders and women came out on top. The freestylers and racers came together for the British University Ski Championships to end the season on a high, getting to the quarter-finals in the dual slalom. Special congratulations were due to Alex Hickey who came third nationally in the Big Air and tenth on the Rails - what a way to end his time with OUSSC.
I 41
SQUASH 2014-15 was an exciting for season for OUSRC on a number of the fronts. The men's Blues arguably had one of their most successful seasons in the club's recent history, narrowly missing out on the Midlands 1A title by two points and promotion to the BUCS Premier in a play-off against Nottingham after a storming season. The women's Blues were seeking to return to BUCS Premier at the first time of asking, and finished third after a hard-fought season. The women reached the semi-finals of the BUCS trophy competition. A mixed Blues group toured to New York and Boston in January 2015, braving the snowstorms to face Harvard, Brown and a number of racquet clubs as preparation ahead of Varsity. The 84th Varsity Match, held at the RAC, saw the men reclaim the trophy with a gripping 3-2 victory. It is worth mentioning that No.1 Nelson Fung graduated in 2015 with eight Blues. The women failed to retain the silverware, which returned to Cambridge after a long period of Dark Blue dominance. The men's seconds (Squirrels) had a consistent season, with a respectable mid-table league finish and improvement on last year's Varsity result. The women's seconds (Ferrets) were boosted by a larger squad and the highlight of the season was an emphatic Varsity victory on Cambridge turf. The teams benefited from high quality coaching by Ben Rosec, a trip to Millfield School, and weekly mixed team strength and conditioning sessions, along with friendly fixtures with the Jesters, Escorts and RAC. The club developed a considerable amount over the year too. Membership was at its highest levels with over 100 on the books. There were also thriving
ladder and box league competitions. The "Big Hit" scheme provided professional coaching for beginners, whilst the Blues continued to offer weekly coaching for non-squad, recreational players. OUSRC recently received Bronze Clubmark status by ES&R, whilst the Iffley courts are (finally!) receiving some refurbishment work. Overall, it was an incredibly busy and promising season for the club and we would look to continually improve our operations and team performances going forward. The club was lucky to benefit from continued access to coaching for our Blues teams from Jonah Barrington (six times British Open champion between 1967 and 1973, and former director of the national governing body, the Squash Rackets Association) and Ian Thomas at Millfield School, where they made three weekend trips to receive gruelling fitness and racquet skill training. Next year we hope to further this relationship, and continue the success of our women, along with bouncing back strongly in the men’s Varsity Matches!
SULKIDO O.U. Sul Ki Do had another successful year. Wojciech Spyt achieved the rank of first Dan black belt, gaining his first instructor level qualification. In addition, Cyrille Thinnes achieved the rank of deputy black belt (assistant instructor). From January 2015, monthly instructor seminars were held in London. These sessions are open to any instructor and senior student (red belt and above) and are run by master black belts. These sessions are intensive and focused, and
the benefits the senior members receive from the extra training trickles down through to the most junior students, leading to a higher quality and more consistent learning experience within the club.
SURF 2014-15 saw OUSC grow by leaps and strides, gaining the interest of hundreds of potential new members at the 2014 Freshers' Fair. The surf club calendar for Michaelmas was awash with social events culminating in a huge fourth week trip to Newquay with a group of 21 members. Trinity brought warmer weather and with it another trip which looked to be just as popular, offering salvation to Oxford's landlocked surfers. Last year the club focused on teaching beginners and introducing the sport to as many people as possible, a goal, which we comfortably surpassed. Hilary Term saw nine members flew off to Morocco for the club's first abroad trip since 2007, staying in the centre of the historic capital city of Rabat. We were accommodated and received tuition from Abdel El Harim the current Moroccan and African surfing champion. The committee contributed enormously to the ongoing success and expansion of the club, which is in a strong position moving in to this year.
SWIMMING OUSC had a fantastic season, both maintaining and building upon the successes of the previous years. The highlight the year was undoubtedly beating Cambridge at an away Varsity for the fourth year in a row by a near-record margin.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
42 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
The season began successfully; returning from the summer holidays having witnessed Matthew Courtis and James Jurkiewicz competing in multiple events for Barbados and Guernsey respectively at the Commonwealth Games. After a strong intake of freshers in Michaelmas, particularly on the men’s side with a former Olympian and Commonwealth medallist joining the team, hard training resumed under the coaching of Rebecca Achieng Bushell – also a former international level athlete. The key achievements during this term were qualifying in the southern regional round for the BUCS national team final. We also had some strong performances at the BUCS Individual Short Course Championships, with national top-20 finishes from Holly Winfield, Naomi Vides, Matthew Courtis and both the men’s and women’s relay teams – particularly the women’s medley relay side who achieved a second place in the B final. After a week’s intensive training camp in Torremolinos, Spain in early January, OUSC continued to thrive at the Southampton Open meet, with the majority of the team coming away with a handful of medals and promising times in preparation for Varsity selection. A small number of swimmers also attended BUCS Long Course Championships just a week before Varsity. Again there were some positive performances, with a number of freshers securing Blues times before Varsity. Varsity, being the focus of the season, was again a monumental success for the Dark Blues in Cambridge. There were strong performances all round, with many members achieving lifetime bests. Heerden Herman was awarded swimmer of the meet for his excellent performances in the men’s 200m and 400m freestyle, and men’s captain Xander Alari Williams impressed with a new 100m breaststroke record. OUSC continued their success into the final weeks of Hilary Term, with a select group attending the BUCS national team finals in Sheffield. We were delighted to equal the previous year’s position, achieving seventh place nationally against the strongest universities in the country. Overall, OUSC had another exceptional year, which we hope to continue in the years to come.
TABLE TENNIS OUTTC had another successful year, attracting players ranging in experience from total beginners to former professionals. The men's and women's teams competed well in BUCS fixtures, with the men producing solid results to maintain their position in the Midlands 2B division. Many of the men's team are full time DPhil students, meaning that navigating academic commitments to field the strongest team each match can be a challenge, but with the growing strength and
@oxfordunisport
depth of the squad promotion, could be on the cards this season. There were no returning women's players at the start of the year, but the new quartet fought a tough BUCS campaign and were unlucky to be relegated faced with extremely tough opposition. In the Varsity Match, the men's firsts recorded individual wins for the first time since 2010, but unfortunately lost the fixture 7-3. The women's first team gained a foothold, winning sets in multiple contests, but were beaten 10-0 by a very strong Cambridge side. The men's second team drew 5-5 in a tough and gritty performance, and came within two points of victory - fine margins indeed! The traditional Town versus Gown fixture did not take place last year, but we retain a strong relationship with the district association and will re-start the match this season. The real progress this year was in college table tennis. We founded a colleges' league competition and the summer Cuppers tournament was extended to include men's and women's singles as well as the team event, which produced a large increase in participation. We are looking forward to consolidating these steps forward and continuing to expand Oxford table tennis next season.
TAEKWON-DO This was yet another extremely successful year
for OUTKD. We kicked off the year with a strong and enthusiastic presence at the Freshers Fair, increasing membership by a further third, and tripling it in two years. This was followed by a spectacular demonstration at the OU Korea Society’s annual ‘Soul of Seoul’ event in Oxford’s Town Hall, where we showcased patterns, sparring, and destruction in front of a large student and local audience. Members attended several seminars and gradings in the area and brought home medals from the national competitions. As is now tradition, we opened the Hilary Term with a pre-term, weekend training camp, this time using local facilities. More than 20 members attended, drilling for fitness and competition sparring, with the sole focus on a Varsity win against Cambridge on their home turf later that term. Thereafter, extra training sessions were held, providing up to six sessions per week in the lead-up. Cambridge continue to increase in strength and determination each year and we arrived at the imposing new venue knowing they would be out to build on their surprise women’s A win from the previous year and break our seven-year run of overall wins. Our men’s B won a convincing clean sweep, putting us 1-0 up overall, going into the women’s A, against a Cambridge side even stronger than the one that robbed us in 2014. Two spectacular Oxford wins were followed by two losses, the latter painfully close, bringing it all down to the last fight, our red belt against
I 43
their much larger black belt. The fight was a triumph of technique and perseverance over raw power and a stunning Oxford victory brought us 2-1, retrieving the women’s A shield and retaining the overall title before the men’s A had even finished warming up. Traditionally the most brutal and hotly contested, the men’s A also came down to the final fight, with our third Dan treasurer securing a clean sweep of the silverware. Oxford now have nine of the last ten Varsity wins and eight in a row. Another handful of Blues and Half Blues were awarded and well deserved and we are looking forward to an even stronger year this year.
TAI CHI The year started off well in Michaelmas with a very successful forms class on Thursdays in Merton College's spacious pavilion. The glass windows were like mirrors, which helped us observe our body posture. We were honored to have a US Army cadet, train with us on transfer. The lessons she learnt should serve her well in her career! It seems students preferred the forms class to the usual Monday martial class, as they are more familiar with that aspect of tai chi. Unfortunately we could not afford to continue the forms class for the rest of the year; however, we hope that this year we will have more funding towards this end. In Trinity Term the numbers dwindled due to exams and, of course, bank holidays, which is a shame because it is the best time for outdoor practice.
TRAMPOLINING Last year OUTC went from strength to strength, welcoming a significantly larger number of new members than previous years as well as two new coaches, two new assistant coaches and two new judges. In February, the club
took seven members to the British University Championships in Sheffield. Everybody bounced incredibly well, with particular congratulations being extended to Emily Annand, who qualified for the BUCS 2 women’s finals and achieved 12th place overall. Additional congratulations should also go to Charlotte Ferguson and Charlotte Dibb, both of whom tackled their first competition at the championship and performed solid routines in BUCS 6. Competitors from the club also featured at BUCS 1 women, BUCS 2 men, BUCS 3 women and BUCS 4 women level. For the first time, the club represented the University in synchronised trampolining, with solid performances by president Verena Schenzinger with Tamara Shaw and a second pairing of Phoebe Barnett and Emily Annand. We also joined the Southern University Trampoline League. Michelle Brummer won the SUTL 4 women's category in Southampton and Emily Annand came fifth in SUTL 2, repeating her BUCS scores. The club plan to be in the run for the many team awards this year. Shortly after BUCS, the club hosted the Varsity Match against Cambridge. The team lived up to the expectation generated by months of hard training and took the Varsity Match title for the first time in seven years, with Kristof Willerton scoring the top marks for the day and three out of the top four competitors representing the Dark Blues. Two of our members even walked away with Blues - Phoebe Barnett achieving a full Blue for a second year and Emily Annand qualifying for a Half Blue.
TRIATHLON OUTriC once again increased our membership on last year to another record figure. The year started with a keen focus on our newest members, holding a well-attended ‘novice’ aquathlon in October to give competitors a taste of the fun of multisport. Our other big focus was to increase female participation in the club, both training and racing. To this end, we introduced a weekly women’s bike ride and really encouraged women to take part in the sport. The biggest change to overall training was the introduction of Rachel Hallam as head coach of all three disciplines. She was a fantastic asset to the club. The Varsity triathlon campaign was one of our most successful ones in recent years, resulting in an overall Oxford win (3-2), and impressive victories for both women and men. A higher proportion of athletes racing were female, and Oxford saw victory in the women’s Blues match (25 minutes) and the women’s Mob match (12 minutes). For the first time since 2003, Oxford took victory in the men’s Blues match - by a hard-fought 15 seconds.
We sincerely hope that the hard work put in by all of our competitors will continue to ensure we retain our title. All in all, the club flourished and will no doubt continue to excel with the new committee.
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
44 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
The club also saw many exceptional individual performances. The BUCS Sprint Triathlon on May 3 saw excellent results by all. OUTriC certainly held their own among fierce competition from other universities. From the women’s squad, two impressive performances from Renee Haver and Imogen Kempton placed them both within the top 20. The men saw intense competition at the top, with Oliver Crossley coming 24th, followed by Alex Bradley, Charlton Bannister and Tom Lewin. However all the OUTriC triathletes put in brilliant performances in some varied and testing conditions. The year also saw a continuation of OUTriC’s strong presence at OUCCC’s Teddy Hall Relays, and some more good results. The men’s teams came seventh, 18th and 23rd. The women had similar success, placing as high as third and ninth overall. The mixed teams did well too, securing second and 14th place, with victory in the Oxford sports teams category. Lastly, but certainly not least, in recognition of her outstanding achievements and contributions to the club during her undergraduate career, Sophia Saller was awarded BP Sportswoman of the Year – well done! Such individual and team achievements bode well for the immediate future. OUTriC have entered athletes to the BUCS Olympic Triathlon for instance – and beyond!
ULTIMATE FRISBEE The 2014-2015 season was a very successful one for the club. We continued to build our membership base and as a result entered more tournaments than any year in recent memory. A highlight throughout the season was the consistently high spirit scores achieved by the club across all divisions. Spirit is a very important part of ultimate Frisbee, so we are very proud to have won nine spirit trophies in total across all divisions. The indoor season started with two warm-up tournaments before competing in the university competitions saw the open, mixed and women's team qualify for Division 1. The mixed second team also qualified for Division 2. The teams finished tenth, 15th and eighth respectively.
team in the country. Great credit must go to the female squad captains from the last two years for this transformation.
UNDERWATER EXPLORATION The club had another great year’s worth of diving in both the temperate climes of the UK and warmer waters further afield. With regular trips down to Plymouth to explore the cannon field and wrecks using our boat and expeditions around the UK, including the Cherwell, sound of Mull, Swanage, St Abbes, and south Cornwall to name but a few, we celebrated some of the best wrecks and marine life the UK has to offer. We had some great warmer water excursions, including a live-aboard trip to the Red Sea and shark diving in Chester aquarium. This year the club celebrated their 50th anniversary we marked it in style with a blacktie dinner in which members from the 1960s, 90s and 00s spoke of the evolution of diving and retold stories and photos of the club’s past. The anniversary celebrations were rounded off with a dive on the East Rutts panicle near Plymouth in which we re-dived a site the club surveyed in 1960s that was subsequently published in a nature paper. We had another good year for training for both novices and experienced divers. We trained ten ocean divers and eight sports divers through Michaelmas and Hilary terms, culminating in their open water qualification dives at our Easter training trip in Cornwall. We also ran dry suit, boat handling, nitrox and marine archaeology courses to already-trained divers. The club advanced two divers to dive leader qualifications, qualified three assistant instructors and one full open water instructor. The club are looking forward to an exciting season with regular trips to some great dive sites in Plymouth, and expeditions to survey submarine wrecks, dive with seals and basking sharks, and at the year-end enjoy a warm water trip to either Malta or Thailand.
The outdoor season followed a very similar pattern. We entered several warm-up tournaments before competing in Varsity and finally the BUCS competitions. An incredibly windy Varsity saw Cambridge's men complete a clean sweep, whilst Oxford's women fared much better. They remained undefeated which was to be to start of an entirely unbeaten season outdoors. The open, mixed and women's teams all qualified for the Division 1 nationals. Open finished 15th, mixed came fourth and the women were crowned champions. From having a very small women's team three seasons ago, it is remarkable that in such a short timespan that we can now boast the best women's university
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
VOLLEYBALL 2014-2015 was a very successful for both the women’s and men’s teams. The men’s first team achieved second place in the BUCS Midland
Conference 1A after being promoted the season before. The goal was to build up a core of strong players ready to compete at high level next season and potentially win the league and earn promotion to the Premier South division. The women’s first team had an extremely successful season. They finished first in the BUCS Premier South division and qualified for the BUCS finals. At the BUCS finals in Bournemouth, the team fought well and achieved third place in the competition. Our second teams competed in the local Berkshire Volleyball Association (BVA) league. They had a good core of very committed players that have progressed immensely over the season. The men’s seconds finished second in their division and thus promotion to first division was possible. The women’s seconds comfortably finished first to secure promotion to the first division. Last year’s Varsity was very successful for the first teams, beating Cambridge 3-0. However, the second teams had a tough contest with unprecedentedly strong Cambridge teams and lost their match 3-0. In addition to the student teams, OUVC ran two National Volleyball League (NVL) sides. The men’s team, only formed the previous season, managed to finish sixth after a slow start. The women’s team had an incredibly successful season, finishing fifth out of ten in Division 1 after only being promoted the previous season. This all would not have been possible without the student and NVL teams working closely together. The NVL teams provide a platform for student players to raise their level, while the NVL teams benefit from incorporating talented players.
WALKING Oxford University Walking Club enjoyed another busy and successful year. Club membership remained high and we continue to attract members from across the university. The summer of 2014 was busy with mountain and coastal trips. These included scrambling on some of the classic routes in the Lake District, backpacking and wild camping in the Rhinogs (North Wales) and Eastern Fells (Lake District) and trips to Cornwall and Wales. In Michaelmas, the club once again proved popular with freshers and wild weather did not deter us from Lake District and Peak District trips. A day trip to the Wye Valley and numerous local walks were also well attended. Hilary Term was hugely successful following a lot of hard work from the numerous trip organisers, leaders and drivers. The blue skies and the snow-capped fells of Ennerdale in the Lake District were the perfect setting for a joint trip with Cambridge University Hillwalking Club, which involved some serious hillwalking with ice axes being vital on some of the routes. Over 40 members were involved in the Southern Snowdonia trip, the largest excursion we have run in recent years. Successful walks were had on the Aran Ridge and Cadair Idris, despite the wind and rain. Local walks remained as popular as ever.
I 45
Training continued to go well; 12 members gained first aid certificates and we ran a successful mountain skills course in Snowdonia. Other members continued to train and undergo assessment for the mountain leader qualification. We look forward to another busy year and we are pleased to see increasing numbers of members getting involved with planning trips and gaining navigation and leading skills.
WATER POLO We are very happy to report what was a very special season. This is only the second year of Neptune and water polo’s relationship, but its effects are already showing. There were two real success stories of the season. The first was undeniably the women’s squad. When we signed the contract two years ago, we immediately set about looking for a women’s coach. Before that time, we did not have the funds to fully support a full time coach. We found two fantastic coaches, Rose Younger and Michaela Smith, and haven’t looked back since. The development started then and has driven the team’s improvement since, the fruits of which really showed last season. The women clinched the all-important Varsity win for the first time in six years. With the development that they made, we feel confident that they can continue growing stronger and stronger this season and beyond and make Oxford a forced to be reckoned with in the pool. The second big success was the men’s second team. After we signed the contract with our sponsors back in 2013, we had the funds to fully formalise the men’s second team. They grew significantly last year under the fantastic leadership of captain Colin McNamara. Along with the women, the men’s seconds also had a great victory against Cambridge, making it two in a row for the side. The formal second team are already not only helping the club’s keen membership, but also boosting the first-team squad, with three players moving up the ranks.
This season, we are planning to enter the seconds into the more prestigious BUCS league instead of the UPOLO league they are in currently. This step would really show the progression of the team from their first Varsity in 2012. Whilst perhaps not such the success story as the other teams, the men’s firsts still had a solid season. They reached the premier league BUCS semi-finals and were competitive all year. The Varsity Match did not go to plan, losing by a painful final goal, having beaten Cambridge twice previously that season. This season looks to be exciting with a good standard of new players coming up, including the 18-year-old 2015 MVP recipient and now vice-captain, Joe Ortiz.
WINDSURFING 2014-2015 was a very promising year for the growth of the windsurfing club. The year started with five members attending Aussie Kiss in Cornwall for a weekend in October, organised by the Student Windsurfing Association (SWA). We also held a beginners' day in October at Farmoor Reservoir, which although lacking in wind, was a fun introduction for new club members and attracted over 20 newcomers. Training was held in Hilary Term to prepare for the upcoming Varsity match. This involved two sessions at Farmoor, featuring eight club members. Five members of OUWC competed, resulting in a draw with Cambridge. The club then went to Fuerteventura with Cambridge University Windsurfing Club, a new location for our Varsity trip. Ten members went for a week in March 2015 and honed skills on the waist-deep lagoon, with advanced sailors tackling the open water. We were taught by two great instructors from Get Windsurfing, with whom we have organised the trip for six years.
YACHTING This was an extremely successful year for Oxford University Yacht Club. Membership increased significantly to nearly 200, demonstrating the broad appeal of the club and our increasing focus on getting novices into sailing. The dinghy first VI took second place in BUCS, first place in the Oxford Invitational Trophy and first place in the Cambridge Cup. Furthermore, the second VI took ninth place at BUCS, whilst the women's VI finished sixth, showing the impressive level of depth in the club. After several days of close racing in Northern Ireland, the women's VI beat Cambridge at Varsity, but sadly Cambridge took the remaining titles. We hope to see a very strong performance this year. The yachting side achieved their highest ever ranking in BUSA, taking second place and receiving their silver medals from Princess Anne. Following this result they will now be representing England at the Student World Cup in France next year. Unfortunately, due to adverse weather, only one race was possible during Yachting Varsity (as opposed to the usual six) and was won by Cambridge. However, OUYC are looking forward to a very strong performance next year as they continue on their current training programme with many returning faces. The year also saw increased integration between all parts of the club, both on and off the water. In particular, the club are looking forward to a packed off-shore season on Talisman, with a range of members from both the dinghy and yachting sides, as well as many life members, competing in multiple offshore races as OUYC take on their second Fastnet Race campaign and the JOG offshore season.
46 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2014
COME AND SUPPORT OUR BLUES TO VARSITY VICTORY!
IMPORTANT DATES 2015-16 For the latest details please go to www.sport.ox.ac.uk to see an up-to-date list of fixtures and results!
DECEMBER 2015 5/12/15 10/12/15
Cross Country, Wimbledon Common. Rugby Union (OURFC), Twickenham
FEBRUARY 2015 19–21/2/16 BUCS Gatorade Nationals, Sheffield 20/2/16 Squash Blues Varsity, RAC 27/2/16 100th Lacrosse Varsity Match, University Parks 27–28/2/16 Varisty Games Weekend MARCH 2015 2–5/3/16 Torpids Regatta 3–4/3/16 Varisty Games Weekend 5/3/16 Boxing Varsity Match, Oxford Town Hall 6/3/16 Ice Hockey Varsity Match, Peterborough Ice Rink 7/3/16 Rugby League Varsity, HAC 13/3/16 Hockey Varsity Match, Iffley Road 13/3/16 Judo Varsity Match, Iffley Road 23–24/3/16 BUCS Big Wednesday, Sheffield Hallam 28–29/3/16 Yachting, Southampton Solent 27/3/16 The BNY Mellon Boat Races, Tideway
www.sport.ox.ac.uk
MAY 2015 9/5/16 14/5/16
Archery Varsity Match, Christchurch Meadows Athletics Varsity Match, Iffley Road