Cambridge University President Tom Edwards today (Monday) threw down the gauntlet to Oxford counterpart, Barney Williams, challenging the Dark Blues to the 152 Boat Race, which is sponsored by Xchanging.

The traditional Boat Race Challenge sees the President from last year’s losing crew issue the challenge to last year’s victors.

The two universities today also unveiled the crews that will contest this year’s Boat Race, which takes place at 4.35pm on Sunday 2nd April.

Cambridge boast six returning Blues, including Kieran West, winner of the race in 1999 and 2001, and a gold medallist with British eight at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

The vastly experienced Barney Williams, a member of last year’s winning Oxford Blue Boat, said: "It’s a different crew to last year and that’s the fascinating thing about the race.

"What brought me back was the challenge of doing the same process with a different group of guys," he added.

"I’ve fallen in love with the Boat Race. The conditions are so unique and unpredictable," he added. "You can’t have a plan in place that you can follow to a tee."

Cambridge President Tom Edwards, a member of last year’s losing Light Blue crew, said Cambridge’s experiences last time around will help motivate them on 2nd April.

"This time around I feel much more comfortable and confident in our preparation, " he said. "The experience of last year is certainly proving a motivating factor.

"We’re relaxed and confident," he added. "I’m really looking forward to the next few weeks as we approach our final preparation for 2nd April."