Organisers have today announced that the 2007 Boat Race, sponsored by Xchanging, will take place on Saturday 7 April at 4.30pm.

This will be the 153rd Boat Race in a series of encounters between the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge that date back to 1829. The 2006 Boat Race, also sponsored by Xchanging, is on April 2nd.

The choice of date in 2007, as usual, was a complex one for the Boat Race Company Limited which is responsible for the organisation of The Race.

Howard Jacobs, Director of the Company and also London Representative of the University Boat Clubs said: "Fixing the date of The Boat Race is rarely easy. We have to juggle with university term dates - to ensure adequate final preparation time for the rowers who also have to deal with their academic pressures - as well as the tide-table because the race has to be rowed on a rising tide. Equally, we need to take into account what works best for the millions who want to watch the event live on TV".

Over the past four years the best date for this unique and British sporting event has fallen on a Sunday. In 2007, the best day is a Saturday.

250,000 regularly turn out to watch The Boat Race from the banks of the river Thames between the start at Putney and the finish, four and a quarter miles later, at Mortlake.

Cambridge currently lead the series by 78-72 with one dead heat recorded in 1877. Oxford won the 2005 contest and many of the recent Races have been of superb quality with many oarsmen going on to win Olympic medals or represent their countries at major events.

In 2003 there was a thrilling finish when Oxford defeated Cambridge by just one foot.

Recent TV viewing figures have been between 6-9 million in the UK and over 100 million worldwide.

Crews for the 2006 Boat Race will be announced at a press conference on March 6th in Putney.