Oxford Win Historic Women's Boat Race

Oxford have beaten Cambridge to win the women's Boat Race, the first to take place on the same course and the same day as the men's race.

Taking control from the start at Putney on the Thames, Oxford's university eight quickly moved a boat's length clear and never faltered during the 6,800-metre slog to Chiswick Bridge.

They finished 19 seconds ahead of their rivals.

It was a double victory for Oxford as they also won the men's event.

The women's race has been held since 1927 further up river at Henley, but after years of campaigning for equal billing they were finally given equality with the men.

It was sporting history for rowing and was described as "hugely significant" by Sarah Winckless, Olympic bronze medallist and former world champion.

Speaking ahead of the Putney to Mortlake race, she said: "It's an amazing opportunity for these women.

"They can stand side by side with men. We've seen it, in the London Olympics 2012 when the women came home with the gold medals we've been hoping for."

What's made this year's race possible was not a sudden increase in female interest, strength or ability. Rewind almost 90 years and you'll see women rowing with passion.

Oxbridge female rowing crews began competing against each other in 1927, but then they were not fighting to win.

It was deemed unladylike and vulgar to race against each other and instead the teams were made to row separately and were judged on their time, grace and style. The battle they did have was to wear shorts rather than skirts.

It took about 40 years until the women's boat race became an annual fixture at Henley, a much shorter and easier course than the men's.

The reason it now follows the same tough 4.2 mile (6.7 km) course on River Thames' Tideway is simple - money.

Until this year the boat race has been a male-dominated tradition, but thanks to the sponsorship and support of a London-based company the women's team will get equal funding to the men.

Winckless thinks this will change the race dramatically.

"For me, the sponsorship from Newton Investment Management is an absolute step change," she said.

"These women can now have professional coaches, they can have training camps paid for and they are not paying for their kit.

"When I was a Cambridge blue in the boat race we had to scrape together money to pay for our own kit and rely on volunteers to coach us.

"Hopefully now we will see women learning from this Tideway course and coming back year after year."

Helena Morrissey is chief executive of Newton Investment Management and helped get the course moved to the Tideway.

She told Sky News the changes were a "breakthrough" and "something to celebrate".

Ms Morrissey - who is also the founder of the 30% Club, which campaigns to have 30% of women on FTSE 100 boards by the end of this year - said people were keen to see the women row the same course as the men.

But she said there were "some pockets of resistance".

"There were worries that the men’s race would lose out, so it was really important that we found a way through that," she said.

While some barriers are being broken in the boat race, critics argue it is still an exclusive, elitist and even irrelevant event.

This year's race will however mark a small victory for women in sport - not only for the women rowing but for all those women who rowed before them.