The Head of the River Race (HoRR) was founded by Steve Fairbairn, the Cambridge and Tideway oarsman, in order to give crews something to aim for at the end of the winter training period.
The first race was held in 1926 and 21 crews took part. There was no race in 1937 (there was no suitable tide on a Saturday and no competitive sport took place on Sundays at that time), and none from 1940-45 inclusive. But the race was restarted in 1946 and has taken place annually ever since.
Today over 400 crews take place hailing from across the British Isles, Germany, Australia, Austria, Belgium, China, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and even the USA.
Watch from along the river front at Furnivall Gardens for the best view.