| 149th Boat Race | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Blades from both boats are close to clashing. Left to right: Coventry (Cantab.), B. Smith (Cantab.), Nethercott (Oxon.), M. Smith (Oxon.) | |||
| Date | 6 April 2003 | ||
| Winner | Oxford | ||
| Margin of victory | 1 foot | ||
| Winning time | 18 minutes 6 seconds | ||
| Overall record (Cambridge–Oxford) | 77–71 | ||
| Umpire | Boris Rankov (Oxford) | ||
| Other races | |||
| Reserve winner | Goldie | ||
| Women's winner | Oxford | ||
| |||
The 149th Boat Race took place on 6 April 2003. Held annually, the Boat Race is a side-by-side rowing race between crews from the Universities of Oxford (in dark blue) and Cambridge (in light blue) along a 4.2-mile (6.8 km) tidal stretch of the River Thames in south-west London. The lead changed twice during the race, which Oxford won by one foot (30 cm): the smallest margin of victory in the history of the event. The close race has been described as "epic", while Olympic gold medallist Steve Redgrave suggested that the race was the "greatest we will see in our lifetimes".
Umpired by the Boat Race veteran Boris Rankov, the 2003 race was the first to be scheduled on a Sunday. As a result of a collision between the Cambridge boat and a launch, a member of the Cambridge crew was replaced just two days before the race. This was the first Boat Race to feature two sets of brothers on opposing sides. In the reserve race Goldie beat Isis and Oxford won the Women's race.