River Great Ouse - Water Sports

Water Sports

In 1944 the annual boat race between the Oxford and Cambridge universities took place on this river, between Littleport and Queen Adelaide, the only time that it has not been held on the Thames; it was won by Oxford. The Great Ouse is used by three clubs from Cambridge University for the training of rowers, with the Boat Club (CUBC), the Women's Boat Club (CUWBC) and the Lightweight Rowing Club (CULRC), all using facilities at Ely. Rowing is popular in several of the towns on the Ouse, especially Bedford, which is one of the most active rowing centres in the UK.

The Great Ouse is a very popular river for canoeing and kayaking, particularly at Bedford which is a regional centre for the sport. Viking Kayak Club organise the Bedford Kayak Marathon with canoe racing held along the Embankment on Bedford's riverside and dates back to the original Bedford to St Neots race in 1952, believed to be the first of its kind in the country.

Bedford also benefits from the presence of weirs and sluices, creating white water opportunities. Viking organise national ranking Canoe Slalom events at the Cardington Artificial Slalom Course (CASC), which was the first artificial whitewater course in the UK, opened in 1982 adjacent to Cardington Lock, in a partnership with the Environment Agency who use it as a flood relief channel. CASC is also the venue each year for the UK's National Inter Clubs Slalom Finals, the largest canoe slalom event by participation in the UK.

Since 1978, the Bedford River Festival has been held every two years, to celebrate the link between Bedford and the coast. In addition to craft often seen on the river, the 2008 festival featured a reconstruction of a first-century currach, consisting of a wicker framework covered in cow hide, and capable of carrying ten people.