Welsh Varsity
The Welsh Varsity takes place every year between Cardiff University and Swansea University. The many sports represented at this event include rugby union, hockey, cricket, squash, badminton, lacrosse, rowing, golf, basketball, football, American football netball, fencing and an array of other sports. Profits go to charity. The event is held over the course of a week, with some sports competing over a weekend due to the nature of the sport. The majority of the games are held on the Wednesday afternoon, with the centrepiece rugby union match between the two sides held in the evening and often attended by in excess of 18,000 supporters.[1]
Rugby match
Over the previous few years, the rugby match has been held in Bridgend at Brewery Field, home of Bridgend RFC, roughly half-way between the two cities. The match has previously been played in Cardiff Arms Park and St Helens, returning to Cardiff Arms Park for the 2007, 2008 and 2009 matches. The 2010 match was played at Swansea's Liberty Stadium for the first time. The 2011 match was held at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, the national stadium of Wales.
Winners of rugby match
| Year | Location | Winner/Holder | Swansea | Cardiff | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 (10/03/97) | Cardiff Arms Park | Swansea | 26 | 11 | 984 |
| 1998 (19/11/97) | St Helen's | Swansea | 49 | 13 | 1,600 |
| 1999 | Cardiff Arms Park | Swansea | 17 | 13 | unknown |
| 2000 | St Helen's | Swansea | 28 | 18 | 3,300 |
| 2001 | Cardiff Arms Park | Swansea | 10 | 10 | 2,900 |
| 2002 | St Helen's | Swansea | 21 | 3 | 3,100 |
| 2003 | Brewery Field | Cardiff | 12 | 19 | 3,000 |
| 2004 | Brewery Field | Swansea | 25 | 11 | 2,900 |
| 2005 | Brewery Field | Swansea | 16 | 8 | 3,300 |
| 2006 | Brewery Field | Cardiff | 5 | 15 | 3,600 |
| 2007 | Cardiff Arms Park | Swansea | 18 | 0 | 5,200[2] |
| 2008 | Cardiff Arms Park | Cardiff | 9 | 19 | 8,100[3] |
| 2009 | Cardiff Arms Park | Cardiff | 6 | 9 | 10,800 |
| 2010 | Liberty Stadium | Swansea | 16 | 12 | 11,400 |
| 2011 | Millennium Stadium | Swansea | 28 | 18 | 14,789 |
| 2012 | Millennium Stadium | Cardiff | 13 | 33 | 15,622 |
| 2013 | Millennium Stadium | Swansea | 21 | 13 | 14,103 |
| 2014 | Millennium Stadium | Swansea | 19 | 15 | 15,835 |
| 2015 | Liberty Stadium | Cardiff | 22 | 27 | 16,875+[4] |
| 2016 | Liberty Stadium | Swansea | 16 | 10 |
The Welsh Boat Race
The inaugural Welsh Boat Race was held in 2006. The Welsh Boat Race has continued to grow due to support from the respective athletic unions, and sponsorship deals. The venue for the boat race has historically been the River Taff, but the venue for 2010 was the River Tawe. The event has, so far, been held on a Wednesday to coincide with the other Varsity games but due to increasing popularity from alumni, parents and the general public, the event has now been moved to the weekend.
Winners
Men's race
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Women's race
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Men's novices race
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Women's novices race
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The Hockey
The Men's hockey fixture has featured many past and current international players and historically is a Cardiff dominated fixture. The quality of university hockey in Wales has improved in recent times with both sides now representing their universities in the Western Premiership. The 2016 Match was covered by Galvanised Hockey.
Other sportsAs of 2011 the following sports are also played with the university winning in the most sports taking home the Varsity Shield.
CoverageXpress Radio, Cardiff University's radio station, and Xtreme Radio, Swansea University's radio station, both co-operate during Varsity; the University newspapers also cover the event. Since 2009, Cardiff Union Television (CUTV) have covered the event. In 2011, the Welsh channel S4C broadcast the game live for the first time. ReferencesExternal links |