Oxford's biggest student newspaper, produced by and for members of the University of Oxford, since 1991.
Image Description: France and Italy’s women’s rugby teams set for a scrummage. On the pitch Women’s rugby is on the rise, both domestically and internationally. The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly interfered with progress, as it has in all sports, and sadly the women’s game in England was more adversely affected than the men’s. For instance, […]
Continue Reading
Image Description: A humble few basketball fans sit scattered around a court, waiting for a game. Basketball For many North Americans, the first signs of COVID-19 impacting them actually came via the NBA. What was supposed to be an ordinary Wednesday night of basketball suddenly turned into breaking news when Utah Jazz superstar Ruby Gobert tested […]
Continue Reading
Image Description: A silhouetted man running up a rocky hill I have to admit, before lockdown I never quite understood why running was so popular as a form of exercise. I’d watch my friends and housemates go off on runs to “blow off some steam” after a long day at work, while I waved them […]
Continue Reading
Image Description: Rows of empty blue chairs at Chelsea FC stadium Rugby The Gallagher English Premiership returned in August after a five-month suspension with an accelerated schedule, bringing an additional dimension to squad selection. Since not every game could be played by every player, decisions had to be made about who should be rested, and for […]
Continue Reading
Some sporting individuals are remembered in a single snapshot. Tommie Smith’s black-clad fist in Mexico, Francois Pienaar’s handshake with Mandela in Johannesburg, Ben Stokes’ tribalistic roar at Leeds. Some are immortalised through totemic achievements. Ronnie O’Sullivan’s blink-and-you’ll-miss-it maximum in Sheffield, Roger Bannister’s four-minute mile in Oxford, Nadia Comaneci’s perfect 10 in Montreal. Some remain etched […]
Continue Reading
It is always potentially hazardous to open a discussion which seeks to decide once and for all who is the best in a certain sporting category. Messi or Ronaldo? Hamilton or Schumacher? Biles or Comaneci? Titles and achievements are compared, difficulty of opponents assessed, and memories recalled. If things get heated, each point is hurled […]
Continue Reading
Following the merger of the Men’s and Women’s Blues Committees, the university’s first Joint Blues Committee met over the summer and discussed the eligibility of transgender athletes and whether a trans athlete could play in both men and women’s varsity matches. A verdict is yet to be determined however it is ‘thought to be unlikely’ […]
Continue Reading
As I walked up the stairs to the GLD I noticed the door tremble as it attempted to contain an ominous thunder of thumps. The scene behind it revealed fifteen girls split between five punchbags, three on each. In each team, one girl would hold the bag in place whilst it was relentlessly assaulted by […]
Continue Reading
Tensions broke out in the 5th Week Student Council meeting when a motion supporting the Hong Kong riots was proposed and passed. Oriel College’s Martin Yip proposed the motion to mandate the Oxford SU President to publish an open letter supporting “Hong Kong’s fight for freedom and condemning police brutality”. The motion was seconded by […]
Continue Reading
Two delegations from prominent universities in Mainland China withdrew from the annual Oxford International Model United Nations (OxIMUN) conference following the introduction of the Hong Kong riots as a topic for debate. According to a statement published by the OxIMUN secretariat on 26th October, representatives from three Chinese delegations had ‘raised concerns related to the […]
Continue Reading
Statistics from 2015-2018 have shown that female students at the University of Oxford have been 10.7% less likely to receive first-class honours than their male counterparts. The data, which was pulled from the university’s public record, shows an attainment disparity between genders across a wide range of disciplines. Physics saw the highest discrepancy, with an […]
Continue Reading
On Thursday a special event hosted by the Vice-Chancellor revealed that EU students may have to pay international student fees as uncertainty still looms over Brexit. ‘A Conversation about Brexit’ was conducted by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Louise Richardson, and organised to facilitate a discussion about Brexit and the impact it has on students and the […]
Continue Reading
This week saw the ultimate comeback game from both women’s teams with the Blues drawing their fixture with Bristol 17-17 and the Panthers overcoming Staffordshire with a 38-27 win. On a fresh autumn afternoon at Iffley Road, the Women’s Blues welcomed Bristol University for their fourth BUCS League fixture. Having won two and lost one […]
Continue Reading
On 16th November, members of University College Boat Club will be rowing continuously for 24 hours to raise £2000 for local mental health charity, Oxfordshire Mind. The rowers will be powering two rowing machines overnight to raise money for the charity, rotating every twenty minutes to half an hour. The challenge will start on the […]
Continue Reading
The scraping of ice, the clatter of sticks, and the raucous bells of a charging herd of cows? This is the soundscape of Blind Ice Hockey, the world’s fastest team parasport for the visually impaired, that was co-hosted this month by the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club. It was the second time ever that the […]
Continue Reading
Oxford University Ultimate saw great success at the South East Regionals in Woking this weekend, with Oxford 1 getting through to Division 2 Nationals after a long fight to the top. Oxford 2 also did remarkably well, placing 6th overall and was the highest scoring second team. If you’re confused at this point as to […]
Continue Reading
While they may have been yet to chalk up a victory this season, the Sporadics – that is, Oxford University men’s hockey 4th XI – hit the road on Saturday 2nd November in high spirits, travelling to the delights of Bedfordshire and the fabulously named town of Leighton Buzzard. Despite being nominally the worst outfit […]
Continue Reading
On 25th May at 13:00, Oxford University Dancesport Cuppers took place. This is quite a well-established competition with records going back to at least 1986. Dancesport is roughly defined as any kind of competitive partner dancing, with the two most popular categories being Ballroom (also known as Standard) and Latin. Cuppers teams compete over four […]
Continue Reading
This year’s season has been unrivalled in Oxford University Equestrian Club’s (OUEC) history. The squad, captained by Psychology finalist Amy Small, consists of three teams: two of these compete in BUCS leagues and all three in varsity. At trials in Michaelmas, the new intake of freshers was promising, with many of these talented riders joining […]
Continue Reading