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The British Heart Foundation (BHF) is the official charity partner for The Gemini Boat Race. Oxford cardiovascular research DPhil students Catherine King (IDRM) and Claire Aitkin (RDM) are funded by the BHF and proud to be part of this year’s race.

Woman holding a BHF fundraising bucket, with the words 'Volunteers help us save lives'

HELP WITH FUNDRAISING

There are two ways you can get involved:

About the partnership

The partnership aims to save lives by raising awareness of the risk of cardiovascular disease, and improve the chances of survival among spectators of The Boat Race, by encouraging them to learn CPR.

The British Heart Foundation is a key sponsor of cardiovascular research in Oxford. The BHF Oxford Centre of Research Excellence covers the entire cardiovascular research spectrum, from discovery science through to clinical and population health research. The interdisciplinary scientific approach is focused on big data, human genetics, target discovery and development & regeneration.

RDM DPhil Student Claire Aitken is part of Oxford's women's squad this year. She is pursuing a DPhil in Cardiovascular Science in the Tzima group. She says:

'I'm researching how blood flow contributes to the development of fatty plaques inside the blood vessels. This type of research is vital for improving disease treatments, so I feel like I'm contributing to something important.

Winning the boat race would mean so much, especially because of the number of people – teammates, coaches, friends and family – supporting you to achieve this goal.'