Top Games of the Century: #8 Men's V8 Heavyweight Crew vs. Yale (1950)

Welcome to the Top 10 Games of the Century. Where we look back at some of the most exciting and important, key wins in Harvard History. At number 8, Harvard beats Yale by less than a second in June of 1950. Harvard and Yale, in every sport, a storied rivalry.

A rivalry that began athletically with the Harvard Yale regatta. The two schools first raced on the water in 1852 and have met 153 times since. Throughout all of those races, the closest ever Harvard win came back in 1950. Harvard entered the race with payback on it's mind.

In 1949, the Crimson saw a 9 race win streak over the Bulldogs come to an end by less than a second and a half. Harvard was nearing the end of a great season in 1950, the Crimson were 7-0 in dual races and had just finished second at Eastern Sprints.

Now the Harvard Yale Regatta is unique for its length. The average college rowing race is 2000 meters or about 1 and a quarter miles. But, the Harvard Yale Regatta is more than three times that long at 4 miles in length. On that day in 1950, Harvard and Yale slugged it out over the 4 mile course on the Thames River in New London, Connecticut.

The Crimson 8, led by captain William Levitt, continued to yo-yo with the Bulldogs. Down the final stretch of the 4-mile race, the Crimson finally inched ahead reaching the finish just 8 tenths of a second ahead of the Bulldogs to claim victory. Harvard's victory moved the Crimson to 8-0 on the year and the Crimson would continue on to victory at the Henley Royal Regatta to wrap up a near perfect season.