Club Information
Cambridge University Athletic Club (CUAC) was the first university-wide athletic club to be established in the UK in 1857, followed by Oxford Uni in 1863. This perhaps makes CUAC the oldest university athletics club in the world.
The first Inter-Varsity Athletics match between the two Universities took place in 1864, 32 years before the birth of the modern Olympics. Today The Varsity Match holds great importance to CUAC, for while there is a distinguished history of rivalry through the decades, the match also provides a sporting platform to demonstrate the superiority of Cambridge over Oxford on a universal level.
In 3 out of every 4 years, CUAC and OUAC will come together to compete against American Universities in the oldest international athletic series in the world. The Harvard-Yale matches date back to 1894 and the Penn-Cornell series has roots in 1921. Every 4 years, the English Universities will tour the US over Easter to compete against all 4 of the US institutions, the next tour being in 2013.
Cross Country and Road Races are catered for by the Cambridge University Hare & Hounds. CUH&H will organise middle to long distance training for those events and provide University level competition. The annual cross country Varsity match has seen its 116th running.
Both CUAC and CUH&H have a fantastic social scene. Large annual functions are massively attended and always honoured by the presence of a well-known athletic personality. More regular socials are recalled through tales of revelation and debauchery.
CUAC will normally have about 3 full GB Internationals at any one time. We placed 4th at the BUCS Championships in 2009, ahead of the High Performance centres at Brunel and Birmingham, as well as Oxford…
Coaches
CUAC is student-run, but makes use of volunteer coaches for most events. Coaching is focused into training squads. Each squad is assigned a leader and a coach, and will focus on training for one or more similar events. Training takes place on various days of the week at various locations depending on the needs of a squad.
Facilities
- 8-Lane Synthetic 400m Track (10-Lane Straight)
- New and well equipped pavilion
- Circuits and plyometric equipment
- Heavy (Olympic) Lifting Rooms
- Multi-Gyms
- Lots of flat grass fields
- Picturesque running routes
- Hills
Famous Athletes
CUAC has many Olympic Champions and former world record holders in its hall of fame. The story of one such man’s time at Cambridge was immortalised in the 1981 film ‘Chariots of Fire’, as Harold Abrahams struck Olympic 100m Gold. In 1987, Jon Ridgeon defeated Colin Jackson to take Silver at the World Championships.
Recent successful athletes include:
- Andy Baddeley
- 2004 AAA’s & Olympic Trials Silver (1500m)
- Selected for 2004 Senior World Cross Champs
- 2005 World University Games Silver (1500m)
- 2008 9th place, Olympic Games (1500m)
- Steve Green
- 2003 AAA’s U23 Champion (400m Hurdles)
- 2004 BUSA Champion (400m)
- Selected for 2003 Euro U23 Champs
- Adrian Hemery
- 2003 AAA’s Senior Champion (Decathlon)
- Selected for GB International matches in ‘03 and ‘04
- Grace Clements
- 2005 BUSA Champion (Heptathlon)
- 2006 South of England Indoor Pentathlon Champion
- Selected for England International match in ‘05
- 2010 Commonwealth Games Bronze Medallist (Heptathlon)
- Phyllis Agbo
- 2002 AAA’s U20 Champion (100mH)
- 2006-7 Multiple times Combined Events international
- 2009 World Trial and National Championships Gold (Long Jump)
- 2009 Competed for Great Britain in the Spar European Cup
- 2010 Competed for England in the Commonwealth Games (Heptathlon)
- Ben Carne
- 2005-6 Double AAA U23 Champion (400mH)
- 2007 6th Spar European Cup
- Louis Persent
- 2008 World Junior Championships Silver (4×400m)
- 2009 European Junior Championships Bronze (400m)
- 2009 European Junior Championships Gold (4×400m)
Courses on offer / Scholarship information
The University of Cambridge prides itself in being one of the most academic Universities in the world. As such, it offers no degrees with a particular emphasis on sport. However, lively and social pursuits (such as athletics!) are encouraged by Supervisors in all academic areas. CUAC would encourage any athlete to apply to Cambridge for either a post-graduate or undergraduate degree. Don’t hesitate to get in touch for advice on admissions.
