ROWING: OLYMPIC rower Tom James was one of the star attractions in Cambridge's thrilling Boat Race dress rehearsal.
Racing alongside former Chester King's School pupil and cox silver-medallist Peter Rudge in the Blue Boat trial 8s race, the pair were part of an eight-strong team that played its part in an memorable contest.
Taking on another Cambridge team selected by Anglesey-born coach Robin Williams, 20-year-old James and his crew stormed to the fifth quickest recorded-time on the arduous 4.25-mile Putney to Mortlake course.
Yet their opponents, led by German world champion Bernd Heidicker, were four seconds quicker to claim an exhilarating victory by a length-and-a-half, in 16 minutes 41 seconds.
The performances of the Cambridge boats in the time trial bodes well for their chances in next March's 151st race - which James is expected to take part in.
The rower was part of the Cambridge team that lost out to Oxford in 2003, while he was forced to miss this year's race due to his commitments with the Great Britain squad.
James stroked the Great Britain eight in the 2004 Athens Olympics but illness disrupted his preparations as the team failed to live up to the heights it reached four years earlier in Sydney.
However, James - who has since swapped to bowside - is in fine form, having led Cambridge to victory over the Dutch Olympic silver medallists and defending champions America at the 7,000-strong Head of Charles event in Boston in October.
