Ledyard — A year later, the debate rages on.

Yale firmly believes it won last year's 151st Harvard-Yale Regatta.

Harvard backs the controversial "no official result" ruling declared by officials after the Crimson's boat filled with water at the half-mile mark in windy and extremely choppy conditions on the Thames River.

It didn't matter that Yale was well ahead at the time when the referee stopped the race. The Bulldogs eventually completed the four-mile course while the soaked and cold Harvard crew headed back to Red Top, its home base in Gales Ferry.

It marked the first time since 1874 that both boats failed to finish.

The debate adds some extra spice to an already fiercely competitive rivalry. Harvard and Yale battle once again Saturday in America's oldest intercollegiate athletic event. Upstream racing begins at 9 a.m.

Yale senior Rob Hurn was in the varsity boat last year that appeared to win but then didn't win. He added that they feel like they were "robbed."

"I think the guys who were in that boat — and I was in that boat — consider it a victory, to be honest," Hurn said Wednesday. "It will go down as a no result, but we finished the race and they didn't. When they sank, we were so far ahead that there was no hope of them winning anyway. So, in a sense, them sinking was kinda the best thing to happen to them because they were not going to win the race."

"And the results earlier in the year showed that as well. They had come nowhere close to beating us that entire year. So it's a no result and we accept that. And we're bitter about it and we want to go out there this Saturday and make up for it. ... It feels like this one is for two years rather than one."

As you might expect, Harvard feels quite differently.

James Johnston, who'll be competing in his final regatta Saturday, happens to be a teammate of Hurn's on the national team in England. He remembers last year's race quite well, especially the feeling of the cold Thames River.

Johnston called it an interesting day. He's had conversations about the decision with his Yale competitors.

"Obviously, I would have loved to re-race it," Johnston said. "There was disagreement from both parties what the outcome should be. I personally feel in the spirit of the competition and spirit of the regatta, both parties want to have a fair race.

"... They thought they won the race because they started and finished it. I mentioned that a race means beating your opponent and if your opponent isn't able to race, then is it actually a race?"

Yale coach Steve Gladstone didn't pull any punches when asked about the ruling.

"It was bad officiating," Gladstone said. "Then beyond that, with the race committee it just descended into petty partisanship. A bit disappointing that it was not handled in a less contentious way. But it started with bad officiating. The bad officiating opened up Pandora's Box and Pandora came out."

Since that ruling, Yale has done nothing but win. Yale has captured every major rowing competition, including its first ever IRA National Championship. Harvard placed third overall.

Gladstone says the controversy will not carry over to Saturday's race.

"It's history," Gladstone said. "Most of that kind of hype and revenge and that kind of thing are manufactured from outside the camp."

The disputed result ended up bringing more national attention to the Harvard-Yale Regatta, which has gradually faded from the spotlight, than in recent memory.

"The irony to that is the greatest coverage of this event came from a boat sinking, which is maybe an indication that we should be doing something to enhance the viewer experience and also enhance the notoriety of the race," Gladstone said. "I think that's something that should be addressed by both institutions given what this is.

"The first athletic contest was this event. And given the quality of the athletes involved in both schools one would hope that it doesn't take a boat sinking to get people's attention."

Rule changes should prevent a similar controversy from happening again. If bad weather strikes, officials have the option of moving the race to another day.

"We've taken care of the issues by getting a committee to put things on paper so that everybody understands," Harvard coach Charley Butt said. "We built an extra day into the schedule. We're prepared to go a day earlier, if necessary, so we can have a clean run, so to speak, and make sure the students have a chance. The worst thing is not to have the opportunity."

The weather forecast looks promising for Saturday, with a warm and dry day predicted.

"Hopefully, we can have a good race from start to finish without any hiccups along the way," Johnston said.

g.keefe@theday.com