The Cancer Research UK Boat Races

Parmigiani Fleurier is proud to be the official timing sponsor of the 2016 Cancer Research UK Boat Races, a unique sporting event for almost 2 centuries, which holds an important part in the British culture. The Boat Races are an annual contest between two rowing crews from Oxford and Cambridge universities and rank among the oldest sporting events in the world, first raced in 1829. With a heritage at the roots of Swiss watchmaking tradition, Parmigiani Fleurier feels very close to the values of rowing, such as they are demonstrated at each Boat Race. A spirit of challenge, yet of fair-play; individual perseverance and relentless training combined with the knowledge that one can only succeed as a team; finally, the importance of our heritage and of remaining faithful to it. “In watchmaking, the required precision of a hand’s movement can be as small as 3 hundredth of a millimeter. A watchmaker must train each gesture relentlessly; he must practice again and again until his brain and his hands achieve the perfect motion. I feel a close affinity to rowing because it involves the same self-control, focus and training that are fundamental as a watchmaker.” Michel Parmigiani