Cambridge claimed an eighth consecutive victory over Oxford after an early restart to the women's Boat Race.

Umpire Matthew Pinsent stopped the race in the second minute after the Oxford boat drifted into Cambridge's path and their oars clashed on the River Thames in London.

Oxford could have been disqualified but were penalised, with Cambridge given a third-of-a-length advantage on the restart.

The light blues extended that advantage to coast home, taking their tally to 49 victories in the 79th staging of the women's event.

"I was absolutely clear in warning Oxford in the run-up to that," said Pinsent.

"At that moment, with the two crews coming to a standstill, there was no way they were going to carry on racing.

"It crossed my mind [to disqualify Oxford], but you also can allow after a restart to see if it affected the outcome of the race. In my opinion, it did not affect the outcome of that race."

It was the 10th year the women's race has been staged on the same day and the same course as the men's.

The race was held on the traditional course, which stretches four miles 374 yards between Putney Bridge and Mortlake, despite organisers saying this week that water quality was an "ongoing concern".

The men's race is due to start at 14:21 BST.