Trenton Oldfield after he was pulled from the River Thames

A member of the Oxford River Thames boat race team took to Twitter to lambast swimmer Trenton Oldfield for ruining the world-famous event, on Saturday.

Quantum Computer Science student William Zeng, 22, was rowing in the race for Oxford when it was halted at Chiswick by Oldfield’s one-man protest against elitism.

Zeng used the mirco-blogging site to contact Oldfield, who was bailed by police after being arrested for a public order offence in relation to the incident – which delayed the race for 30 minutes.

“When I missed your head with my blade I knew only that you were a swimmer, and if you say you are a protester then, no matter what you say your cause may be, your action speaks too loudly for me to hear you.

“I know, with immediate emotion, exactly what you you were protesting. You were protesting the right of seventeen young men and one woman to compete fairly and honorably, to demonstrate their hard work and desire in a proud tradition.

“You were protesting their right to devote years of their lives, their friendships, and their souls to the fair pursuit of the joys and the hardships of sport. You, who would make a mockery of their dedication and their courage, are a mockery of a man.”

Oxford lost the 158th boat race to Cambridge when the event eventually re-started. Cambridge quickly overturned the narrow advantage held by Oxford prior to Oldfield’s intervention. Then a broken oar doomed hopes of victory for Oxford.”