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Rowing at the 1972 Summer Olympics – Men's coxed four

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Men's coxed four
at the Games of the XX Olympiad
Aerial view of the venue in Oberschleißheim
VenueOberschleißheim Regatta Course
Dates27 August – 2 September
Competitors70 from 14 nations
Winning time6:31.85
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s)  West Germany
2nd place, silver medalist(s)  East Germany
3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  Czechoslovakia
← 1968
1976 →
Rowing at the
1972 Summer Olympics
Single scullsmen
Double scullsmen
Coxless pairmen
Coxed pairmen
Coxless fourmen
Coxed fourmen
Eightmen

The men's coxed four competition at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich took place from 27 August to 2 September at the Olympic Reggatta Course in Oberschleißheim.[1] There were 14 boats (70 competitors) from 14 nations, with each nation limited to a single boat in the event.[2] The event was won by West Germany; it was the nation's first medal as a separate team, but the third time in four Games that a West German crew had won gold (with crews from West Germany winning in 1960 and 1964 under the flag of the United Team of Germany). East Germany repeated as silver medallists, though with a new crew. Bronze went to Czechoslovakia, the nation's first medal in the men's coxed four since 1952.

Background

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This was the 14th appearance of the event. Rowing had been on the programme in 1896 but was cancelled due to bad weather. The coxed four was one of the four initial events introduced in 1900. It was not held in 1904 or 1908, but was held at every Games from 1912 to 1992 when it (along with the men's coxed pair) was replaced with the men's lightweight double sculls and men's lightweight coxless four.[2]

New Zealand's victory at the 1968 Olympics had been a surprise; teams from both East and West Germany had been dominant before then (winning the 1960 and 1964 Olympics, 1962 and 1966 World Championships, and most of the European championships). The Germans continued their form between Mexico City and Munich, with West Germany winning and East Germany the runner-up at the 1970 World Championship, along with both the 1969 and 1971 European championships. The two German crews were heavily favoured again at the 1972 Games.[2]

For the third time in five Games, no nations made their debut in the event. The United States made its 12th appearance, most among nations to that point.

Competition format

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The coxed four event featured five-person boats, with four rowers and a coxswain. It was a sweep rowing event, with the rowers each having one oar (and thus each rowing on one side). The competition used the 2000 metres distance that became standard at the 1912 Olympics and which has been used ever since except at the 1948 Games.[3]

The tournament used the four-round format (three main rounds and a repechage) that had been used in 1968. The competition continued to use the six-boat heat standardised in 1960 as well as the "B" final for ranking 7th through 12th place introduced in 1964.

  • Quarterfinals: Three heats of 4 or 5 boats each. The top three boats in each heat (9 total) advanced directly to the semifinals. The remaining boats (5 total) went to the repechage.
  • Repechage: One heat of 5 boats each. The top three boats rejoined the quarterfinal winners in the semifinals. The other boats (2 total) were eliminated.
  • Semifinals: Two heats of 6 boats each. The top three boats in each heat (6 total) advanced to Final A, the remaining boats (6 total) went to Final B.
  • Final: Two finals. Final A consisted of the top 6 boats. Final B placed boats 7 through 12.

Schedule

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All times are Central European Time (UTC+1)

Date Time Round
Sunday, 27 August 1972 14:00 Quarterfinals
Tuesday, 29 August 1972 9:00 Repechage
Thursday, 31 August 1972 11:30 Semifinals
Friday, 1 September 1972 10:00 Final B
Saturday, 2 September 1972 10:00 Final A

Results

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Quarterfinals

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The top three of each heat advanced to the semifinal round; the remainder went to the repechage.

Quarterfinal 1

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Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time Notes
1
Uwe Benter  West Germany 6:46.66 Q
2
Igor Rudakov  Soviet Union 6:50.21 Q
3
Peter Lindsay  New Zealand 6:51.76 Q
4
Stewart MacDonald  United States 6:56.01 R
5
Jørgen Cappelen  Norway 7:05.75 R

Quarterfinal 2

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Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time Notes
1
Rolf Stadelmann  Switzerland 6:53.30 Q
2
Alberto Cecchi  Italy 6:53.59 Q
3
Patrick Sweeney  Great Britain 6:57.33 Q
4
Vern Bowrey  Australia 7:07.00 R
5
Kim Wind  Denmark 7:08.22 R

Quarterfinal 3

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Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time Notes
1
Klaus-Dieter Ludwig  East Germany 6:44.57 Q
2
Vladimír Petříček  Czechoslovakia 6:49.41 Q
3
Kees de Korver  Netherlands 6:53.30 Q
4
Michael Conway  Canada 7:01.52 R

Repechage

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The top three finishers advanced to the semifinal round.

Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time Notes
1
Stewart MacDonald  United States 7:02.68 Q
2
Michael Conway  Canada 7:04.35 Q
3
Jørgen Cappelen  Norway 7:05.09 Q
4
Vern Bowrey  Australia 7:07.08
5
Kim Wind  Denmark 7:19.67

Semifinals

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First three qualify to the Final A, remainder to Final B.

Semifinal 1

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Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time Notes
1
Uwe Benter  West Germany 7:19.43 QA
2
Vladimír Petříček  Czechoslovakia 7:20.95 QA
3
Peter Lindsay  New Zealand 7:21.94 QA
4
Rolf Stadelmann  Switzerland 7:28.25 QB
5
Jørgen Cappelen  Norway 7:32.51 QB
6
Patrick Sweeney  Great Britain 7:35.11 QB

Semifinal 2

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Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time Notes
1
Igor Rudakov  Soviet Union 7:09.08 QA
2
Klaus-Dieter Ludwig  East Germany 7:11.12 QA
3
Stewart MacDonald  United States 7:18.59 QA
4
Kees de Korver  Netherlands 7:23.66 QB
5
Michael Conway  Canada 7:31.90 QB
6
Alberto Cecchi  Italy 7:34.67 QB

Finals

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Final B

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Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time
7
Kees de Korver  Netherlands 7:05.83
8
Rolf Stadelmann  Switzerland 7:07.80
9
Jørgen Cappelen  Norway 7:07.85
10
Patrick Sweeney  Great Britain 7:12.14
11
Alberto Cecchi  Italy 7:13.03
12
Michael Conway  Canada 7:16.13

Final A

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Rank Rowers Coxswain Nation Time
1st place, gold medalist(s)
Uwe Benter  West Germany 6:31.85
2nd place, silver medalist(s)
Klaus-Dieter Ludwig  East Germany 6:33.30
3rd place, bronze medalist(s)
Vladimír Petříček  Czechoslovakia 6:35.64
4
Igor Rudakov  Soviet Union 6:37.71
5
Stewart MacDonald  United States 6:41.86
6
Peter Lindsay  New Zealand 6:42.55

References

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  1. ^ "Rowing at the 1972 Munich Summer Games: Men's Coxed Fours". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 21 August 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Coxed Fours, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  3. ^ "Why Do We Race 2000m? The History Behind the Distance". World Rowing. 1 May 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
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