Rowing at the 1972 Summer Olympics – Men's single sculls

The men's single sculls 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 18 competitors from 18 nations, with each nation limited to a single boat in the event.[2] The event was won by Yury Malyshev of the Soviet Union, the nation's fifth victory in the event; the Soviets returned to the top of the podium after having their four-Games (1952–1964) winning streak broken in 1968. Alberto Demiddi of Argentina took silver, the seventh man to win multiple medals in the single sculls (adding to his 1968 bronze). Wolfgang Güldenpfennig earned bronze, the first medal for East Germany as a separate team (East German rower Achim Hill had won two gold medals for the United Team of Germany in 1960 and 1964).

Men's single sculls
at the Games of the XX Olympiad
Aerial view of the venue in Oberschleißheim
VenueOberschleißheim Regatta Course
Dates27 August – 2 September
Competitors18 from 18 nations
Winning time7:10.12
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Yury Malyshev
 Soviet Union
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Alberto Demiddi
 Argentina
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Wolfgang Güldenpfennig
 East Germany
← 1968
1976 →

Background

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This was the 16th appearance of the event. Rowing had been on the programme in 1896 but was cancelled due to bad weather. The single sculls has been held every time that rowing has been contested, beginning in 1900.[2]

Two of the 17 single scullers from the 1968 Games returned: bronze medalist (and 1964 fourth-place finisher) Alberto Demiddi of Argentina and sixth-place finisher Kenny Dwan of Great Britain. Demiddi was favored in Munich; along with his prior Olympic experience, he was the reigning (1970) World Champion, a two-time (1967 and 1971) Pan American champion, and the 1971 Diamond Challenge Sculls winner.[2]

Bermuda, Bulgaria, Ireland, and Portugal each made their debut in the event. Great Britain made its 14th appearance, most among nations, after missing only its second edition of the event in 1964.

Competition format

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This rowing event was a single scull event, meaning that each boat was propelled by a single rower. The "scull" portion means that the rower used two oars, one on each side of the boat. The course used the 2000 metres distance that became the Olympic standard in 1912.[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 6 boats each. The top boat in each heat (3 total) advanced directly to the semifinals. The remaining boats (15 total) went to the repechage.
  • Repechage: Three heats of 5 each. The top three boats of each heat (9 total) rejoined the quarterfinal winners in the semifinals. The other boats (6 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 9:00 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 11:00 Final A

Results

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Quarterfinals

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The winner of each of the three heats qualified for the semifinal round, while the remainder went to the repechage.

Quarterfinal 1

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Alberto Demiddi   Argentina 7:46.09 Q
2 Udo Hild   West Germany 7:48.12 R
3 Melchior Bürgin   Switzerland 8:00.20 R
4 Janis Rodmanis   Chile 8:23.38 R
5 James Butterfield   Bermuda 8:29.20 R
6 Guillermo Spamer   Mexico 8:38.63 R

Quarterfinal 2

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Yury Malyshev   Soviet Union 7:42.67 Q
2 Wolfgang Güldenpfennig   East Germany 7:46.31 R
3 Seán Drea   Ireland 7:47.64 R
4 Jim Dietz   United States 7:57.85 R
5 Jaroslav Hellebrand   Czechoslovakia 7:58.15 R
6 Lennart Bälter   Sweden 8:12.92 R

Quarterfinal 3

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Yordan Valchev   Bulgaria 7:50.29 Q
2 Murray Watkinson   New Zealand 7:51.29 R
3 Kenny Dwan   Great Britain 7:57.49 R
4 Kim Børgesen   Denmark 7:58.94 R
5 Hideo Okamoto   Japan 8:20.82 R
6 José Margues   Portugal 8:39.73 R

Repechage

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The top three finishers in each heat qualified for the semifinal round.

Repechage heat 1

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Udo Hild   West Germany 7:48.11 Q
2 Seán Drea   Ireland 7:50.27 Q
3 Kim Børgesen   Denmark 7:56.66 Q
4 Lennart Bälter   Sweden 8:11.07
5 James Butterfield   Bermuda 8:26.16

Repechage heat 2

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Wolfgang Güldenpfennig   East Germany 8:05.19 Q
2 Kenny Dwan   Great Britain 8:10.32 Q
3 Jaroslav Hellebrand   Czechoslovakia 8:19.28 Q
4 Janis Rodmanis   Chile 8:29.66
5 José Margues   Portugal 8:54.27

Repechage heat 3

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Jim Dietz   United States 7:59.13 Q
2 Melchior Bürgin   Switzerland 8:04.81 Q
3 Murray Watkinson   New Zealand 8:11.51 Q
4 Hideo Okamoto   Japan 8:27.36
5 Guillermo Spamer   Mexico 8:40.76

Semifinals

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The first three in each semifinal heat qualified for Final A, with the remainder going to Final B.

Semifinal 1

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Alberto Demiddi   Argentina 8:10.01 QA
2 Wolfgang Güldenpfennig   East Germany 8:16.35 QA
3 Melchior Bürgin   Switzerland 8:16.95 QA
4 Yordan Valchev   Bulgaria 8:17.64 QB
5 Seán Drea   Ireland 8:27.70 QB
6 Jaroslav Hellebrand   Czechoslovakia 8:44.60 QB

Semifinal 2

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Rank Rower Nation Time Notes
1 Yury Malyshev   Soviet Union 8:13.49 QA
2 Jim Dietz   United States 8:21.54 QA
3 Udo Hild   West Germany 8:26.37 QA
4 Kim Børgesen   Denmark 8:27.93 QB
5 Murray Watkinson   New Zealand 8:30.88 QB
6 Kenny Dwan   Great Britain 8:38.62 QB

Finals

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Final B

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Rank Rower Nation Time
7 Seán Drea   Ireland 7:55.33
8 Yordan Valchev   Bulgaria 7:59.55
9 Kenny Dwan   Great Britain 8:00.38
10 Murray Watkinson   New Zealand 8:05.42
11 Kim Børgesen   Denmark 8:09.04
12 Jaroslav Hellebrand   Czechoslovakia 8:11.04

Final A

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Rank Rower Nation Time
  Yury Malyshev   Soviet Union 7:10.12
  Alberto Demiddi   Argentina 7:11.53
  Wolfgang Güldenpfennig   East Germany 7:14.45
4 Udo Hild   West Germany 7:20.81
5 Jim Dietz   United States 7:24.81
6 Melchior Bürgin   Switzerland 7:31.99

Results summary

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Rank Rower Nation Quarterfinals Repechage Semifinals Finals
  Yury Malyshev   Soviet Union 7:42.67 Bye 8:13.49 7:10.12
Final A
  Alberto Demiddi   Argentina 7:46.09 Bye 8:10.01 7:11.53
Final A
  Wolfgang Güldenpfennig   East Germany 7:46.31 8:05.19 8:16.35 7:14.45
Final A
4 Udo Hild   West Germany 7:48.12 7:48.11 8:26.37 7:20.81
Final A
5 Jim Dietz   United States 7:57.85 7:59.13 8:21.54 7:24.81
Final A
6 Melchior Bürgin   Switzerland 8:00.20 8:04.81 8:16.95 7:31.99
Final A
7 Seán Drea   Ireland 7:47.64 7:50.27 8:27.70 7:55.33
Final B
8 Yordan Valchev   Bulgaria 7:50.29 Bye 8:17.64 7:59.55
Final B
9 Kenny Dwan   Great Britain 7:57.49 8:10.32 8:38.62 8:00.38
Final B
10 Murray Watkinson   New Zealand 7:51.29 8:11.51 8:30.88 8:05.42
Final B
11 Kim Børgesen   Denmark 7:58.94 7:56.66 8:27.93 8:09.04
Final B
12 Jaroslav Hellebrand   Czechoslovakia 7:58.15 8:19.28 8:44.60 8:11.04
Final B
13 Lennart Bälter   Sweden 8:12.92 8:11.07 Did not advance
14 James Butterfield   Bermuda 8:29.20 8:26.16
15 Hideo Okamoto   Japan 8:20.82 8:27.36
16 Janis Rodmanis   Chile 8:23.38 8:29.66
17 Guillermo Spamer   Mexico 8:38.63 8:40.76
18 José Margues   Portugal 8:39.73 8:54.27

References

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  1. ^ "Rowing at the 1972 Munich Summer Games: Men's Single Sculls". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Single Sculls, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  3. ^ "Why Do We Race 2000m? The History Behind the Distance". World Rowing. 1 May 2017. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
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