I don’t often recommend books I’ve read; but I have recently
finished a very good one: The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James
Brown. This is a book that almost anyone
will enjoy reading – even bring a tear or two to your eyes – at least it did to
mine – very inspirational. It will make
a great movie.
This is a book about the ‘boys’ who made up the University
of Washington’s ‘eight – oar crew’ that won the 1936 Olympic Gold in rowing; held
in Germany (Nazi Germany).
The ‘boat’ has eight rowers and a coxswain for a crew total
of nine. The book, researched in detail,
delves into all their lives, but principally chronicles the life of Joe Rantz
and his hardscrabble, early life – literally abandoned and orphaned at the age of
fifteen.
The gold medal in the 1936 Olympic, 2000 meter race, was won
by these American college boys, who found their ‘swing’ and pulled together
a come-from-behind upset victory.
Germany’s hand-selected team finished third behind the Italian Team.
“On the balcony of Haus West, Hitler turned and strode back
into the building, unspeaking. Goebbels
and Goring and the rest of the Nazi officials scurried in behind him.”
The ‘boys’ winning, record time was 6 minutes 26.4 seconds. This record was an incredibly fast time for
the period.
Incidentally, and it should not detract in any way from the
1936 victory (training regimens and equipment have greatly improved over the years); but
Canada now holds the record at 5 minutes 19.35 seconds, set in 2012.
True Nelson
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