THE SPORT OF ROWING the chest by the time the legs had completed their motion. This mirrored the 3rd Generation Conibear hybrid-concurrent innovation of Cornell University, which the Soviet coaches would have had a chance to study during Cornell’s impressive appearance at Henley in 1957.3111 In 1964, having lifted their heads and shoulders in the first half of the stroke, the posture of the Soviet crews would tend to collapse toward the finish, with the athletes rowing down into their laps with a hint of ferryman’s finish. In summary, by the 1960s the rowing style developed in the Soviet Bloc accelerated into a Fairbairnesque frontsplash entry, had upper bodies lifting vertically in the first half of their Kernschlag pullthrough and sagging during an abbreviated second half. They used legs, backs and arms in a Classical hybrid-concurrent manner which featured a strong emphasis on legs at the entry with arms struggling to finish the pullthrough. Kleshnev: “Unfortunately, in 1960s the role of some incorrect scientific concepts became negative. When force curve and instantaneous boat velocity data became available, wrong conclusions were made about the main criteria of efficient technique, which were defined as minimisation of variation of the boat speed and later peak of force application during the drive. These incorrect principles were widely promoted: even educational film was made for coaches and students.”3112 But the 1960s Moscow Style influence continued in the United States through Harry Parker, who had observed Klub Krasnoe Znamya in 1955 from his position in the 2-seat of the University of Pennsylvania Eight.3113 3111 See Chapter 70. 3112 Kleshnev, op. cit. 3113 See Chapter 65. Nine years later, he had the chance to closely study the 1964 Soviet Olympic Team as coach of the U.S. Coxed-Four from Harvard University.3114 Conventional wisdom says today that the Harvard Technique of the 1960s was based on that of Ratzeburger Ruderclub, whom we will discuss shortly. Indeed, Harry himself gives them a great deal of credit, but he will tell you that the crew that really caught his eye in 1964 was the Soviet Coxed-Four rowing the Moscow Style. Cross-Pollination By the late 1960s, the German Democratic Republic,3115 known familiarly as East Germany, came to dominate world rowing. Behind the Iron Curtain, GDR Style built on the Moscow Style and quickly and so completely overshadowed it that the seminal role of the original style of the Soviet Union was soon nearly forgotten by the rest of the world. Kleshnev: “The rowing technique of many Soviet crews was changed in 1970s: the catch became much softer, coaches taught rowers ‘Do not stop the boat at catch,’ ‘maintain boat speed,’ ‘pull handle before pushing stretcher at catch.’ Soviet coaches started copying Karl Adam’s style3116 with its active trunk drive at the catch and then DDR style, but copy is always worse than original. In 1970s and ‘80s, in spite of very good average level, many crews in finals and some outstanding crews (men’s single and double in 1972, men’s coxed-four in 1976, women’s double in 1980, men’s coxless-pair in 1981), the 3114 See Chapter 101. 3115 or GDR, in German Deutsche Demokratische Republik or DDR. The Bundesrepublik Deutschland (BRD) or Federal Republic of Germany was the official name of “West Germany.” See Chapter 119. 3116 See Chapter 92. 868
