INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL to bask in the reflected glory of the accomplishment of the son, twenty-seven years after his own entry in the Diamond Sculls was refused. Taylor: “Kelly, Jr. reportedly wore his father’s old sculling hat in victory. The elder Kelly later sent the sweaty cap to the King of England.”3788 Valerie Dunn, Henley 1948 Olympic Semi-final, Henley Risso passes Kelly on the last stroke in a downpour of hail. transition more quickly to the recovery and row his races in a higher rating. His recovery began with the body continuing forward out of his ferryman’s finish, and as was described in the quote above, the hands followed relatively slowly. As a high school champion, young Kelly’s entry position used minimal leg compression and only +25° of body angle forward. Four years later, he was compressing as much as his father had a generation earlier.3787 1948 Olympics Young Kelly skipped the 1948 Henley Royal Regatta to focus on the Olympic Trials in Princeton, where the victorious University of Washington coxed- four remember him as gregarious and also remember his pretty sister, Grace, the future movie star and Princess of Monaco. Jack, Jr. won easily. At the Olympic Regatta at Henley, Kelly In addition, the ferryman’s finish, while still remaining subtle, became more pronounced, and layback diminished from -20° to -15°. Force application remained concurrent Schubschlag, but whereas Kelly, Sr. hung on to the water as long as possible, Kelly, Jr. cut the finish short a bit in order to hurry on to the next stroke. The Diamond Sculls Kelly’s first try at the Diamonds came in 1946 when he was beaten by three lengths in the final by Jean Séphériadès of France. The next year he met Carl Fronsdal of Bergens Roklub, Norway, in the final and defeated him “easily.” His father was there 3787 See Chapter 56. drew the least competitive heat and won with ease over the scullers from Sweden and Spain, neither of whom advanced past the repêchages. In his semi-final of three, with only one to qualify for the final, Kelly drew A.D. Rowe of Leander, destined to win the Diamond Sculls in 1950, and a lightly- regarded Uruguayan named Eduardo Risso. Kelly took the lead over Rowe and held it down the course just as a severe electrical storm swept through the area. Near the finish, a gale of wind slowed the three scullers down, and Risso passed the two spent leaders to win by a foot. Kelly was devastated. In the three-man final, Risso easily beat Italian Romolo Catasta of Circolo Canottieri Aniene in Rome to gain the Silver Medal, but he lost the Gold to Mervyn Wood of Australia by a whopping 13.8 seconds. 3788 Taylor, p. 93 1041
