THE SPORT OF ROWING “I think we finished fourth one day and fifth the other day against a lot of Eastern European crews that were really angry because they weren’t going to Los Angeles. That was pretty good. “Nobody beat us in Lucerne that was going to show up at Los Angeles, with the possible exception of West Germany.”7310 That is not accurate. In the Sunday final, Altekruse and Bouscaren were relatively slow off the line but with the pack at 500 meters. The GDR crew led from Canada, with everyone else, including the U.S., around a length behind. At the 1,000, the American Double was a clear fourth, less than a meter behind the third-place Czechs and half a length ahead of Switzerland and the Norwegian crew of Thorsen and Hansen.7311 During the third 500, the very aggressive Canadians sprinted hard and took the lead over GDR. Charlie and Joe lost contact with the Czechs and found themselves about to be overtaken by Norway. In the last 500, the German Democratic Republic took back the lead for good. By the line, the Czechs just took second over a fading Canada, who then almost lost the Bronze to Norway on the last stroke. As the others surged to the finish, the U.S. fell away to fifth. This was a very good GDR double. Twenty-year-old Thomas Lange, 6’2” 189cm 196lb. 89kg, and the veteran Uwe Heppner, 6’5” 196cm 201lb. 91kg, who had been a member of the 1980 Olympic Champion Quad, were already 1983 World Doubles Champions and would win their second Doubles Championship in 1985. Lange would go on to win the Olympic Singles Gold Medal in both 1988 and 1992.7312 7310 Altekruse, op. cit. 7311 See Chapter 123. 7312 See Chapter 119. The second-place Czech Double from Dukla Praha (Prague), Václav Vochoska, 6’4” 192cm 187lb. 85kg, and Zdenĕk Pecka, 6’4” 193cm 194lb. 88kg, had been the 1980 Olympic Silver Medalists. Only GDR and CZE would not compete in Los Angeles due to the Soviet-led boycott. Geoffrey Page: “Denying that it was tit- for-tat for the American-led boycott of the Moscow Olympics, Soviet officials claimed that the reason was fear for the safety of their athletes in Los Angeles, and accused the Americans of organizing an anti-Russian campaign and violating the Olympic charter.”7313 The third-place Canadian Double of Tim Storm, 6’3” 190cm 183lb. 83kg, and Peter MacGowan, 6’3” 190cm 187lb. 85kg, had been fifth in the 1983 World Championships, one place ahead of the U.S. Double of Lewis and Enquist. In Los Angeles, they would advance through the repêchages but fade to sixth in the final. The fourth-place Norwegian Double7314 of Rolf Thorsen, 6’3” 191cm 198lb. 90kg, and 36-year-old Alf Hansen, 6’1” 185cm 187lb. 85kg, 1982 World Champions and 1983 World Silver Medalists, were in the midst of a down year for them. After failing to medal in Lucerne, they would fail to make the final and place tenth in Los Angeles. Still, they beat Bouscaren and Altekruse. The sixth-place Swiss Double from Grasshopper Club Zürich, Mark-Sven Nater, 6’4” 193cm 190lb. 86kg, and Urs Steinnemann, 6’0” 184cm 190lb. 86kg, would place eleventh on Lake Casitas. West Germany, the 1983 World Bronze Medalists, Andreas Schmelz, 6’5” 196 m 201lb. 91kg, and Georg Agrikola, 6’5” 195cm 196lb. 89kg, had beaten Altekruse 7313 Page, p. 153 7314 See Chapter 123. 2036
