Single Sculls, Men1

The favorite in the single sculls event in Helsinki was Australia’s Merv Wood, the defending Olympic and British Empire champion and two-time winner (1948, 1952) of the Diamond Challenge Sculls at the Henley Royal Regatta. Reigning two-time European Champion from Denmark Erik Larsen died shortly prior to the Olympics, leaving American Jack Kelly, Jr. (son of three-time Olympic rowing champion Jack Kelly, Sr.) as the sole gold medalist from that tournament to compete in Helsinki. Other notable competitors included Eduardo Risso of Uruguay, the defending Olympic silver medalist, Great Britain’s Tony Fox, winner of the 1951 Diamond Challenge Sculls and runner-up in 1952 and at the 1951 Europeans, Paul Meyer of Switzerland, the reigning European bronze medalist, and Ian Stephen of South Africa, bronze medalist at the 1950 British Empire Games.

Fox, Wood, and Kelly won their heats in the opening round, along with Yury Tyukalov, who was representing the Soviet Union in its Olympic début. Fox and Tyukalov were the winners in the semi-finals, while Kelly was eliminated in the repêchage after being bested in his heat by Poland’s Teodor Kocerka. Stephan and Wood rounded out the final, which quickly developed into a race for gold between Tyukalov and Wood. The Australian led the charge for the first half, but Tyukalov gradually picked up his pace, for which Wood had no response. Tyukalov therefore captured the USSR’s first Olympic rowing gold medal, while Wood had to settle for second place. Kocerka, then almost as unknown as Tyukalov, bested Fox by over three seconds to take home bronze.