Robert Buchanan Gerhardt (October 3, 1903 – January 23, 1989) was an American insurance businessman and broker. As a young

rower Rowing, often called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars (called blades in the United Kingdom) are attached to the boat using rowlocks, while paddles are ...

, he won a bronze medal in coxed four crew in the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad () and officially branded as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The opening ceremony was held on 5 July, but some competitions had al ...

in Paris.

Early life

Robert Buchanan Gerhardt was born to Mary Buchanon Gerhardt and Robert on October 3, 1903, in Baltimore, Maryland. Gerhardt had a very short rowing career, lasting only two years. He started out rowing in a four-oared gig for the Arundel BC in Baltimore, where he was born on October 3, 1903. His family moved to Philadelphia, and he joined the Bachelor's Barge Club, moving into their four-oared shell (coxed four) when one of their sweepers decided to take up sculling (rowing with two oars) exclusively. Using their coxed four, he qualified for the Olympics in a qualifying heat with the Bachelor's Barge Rowing Club, and four other members of the Club on Philadelphia's Schuylkill River on June 13, 1924. Gerhardt rowed third from the front in the qualifying heat, in front of Sydney Jellinek at fourth or stroke. In his professional career, Gerhardt made his living in the insurance and brokerage business, largely for Prudential Life.

Olympics

After their arrival in Paris, the American coxed four team won their heat in the preliminary round with a time of 7 minutes 19 seconds for the 1.24 mile course. In the final round, the Americans won the bronze medal in the

coxed four A coxed four, abbreviated as a 4+, is a racing shell used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat with sweep oars and is steered by a coxswain. The crew consists of four rowers, each having one ...

event. The coxed four rowing competition, the fourth appearance of the event, was held from July 13–17, 1924 on the river

Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plat ...

. There were 10 boats (51 competitors, with Switzerland making one substitution) from 10 nations, with each nation limited to a single boat in the event. The competition was won by Switzerland, the nation's second consecutive victory in the event, with France taking the silver medal. As shown at left, the coxed four event featured five-person boats, with four rowers and a

coxswain The coxswain ( or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the wiktionary:cockboat, cockboat, a ...

shown as a yellow dot. It was a sweep rowing event, with the rowers each having one oar and each rowing on one side. The competition used the 2000 metres (1.24 miles) distance that became standard at the 1912 Olympics and which has been used ever since. The Americans finished with a time of 7:23, only two and a half seconds behind France who took the bronze. Switzerland, the pre-race favorite, finished with a sizable three-minute lead over second place France. Bob Gerhardt took the position of bowsmen in the front, Sid Jelinek rowed in seat two, Edward Mitchell Jr. rowed third, Henry Welsford rowed fourth (last) or Sweep, and

John Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

functioned as coxswain. Gerhardt died on January 23, 1989, at Harston Hall Nursing Home in Erdenheim, ten miles North of Philadelphia. He worked for many years as an insurance agent for Prudential Life in the Philadelphia area. He was married to Elizabeth Arnott Gerhardt who pre-deceased him in April 1974."Death Notices, Gerhardt", ''Philadelphia Inquirer'', Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, pg. 32, April 14, 1974 He was survived by a son, a granddaughter and two sisters. His funeral services were held in St. Paul's Episcopal Church."Deaths Here", ''Philadelphia Inquirer'', Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, pg. 24, January 26, 1989

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Gerhardt, Robert 1903 births 1989 deaths Rowers at the 1924 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in rowing American male rowers Medalists at the 1924 Summer Olympics 20th-century American sportsmen