Robert Gaston Moch (June 20, 1914 – January 18, 2005) was an American

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 ...

who won Olympic gold at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

. Moch was born and raised in

Montesano, Washington Montesano is a city in, and the county seat of, Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States. The population was 4,138 at the 2020 Census. History Medcalf Prairie According to Edwin Van Syckle, a portion of the present-day town of Montesano ...

. He was the class valedictorian at Montesano High in 1932. His father, Gaston Moch, was a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

immigrant watchmaker and jeweler from

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. He coxed the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

senior varsity eight which won US national

Intercollegiate Rowing Association The Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) governs College rowing (United States), intercollegiate rowing between Varsity team, varsity men's heavyweight, men's lightweight, and women's lightweight rowing programs across the United States, whil ...

titles in 1936. At the 1936 Olympics, he won the gold medal as

of the American boat in the eights competition. His role as a coxswain for the

and Olympic crew is explored in the 2013 non-fiction book by author Daniel James Brown, ''

The Boys in the Boat ''The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics'' is a non-fiction book written by Daniel James Brown and published on June 4, 2013. Background ''The Boys in the Boat'' is a true story based ...

''.Brown, Daniel James (2013). ''The Boys In The Boat'', Viking / Penguin Group, New York. . After college, Moch signed on as assistant crew coach at the

, under his old coach. Moch later went on to become the head crew coach at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and earned his law degree from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

. Moch became a successful lawyer in Seattle and won a case in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Moch, Robert 1914 births 2005 deaths People from Montesano, Washington American coxswains (rowing) Rowers at the 1936 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in rowing Washington Huskies men's rowers American male rowers Medalists at the 1936 Summer Olympics Harvard Law School alumni 20th-century American sportsmen