INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

73. Early Rowing in Italy

Scipione Del Giudice Gli Scarronzoni

National Gallery, London

A Regatta on the Grand Canal Antonio Canaletto, c. 1740

Italy is well suited geographically to the sport of rowing. It is a country with excellent harbors along its relatively calm Tyrrhenian and Adriatic coastlines and has a history of rowing that goes back to before the Romans. Much of its geographical interior boasts navigable rivers, lakes and

lagoons that have provided commercial transportation corridors since antiquity. Among the earliest regattas in history were those held in the Middle Ages in Venice. In fact, the English word regatta comes from the Italian. When modern sport rowing first came of age on the European continent in the late

728

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Francesco Querini Luomo e la storia La Societ Canottieri nel Centenario di Fondazione

1911 Canottieri Querini di Venezia Eight Italian Champion, European Champion Bow Scipione Del Giudice, 2 Brenno Del Giudice, 3 Curzio Del Giudice, 4 Luigi Armellini, 5 Mario Tres, 6 Tullio Rosada, 7 Giovanni Nenzi, Stroke Gino Solesin, Coxswain Giuseppe Mion

19th and early 20th Centuries, Italy was a major participant along with Belgium, France and Switzerland. Clubs were founded on lakes such as Lago di Como and Lago Maggiore in the north, in river towns such as Pisa and Florence and Rome, in harbor towns such as Genova, Livorno and Naples, and in the city of canals, Venice, the home of the first great star of Italian rowing.

Scipione Del Giudice

Rowing historian Maurizio Ustolin: On May 16, 1901, a new rowing club was founded in Venice, Canottieri Querini di Venezia.2510 It took few years for them to record their first victories. The first time you see the name of Scipione Del Giudice was 1904 when he won his first Italian Championship in a fouroared coxed open-water gig at Bocca dArno. At his debut, Scipio Del Giudice was not yet sixteen.
2510

In 1905 in Como, Canottieri Querini won its first Italian Championship in the coxed-four with Scipio Del Giudice, Ecole Olgeni, Emilio Fontanella, Finotti Antoni and coxswain Corrado Benedettelli, acquiring the right to participate in the XIII European Championships in Ghent in Belgium. The FISA Centenary Book 18921992: In the coxed-four, victory to the Belgian hosts, but the Venetians crossed the finish line in second place ahead of the French.2511 Canottieri Querini thus began a sevenyear series of strong showings at European Championships, leading the way for other Italian clubs to follow. Their stable of young athletes, led by the first hero of Italian rowing, Scipione Del Giudice [18881950], and eventually including two of his brothers, established the first dynasty in Italian rowing. In 1906, Scipio, 17, his pair partner Ercole Olgeni, 22, and coxswain Giuseppe
2511

named in memory of Francesco Querini, a young officer of the Italian Royal Navy lost in the Arctic Ocean during the attempt by the Duke of the Abruzzi to reach the pole North.

Maurizio Ustolin, Scipione Del Giudice Campione Veneziano, www.canottaggio.org

729

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Scipione, Olgeni and Mion placed second to their adversaries from the previous year, Visser, Molmans and Colpaert from Belgium. The following year, 1909, was the highwater mark for Canottieri Querini, which won the coxed-pair, coxed-four and eight at the Italian Championships. Scipione and Brenno were joined on that squad by their 15-year old brother, Curzio. At the XVII European Championships in Paris, the Querini won the coxed-pair and coxed-four and came in second to France in the eight. With the help of a new pair partner, Luigi Armellini, Scipione had now won his third and fourth European Gold Medal of his career. In 1910, Scipione Del Giudice was a member of the winning Querini coxed-pair and coxed-four at the Italian Championships. At the European Championships, Italy was represented in the other three traditional events, the single, double and eight, by another Venetian club, Canottieri Bucintoro, founded in 1882. Ustolin: Against very hard competition, the Querini won (for the third consecutive year) the coxed-four and finished second in coxed-pair with Bucintoro, less lucky, finishing second in all the other three races.2513 Scipiones medal count was now five. In 1911, the European Championships were held on Lake Como. Of the five events (single, double, coxed-pair, coxed-four, eight), the honor of representing Italy was divided between Querini Venezia, Bucintoro Venezia and Lario Como. The day started with Querini losing the coxed-four to Grasshopper Club Zrich of Switzerland in a race so close it caused problems for the officials.

Francesco Querini Luomo e la storia La Societ Canottieri nel Centenario di Fondazione

Scipione Del Giudice

Mion won the Italian pair championship for their club, and then went to the European Championships in Pallanza, Italy and upset Guillaume Visser, Urbain Molmans and coxswain Rodolphe Clopaert of Belgiums Sport Nautique de Gand, the defending champions in the pair and members of the winning 1906 Grand Challenge Cup eight.2512 Besides their Silver in Pallanza behind the young Italians in the coxed-pair, that year they would again win the coxed-four and eight. In 1908, Del Giudice won the Italian Championships in the coxed-pair and coxedfour, and then at the European Championships he won his second Gold Medal, this time in the coxed-four with his twin brother, Brenno Del Giudice, along with Olgeni, Mario Tres, and coxswain Giuseppe Mion. Then in the coxed-pair,
2512

2513

See previous chapter.

Maurizio Ustolin, Scipione Del Giudice Campione Veneziano, www.canottaggio.org

730

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Bucintoro then won the coxed-pair with Ercole Olgeni, Scipiones former pair partner, at stroke. Home club Lario won the single with Giuseppe Sinigaglia and the double with Sinigaglia and Teodoro Mariani, the 1909 singles champion. Ustolin: Then the day ended with a superb victory in the eight in which Querini earned the first Italian title ever in that event2514 after Centoventanni in Voga nine Silvers and seven 1920 Canottieri Bucintoro Venezia Coxed-Pair Bronzes in eighteen years. 1920 Olympic Champion All three Del Giudices were Coxswain Guido de Filip (not seen), on board, with Scipione Stroke Ercole Olgeni, Bow Giovanni Scatturin earning his sixth and final European Gold Medal. Italy had won the Glandaz Cup in 1909 and 1911, given by an Englishman named Whitaker, who FISA annually to the nation that won the donated a cup, there began an annual largest number of European titles. competition between Bucintoro and Querini Ustolin: In 1912, Bucintoro got the on the Giudecca Canal. On 29 May 1921, selection to represent Italy in the eight at the the students of Del Giudice brought home Stockholm Olympics in a race-off with their the first victory in a very emotional race. Venetian neighbors. The race ended in a Thus began Del Giudices career as a collision blamed on the Querini, and there coach, judge, referee, manager.2515 was a consequent unpleasant fight. The Scipione Del Giudice passed away in Italian Rowing Federation disqualified both 1950. clubs for one year and canceled the Italian participation in the eight at the Olympics Canottieri Bucintoro Venezia went on that year. to great international success in the coxedAfter some dark years, including those pair event. After winning the 1911 of the Great War, the name of Scipio Del European Championship with Enrico Bruni, Giudice reappeared in 1921 when he and his Scipione Del Giudices original pair partner brother, Curzio, represented Italy in the at Querini, Ercole Olgeni, won 1920 coxed-pair in Amsterdam at the XXIII Olympic Gold and 1924 European Bronze European Championships, but no luck. and Olympic Silver with Giovanni Once he had hung up his oars, Scipione Scatturin. Del Giudice became his clubs coach of In the 1930s, Bucinteros Almiro junior outrigger eights. On the initiative of Bergamo and Guido Sangrin with
2514

Maurizio Ustolin, Scipione Del Giudice Campione Veneziano, www.canottaggio.org

2515

Maurizio Ustolin, Scipione Del Giudice Campione Veneziano, www.canottaggio.org

731

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Centoventanni in Voga

1911 Canottieri Lario Como Double Stroke Teodoro Mariani, Stroke Giuseppe Mariani 1911 European Champion, Lago di Como 1913 European Silver medalist, Ghent Mariani was 1909 European Singles Champion Sinigaglia was 1911 Singles Champion, 1912 Silver Medalist He won the Diamond Sculls in 1914.

coxswain Luciano European Gold, 1936 European Silver and before the war competition.

Negrini won 1935 Olympic Silver, 1937 1938 European Gold suspended rowing

winners, Canottieri Pullina dIsola (today a part of Slovenia), went on to win Olympic Gold in Amsterdam. Livorno (Leghorn in English) is an industrial port city south of Pisa on the western coast.2516 Livornese international rowing success began with two brothers, Pierluigi and Roberto Vestrini, nicknamed the two Moors, who rowed for LUnione Canottieri Livornesi and with coxswain Cesare Milani first won the Italian title and European Silver in the coxed-pair in 1926.

The story of the Del Giudice brothers was not uncommon in 20th Century Italian rowing. There were the three Ghiardello brothers, Antonio, Mario and Andrea, who rowed for Canottieri Argus in Santa Margherita Ligure on the Tyrrhenian coast near Portofino. They won European Championships in the coxed-four in 1926 and 1927. In the Italian Olympic Trials of 1928, they came in a close second despite one of the brothers having had his appendix removed only a few days before. The Trials

2516

known today by rowers as the home of Cantiere Navale Donoratico and Cantiere Filippi, makers of rowing shells.

732

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

In 1927 they won Italian and European Championships in both the coxed-pair and the coxless-pair, but at the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam, they were eliminated in the second round of the coxed-pair when they capsized against the eventual Gold Medalists, the Schchlin brothers from Switzerland. They won the coxed-pair once more at the 1929 Italian and European Championships before Pierluigi retired.

Giuseppe Sinigaglia
Giuseppe Sinigaglia, Canottieri Lario Como, 1911 European Champion in the single and in the double double with Teodoro Mariani, was another Italian rowing hero. According to The Times of London (July 1, 1914), the 66 200 cm 206 lb. 93 kg Sini was one of the biggest men that ever sat in a sculling boat at Henley. Besides his 1911 European titles, he was Italian champion in greco-roman wrestling in 1905 and European Silver Medalist in the coxed-pair2517 in 1907 with Annibale Baretta, the single in 1912 and the double with Mariani in 1913. He won the Diamond Sculls in 1914. He was posthumously awarded the Italian Silver Medal of Military Valor for his service in the battle for the Cima Quattro di San Michele during World War I.

Riefenstahl, Olympia, Teil II:Fest der Schnheit

Mario Checcacci The Scarronzoni Technique captured by Leni Riefenstahl

Gli Scarronzoni
In 1928, Canottieri Livornesi also formed an eight composed Vittorio Cioni, Enrico Garzelli, Guglielmo Del Bimbo, Mario Del Bimbo, Dino Barsotti, Eugenio Nenci, Enzo Favilla, Renato Tognaccini and coxswain Mario Ghiozzi. They were soon joined by Roberto Vestrini and coxswain Cesare Milani from the 1927 European Champion Livorno coxed-pair.
2517

Between 1928 and 1941, the eight from Canottieri Livornesi would earn twelve Italian titles in the eight, one Bronze, three Silver and two Gold Medals in the European Championships as well as two Silver Medals at the Olympics in Los Angeles and Berlin.2518 In the beginning, they may have been destined for greatness, but it was hard to tell. At their first race they earned the pejorative nickname gli Scarronzoni. www.canottaggio.org: They were all stevedores, laborers, workers of the Port of Livorno, people accustomed to hard work.2519 At the [1928] Tuscan championships, the movements of the
2518

Behind Visser, Molmans and Colpaert. See previous chapter.

http://livorno.guidatoscana.it/calciosport/canottaggio.asp 2519 Enrico Paradisi, Addio al Mitico Oreste Grossi, www.canottaggio.org

733

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Il Corriere di Livorno

1932 Unione Canottieri Livornesi Eight Olympic Silver Medal, Alamitos Bay Coxswain Cesare Milani, Stroke Vittorio Cioni, 7 Mario Balleri, 6 Renato Bracci, 5 Dino Barsotti, 4 Roberto Vestrini, 3 Gugliemo Del Bimbo, 2 Enrico Garzelli, Bow Renato Barbieri

oarsmen (for the most part habituated to fixed-seat rowing) were awkward and inelegant. They rowed with force and without technique. The boat scarrocciava or drifted left and right,2520 as they say in nautical terms. People who saw them rowing called them Scarronzoni, and the name stuck to all Livornese crews through 1948.2521

1932
The main coach of gli Scarronzoni was Mario Ghiozzi, a scholar of rowing styles.2522 He had been their first coxswain in 1928 and was later head technical commissioner of the Italian National Team.
2520 2521

http://www.marconcinican.it http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarronzoni 2522 Maurizio Ustolin, Il canottaggio e la photografia dautore, www.canottaggio.org

At their first Olympic appearance, the 1932 Livorno squad represented quite a contrast in maturity to the American and British university eights in Long Beach. The Cambridge Blue Boat, winners of the Boat race and the Grand Challenge Cup, averaged 22 years of age, and the undefeated California boys just 21. The Italians averaged 28. The Italian boat had been together virtually unchanged for four years and boasted thirty-two individual European Championship Medals. The Los Angeles Olympics was the first international competition for both the Brits and the Americans. The Italians would make use of their physical maturity to set a torrid pace down the course, not dropping below 38 strokes per minute. They beat Cambridge in their opening heat by six seconds in the fastest

734

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

UCLA Film/TV Archive

1932 Unione Canottieri Livornesi Eight Olympic Silver Medal, Alamitos Bay 0, +45 to -40, 0-7, 0-10, 0-10, rating 39 Last full stroke of Olympic final, so a little ragged. Classical Technique, hybrid-concurrent Kernschlag Strong leg drive to establish body suspension. Heads lifted and dropped in effort to maintain acceleration to release.

time of the regatta, beating the time of the U.S. in the other heat despite the fact that the Americans had been pressed hard until the end and had sprinted at 41. The Livornesi were a team that rowed with force more than finesse. There was a

lot of throwing of heads on the pullthrough, and they seemed to row with tremendous heart. Body angle forward at entry was at the practical maximum of +45, suggesting

735

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

British influence, and they rowed their oars into the water in the Fairbairn manner. Force application was hybrid-concurrent Kernschlag with crushing leg drive coordinated with an extraordinary 85 of dramatic back arc to very generous layback, another indication of British influence, albeit an amalgam of Thames Waterman and Fairbairn. Where they deviated most from the British norm was in their working-class attitude and work ethic. Rowing historian Maurizio Ustolin relates an anecdote about coxswain Cesare Milani taken from Oreste Grossis memoir, Canottaggio alla Ribalta.2523 At the presentation of the young scions of Cambridge University, opponents of the Scarronzoni at [the 1932 Olympics], Milani realized that every rower was being described as a peer of England, a title of nobility in the United Kingdom. After hearing yet another peer of England, Milani cried out from his position of short stature, Blessed are you who are equal! Livorno values everyone!2524

Riefenstahl, Olympia, Teil II:Fest der Schnheit

Cesare Milani

The blue collar world of communitybased Italian clubs full of rowers with fulltime jobs was indeed a far cry from Britains University-based sport for gentlemen of leisure. Ustolin: Even more typically Livornese is another curious episode that highlights the great pride of the Scarronzoni crew: Il Tirenno di Livorno: They were

Pocock Rowing Center

1936 Unione Canottieri Livornesi Eight Olympic Silver Medal, Langersee Bow Gugliemo Del Bimbo, 2 Dino Barsotti, 3 Oreste Grossi, 4 Enzo Bartolini, 5 Mario Checcacci, 6 Dante Secchi, 7 Ottorino Quaglierini, Stroke Enrico Garzelli, Coxswain Cesare Milani

2523 2524

Rowing in the Spotlight Maurizio Ustolin, Il canottaggio e la photografia dautore, www.canottaggio.org

training on the Lago di Maggiore at Pallanza and were leaving for a light row when one of the members laid down the gauntlet of challenge to his Livornese

736

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Riefenstahl, Olympia, Teil II:Fest der Schnheit

1936 Unione Canottieri Livornesi Eight Olympic Silver Medal, Langersee 0, +30 to -35-40, 0-7, 0-10, 6-10, Classical Technique, Schubschlag, rating 32 Leg drive remains strong early, but motion is concurrent. Heads lift and drop in effort to maintain acceleration to release.

teammates, saying something extremely effective but seldom heard in international rowing circles: Il budello di su m a chi molla.2525 After several hours of hard rowing, recalls Grossi, A motorboat arrived to stop us. We had crossed into Swiss waters [20 miles or 30 km up the lake from Pallanza].2526

1932 Olympic Final

The Olympic final in 1932 was a race for the ages. Nobody cracked for 2,000 meters! The four contestants, Italy, Great Britain, Canada and the United States, broke from the stakeboats, and the Americans quickly gained a deck. With both the U.S. and Italy at 40, gli Scarronzoni got to within three feet at the 1,000. The New York Times called the boats even from 1,200 to 1,500 and had the Italians ahead with 100 meters

2525

loosely and gently translated as gutless like your mother. 2526 Luciano di Majo, Era lultomo scarronzone, Il Tirenno di Livorno, February 16, 2008, p. 6

737

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

to go.2527 Livorno sprinted at 42, and California surpassed them at 44. The last few strokes were ragged in the Scarronzone boat. As can be seen in the illustration in this chapter, several members had lost their body swing and layback. The Italian boat crossed the line perhaps three feet behind. and the U.S. and Britain were even further back. Gli Scarronzoni maintained their form and discipline in the second 1,000. Germany pressed them and even cut the margin to just a few feet, but the Italians held firm to the end. The problem was the University of Washington on the far side of the course. As they had throughout their college season back home,2528 they moved through to the lead in the last 200 meters. Canottieri Livornesi had their second Olympic Silver Medal. Gli Scarronzoni won their second European title in 1937, but the war soon put an end to sports in Europe. Afterwards, the Scarronzoni era ended in 1948 with the retirement of the last of the Old Guard. Many went on to help administer the sport of rowing in Livorno and in the Italian federation. They had come to symbolize their community, their region and their culture. Years later, Il Corriere di Livorno quoted Oreste Grossi, 3-man at the Berlin Olympics: We were very close, he used to repeat to those who asked about the Silver Medal in 36. We loved one another like a family. It was thanks to that that we succeeded in winning all those medals.2529 Grossi was the last of gli Scarronzoni when he passed away at the age of 96 in 2008.

1936
A European Silver in 1933 and Bronze in 1934 followed the Los Angeles Olympics. A new eight with only four 1932 holdovers won the 1936 Italian Championships and qualified for the Berlin Olympics. Barsotti moved from 5 to 2, Del Bimbo from 3 to bow, and Enrico Garzelli moved from 2 up to stroke, and Milani continued as coxswain. The average age remained 28. Technique had changed significantly from 1932. Gone was the +45 body angle forward, replaced with a more mainstream +30. Gone, too, was the dominating Kernschlag leg drive, replaced by concurrent Schubschlag legs and back to the same -40 layback as 1932. The intent must to have been more efficient down the course and lose less technical discipline as the finish line approached. They also seemed to have had a much more relaxed approach to the regatta progression than they had in 1932. Rather than go all out in their opening heat, with only one to qualify they let Hungary lead them by a deck at the 1,000 and win by a 1.5 seconds. The Italians then qualified for the final the following day in what amounted to a paddle for them against Japan, Yugoslavia and Brazil. In the final in slow headwind conditions, they rowed a long powerful 32 and led Germany by a third of a length at the 1,000. The rest of the field seemed out of it. Heat winner Hungary had lost nearly a length,
2527

See Chapter xxx

See chapter xxx Enrico Paradisi, Addio al mitico Oreste Grossi, Il Corriere di Livorno, February 17, 2008, p. 11
2529

2528

738

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

77. Internationale Rotsee Ruderregatta

The Lake of the Gods

1980 Regatta Program

1892 Internationale Luzern Regatta Vierwaldstttersee, with the city hotels as background.

Today there are many famous artificial rowing courses. The Bosbaan in Amsterdam, Idroscalo near Milan, Xochimilcho in Mexico City, Feldmoching-Oberschleiheim near Munich, Holme Pierrepont near Nottingham, Schinias near Marathon and Dorney Lake near Eton have literally been created from open fields or swamps and wetlands. Each has been the site of triumphs and tragedies. Each has stories to tell. Other courses have taken advantage of existing bodies of water, often adding temporary infrastructure. Henley

immediately comes to mind, and it has hardly changed since the first regatta there in 1839. Today it is unique on the planet and irreplaceable in the hearts of rowers. But there is one other race course in the world, one modern rowing venue that stands above the rest, and that is Luzern.2530 Luzern is the largest city in central Switzerland, the capital of the canton of Luzern in lake country foothills of the Swiss Alps at an altitude of 430m or 1,400 ft.
2530

Lucerne in French and English, Lucerna in Italian and Luzern in German, and they speak German in that part of Switzerland.

739

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Wikipedia

Die Kapellbrcke, spanning the Reuss River in medieval Luzern

With much of its medieval charm preserved, the city straddles the Reuss River as it empties into the Vierwaldstttersee,2531 a 114km lake that meanders through four cantons, hence the name. One of Luzerns most famous landmarks is the Kapellbrcke,2532 a 204m wooden bridge across the Reuss originally built in 1333.

Rowing in Luzern
Organized amateur rowing began in Luzern with the founding of See-club Luzern in 1881. They held their first regatta in front of the great hotels of the city on the Vierwaldstttersee in 1883. In 1903, the Regattavereins Luzern was founded, followed by Ruder-Club Reuss Luzern in 1904, and the annual

Internationale Ruderregatta Luzern began to be held. In 1908, the European Championships came to Luzern for the first time. There four nations and five events. By the arrival of the European Championships for a second time in 1924, eleven nations took part, and Switzerland won five of the seven events. In 1931, womens events were added to the annual regatta.

Der Gttersee
Luzern Regatta Program, 1980: Unacceptable water conditions, mainly turbulent waves and increasing shipping traffic, forced the organizers to seek a new stretch of water for suitable for the regatta.2533 Just over a low ridge from the city, less than a kilometer from the Kapellbrcke, is

2531

Lake of the Four Forested Cantons, familiarly referred to as Lake Lucerne. 2532 Chapel Bridge

2533

1980 Regatta Program

740

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Kalt-Bucher Druck

The site of the Internationale Rotsee RuderRegatta The Rotsee from the north. The finish line is to the right. The city of Luzern is situated in the middle distance straddling the end of the Vierwaldstttersee.

situated the Rotsee,2534 around 150m. wide, just over 2,000m. long, sheltered from wind by surrounding hills and looking like the gods had created it just for rowing. In 1933, the annual regatta was moved there. Tomi Keller, for many years the head of FISA: The Rotsee is ideal for rowing events. Not only does its location between two extended slopes vest it with a particular scenic charm it also provides fair and equitable conditions to all participants.2535 Fredy Bachmann, 1972 Swiss Olympic Silver Medalist: I am completely in love
2534 2535

with the Rotsee and its fabulous surroundings. Here it is certain that only the best will win.2536 The Swiss Rowing Championships were first held on the Rotsee in 1933, followed by the European Rowing Championships in 1934. The first post-war European Championships were held on the Rotsee in 1947. FISA held the first-ever World Rowing Championships on the Rotsee in 1962. When women were added to the World Championships in 1974, it was

Red Lake 1980 Regatta Program

2536

1980 Regatta Program

741

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

1980 Regatta Program

The Rotsee Finish Line from the North

at Luzern, and the Worlds have returned to the Rotsee in 1982 and 2001. Since the founding of the annual World Cup series of summer regattas in 1990, Luzern has been included every year with the sole exception of 2001, when the World Championships were held there. No other regatta has been so honored. History has been made over and over on the Rotsee, and we will return there many times in this book. Neue Zrcher Zeitung, Zurich, 2004: Without a hint of arrogance, Lucerne can rightly claim to host the premier global elite

rowing event alongside the World Championships or Olympics. Just eight weeks before the [2004 Athens Olympic] Games begin, Lucerne has seen the firmest of pecking-orders turned on their heads. Now coaches and athletes will be scrutinising the Rotsee results, and working on their conclusions in extended training camps.2537 Tages-Anzeiger, Zurich, 2004: The Rotsee offered a day full of splendid races some in a hailstorm, some with other surprises. Upsets like the new U.S. coxless2537

www.ruderwelt-luzern.ch

742

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

four beating Canada and the famous Britons are what makes rowing so exciting.25382539 Among rowers around the world, the Rotsee has become known as der Gttersee, the Lake of the Gods.

2538 2539

See Chapter xxx. www.ruderwelt-luzern.ch

743

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

75. Italy After World War II

Moto Guzzi Canottieri Moto Guzzi

www.geocities.com

canottaggio.org

In Italy, the post-World War II years belonged to Canottieri Moto Guzzi, a small club organized for employees of the motorcycle plant in the small town of Mandello del Lario on Lake Como. The magic began as four young factory workers prepared for the 1947 European Championships.

1947 Canottieri Moto Guzzi Coxless-Four European Champions, Rotsee

Rowing historian Danilo Francescano: Rowing in these very difficult years,

is to practice a sport still little known, stingy with recognition and rewards, but it can also contribute to the rebirth of an Italy put on its knees by war, and for Giuseppe Moioli, Elio Morille, Giovanni Invernizzi and Franco Faggi, modest workers between 20 and 21years of age united by their passion for a discipline made up of hard work, sweat and sacrifice, it is really so. Luzern,2540 summer 1947. Thanks to the hospitality of the Swiss town, untouched by the terrible conflict that has devastated
2540

the world, the sport finally returned to competition, the European Rowing Championships are to be celebrated on the waters of the Rotsee, but in reality it is not just European as it is open to the strongest nations on the planet, the United States in particular.2541 Guzzi bow-man Franco Faggi: The trip [to Luzern] was made by train in economy class because an automobile would have cost too much. The boats were stowed inside an old freight wagon left over from the war. We had no international experience, and all the Italian hopes were concentrated on the coxed-pair from

2541

See previous chapter.

Danilo Francescano, Il Quattro senza di Giuseppe Moioli, www.storiedisport.it/schede/ canottaggio/

744

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Centoventanni in Voga

1947-52 Canottieri Moto Guzzi Coxless-Four Bow Franco Faggi 58 173 cm 159 lb. 72 kg, 2 Giovanni Invernizzi 61 186 cm 177 lb. 80 kg, 3 Elio Morille 510 178 cm 170 lb. 77 kg, Stroke Giuseppe Moioli 511 180 cm 175 lb. 79 kg

Libertas di Capodistria and the eight from Canottieri Varese. Giovanni and I were 21 years old, and Moioli and Morille were only 20. Four local boys from the countryside leaving familiar surroundings for the first time to challenge the world. Even within the Italian team, all the attention went to Capodistria and the flagship Varese crew. We were definitely the forerunners of doping, even if our EPO was rather special because it was made of a couple of bottles of local Olcio wine, produced in the Moioli vineyard,2542 who had also packed for us

refreshments consisting of a pair of sausages and a large wedge of cheese. Contrary to what is happening today with athletes who can barely carry the boat from trailer to the racks, upon us fell the task of unloading the boats from the freight car and transporting them with a cart pulled by a horse from the station to the Rotsee, which is not just around the corner in Lucerne. I remember that even Rossi, the federation secretary, rolled up his sleeves and helped us in the work.2543 Stroke-man Giuseppe Moioli: We were not well known internationally, and
2543

2542

You can still visit Moioli e Rizzi Enoteca in Mandello del Lario.

Qtd. by Bruno Carissimo, 1947: comincia la leggenda Canottieri Moto Guzzi, La Provincia di Lecco, June 12, 2007, www.canottaggio.org

745

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Storia di un Mito

3 Elio Morille 0, +40 to -30, 0-10, 0-10, 0-10 Classical Technique, concurrent Schubschlag Long back swing. Strong surge to release.

when we went out training we were watched with curiosity about our style of rowing, but caused no apprehension for our rivals.2544

Technique
To their opponents, the technique of the 1947-52 Moto Guzzi coxless-four must have seemed strange because of the amount of early arm break that they rowed with, but the rhythm they set was beautifully smooth. This is typical of a crew that has trained through long rows at low stroke. The Conibear crews of the same era in America are good examples.

2544

Qtd. by Bruno Carissimo, 1947: comincia la leggenda Canottieri Moto Guzzi, La Provincia di Lecco, June 12, 2007, www.canottaggio.org

As for idiosyncratic body mechanics, the Moto Guzzi four shared this with gli Scarronzoni, another group of well-muscled Italian artisans who worked extremely hard, long distance outings and had undeniable world-class speed despite an awkward appearance. In historical perspective, the Moto Guzzi four had a Fairbairnesque lack of concern for what was going on inside the gunwales in favor of what was going on at the blade. The pullthrough was fully concurrent Classical Technique. Force application was Schubschlag, as can be surmised from the early arm draw and the steady leg and back motion. Arms, backs and legs began motion together at the entry and ended together at the release. The goal was moving the boat. During their spurts, the rhythm was unique. The motion of the pullthrough

746

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Storia di un Mito

Canottieri Moto Guzzi Coxless-Four 0, +40 to -30, 0-10, 0-10, 0-10 Classical Technique, concurrent Schubschlag

appears smooth and patient with no shortening at either end, but the recovery was lightning fast with a concerted effort to get in as many of these patient strokes in per minute. At the end of a spurt, stroke-man Moioli visibly slowed the hands coming out of bow for a bit of slow-fast recovery. The pullthrough maintained its smooth, patient appearance.

other boats. Then the rating was dropped, and the boat would respond to attacks from behind when necessary. In this era, crews did not row a consistent pace for 2,000 meters. Races were won and lost on spurts. The Moto Guzzi four was devastating for 20 to 30 strokes, and they could repeat their moves as often as the competition required.

Race Strategy
From the very beginning of the clubs history, the race strategy was fairly typical of the era. Shortly after the start came a big effort to take the lead and separate from the

1947 European Championships

Moioli: The big favorite was Switzerland who had a rowing great in Kurt Schmid [63 190 cm 187 lb. 85 cm], big as

747

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

a wardrobe, and they were favored in both the coxed- and coxless-four. In the heat, we raced Czechoslovakia, one of the nations favored, which imposed a furious rhythm to the race, a challenge that I accepted willingly so that at three-quarters distance, we clearly separated from all the others. We were leading, and there were two to advance from the first heat, so we could take it easy, but I never liked the idea of arriving second, so I took the stroke way up while my classmates were asking me to slow down. We beat the Czechs clearly, scoring the fastest time of the heats, and from that moment our reputation went up, and some reporters started talking about the Italian coxless-four as a possible surprise.2545 Faggi: In the final, we stayed with the group for the first 500 meters, then Moioli hit the turbo, and night fell for our opponents.2546 Francescano: The race was over, and their triumphant arrival was recorded in the history of the Rotsee. La Canottieri Guzzi was Champion of Europe!2547 Faggi: At the trailers, we ran into the Swiss rower Schmid, who had not taken well his defeat at the hands of four Italian boys who had presumed to fight him in his home. He vowed that he would win the next time, something that never happened because until 1952 we were never beaten, even in a heat.2548
2545

Kurt Schmid and his Seeclub Zug partner, Hans Kalt, later won the 1950 European Championship in Milan in the coxless-pair. They also won Bronze in the 1952 Olympics. Faggi: On our return to Mandello, we were much feted by the club and by the Director of Moto Guzzi, Bonelli, who had a great admiration for us. It was the first time that Moto Guzzi had earned the highest recognition in a sport that was not motorcycle racing.2549

1948 Olympics
Francescano: For new champions, training was something more than athletic preparation. It was a mental process, a physical necessity. Morille would recount that typically on Monday afternoons, traditionally devoted to rest after the races Sunday, the four would take their leaves after work with plans to get back together the next day. Just as typically, shortly thereafter they would run into each other on the streets of Mandello, resolutions of rest would be forgotten, and the boat would be lowered into the water to grind tens of kilometers. The dream of the four, of course, had only one name: London 1948. All the preparations of coach Angelo Galdino Alippi (a former coxswain, also a worker at Guzzi) was aimed at that goal, which seemed within reach. The end of July 1948 arrived quickly, and the four workers left Italy for the English capital. London was only just starting to recover from the terrible bombing during the war. It was a miracle that they could host the Olympics. The Thames was an optimal training site, and under the
2549

Qtd. by Bruno Carissimo, 1947: comincia la leggenda Canottieri Moto Guzzi, La Provincia di Lecco, June 12, 2007, www.canottaggio.org 2546 Qtd. by Bruno Carissimo, 1947: comincia la leggenda Canottieri Moto Guzzi, La Provincia di Lecco, June 12, 2007, www.canottaggio.org 2547 Danilo Francescano, Il Quattro senza di Giuseppe Moioli, www.storiedisport.it/schede/ canottaggio/ 2548 Qtd. by Bruno Carissimo, 1947: comincia la leggenda Canottieri Moto Guzzi, La Provincia di Lecco, June 12, 2007, www.canottaggio.org

Qtd. by Bruno Carissimo, 1947: comincia la leggenda Canottieri Moto Guzzi, La Provincia di Lecco, June 12, 2007, www.canottaggio.org

748

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Official Report XIV Olympiad

1948 Mens Coxless-Four Final 1 ITA 6:39.0, 2 DEN 6:43.5, 3 USA 6:47.7

watchful eye of Galdino Alippi, the quartet soon regained a state of enviable shape. There is little to say about the Olympic competition. Guzzi was definitely the strongest crew, and no one in the heats or in the final was able to pose the least resistance. The finish-line photographs showed the enormous superiority of Moioli and associates, second-place Denmark arriving at the finish line four and a half seconds back and the U.S. Bronze Medalists at 8.7 seconds.2550 Corriere della Sera: The Italian four was carried into the lead, and after a hundred meters had already gained threequarters of a length on the Danes and a length and a half on the Americans. To be truthful, the latter were always detached and never took active part in the struggle.
2550

Danilo Francescano, Il Quattro senza di Giuseppe Moioli, www.storiedisport.it/schede/ canottaggio/

At the first shore point at five hundred meters, the announcer reported that the gap was a length and a half between the Italian crew and the Danes and that the Italians were striking at 32 beats per minute. At seven hundred and fifty meters a new alert: the Italian team with a two-length advantage, 34 beats per minute. For the others, the positions had not changed, apart from the fact that the Americans had lost more ground. A bit of glory. And so we arrived at fifteen hundred meters. Now binoculars were unnecessary. One could make out the shells, distinguish the rhythmic movements of the rowers and the blades glinting while exiting the water. At this time the announcer advised us that the gap between Italy and Denmark was just a length. Will they resist the burning final sprint of the Danes? We trembled because we felt that the Italians were a bit tired.

749

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

The four boys from Mandello del Lario had obviously taken a bit of a breather before attacking the finish, and in fact in the last two hundred meters the pace became overwhelming and we saw them cross the finish line without palpitations with more than two lengths of advantage. In vain did the Danes call on all their energies. At the finish, we had the strength to shout and smile, and their opponents almost struck their oarlocks. The four athletes who have given us this new victory are Moioli, Morille, Invernizzi and Faggi. It is good for us to remember the names, since the sport of rowing offers no money and only a modicum of glory.2551 Francescano: The quartet Guzzi, the only case ever of a crew consisting entirely of workers, entered the history of boating. Unfortunately for our boys, the prize that awaited them was far from the usual of today. A Moto Guzzi and a shift in employee category. Thats all. But the times were what they were, and Moioli, Morille, Invernizzi and Faggi regretted nothing. Thats for sure. Above all, the victories did not stop on London that afternoon, and the following years saw the four to rack up victories across the continent. In 1949 and 1950, the Guzzi boys again climbed to the top step of the European podium. The formidable adventure continued until the Games in Helsinki in 1952, when, not used to the salty waters of the fjords, they lost their title and ended their four-year unbeaten streak. It was the last act of a legend. It was time to pass the baton to other great teams, even if Moioli continued to race and win European Championships. Today Invernizzi and Morille are no longer with us, but Franco Faggi continues to regale with his tales of the epic Guzzi
Tre Vittorie allItalia, Il Nuovo Corriere della Sera, August 10, 1948
2551

coxless-four. If you pass by a part of the Lago di Como, and you happen to hear someone shouting in dialect to the boats in the water, move closer. You may encounter a young man of eighty years directing like an iron sergeant the new generation of rowing. Of course, only if it is not the period of pruning or harvesting and Joseph Moioli can forget for a while his beloved vines.2552

1956
After 1952, only Giuseppe Moioli continued rowing. With new teammates, he stroked the Moto Guzzi coxless-four to the 1954 European title on the Bosbaan and the 1956 titles in Bled. The team was deeper, with the Moto Guzzi coxed-four winning Bronze in Bled. This next generation of Moto Guzzi fours is best remembered today, a halfcentury later, for the unique arrangement of its riggers. Bill Lomas, Grand Prix Champion motorcycle racer: At Moto Guzzi, to ride and work for them was like being part of a family. Ing. Giulio Carcano, their chief engineer, was the most approachable genius I have ever met. Ing. Carcano could turn his talents to anything. Moto Guzzi had a big rowing club, its members all employees. In 55, the coxed-four and coxless-four teams were picked to represent Italy in the Olympic Games. The boats always had a slightly unsteady twisting motion. Carcano reasoned if this twisting could be eliminated, the boats would go faster. He rearranged the position of the oars, instead of left-right-left-right, he set them in a left-right-right-left configuration.

2552

Danilo Francescano, Il Quattro senza di Giuseppe Moioli, www.storiedisport.it/schede/ canottaggio/

750

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

John Cooke

1956 Canottieri Moto Guzzi Coxed-Four Olympic Gold Medal, Lake Wendouree Bow Romano Sgheiz 62 187 cm 185 lb. 84 kg, 2 Angelo Vanzin 166 lb. 75 kg, 3 Alberto Winkler 166 lb. 75 kg, Stroke Franco Trincavelli 61 185 cm 198 lb. 90 kg, Coxswain Ivo Stefanoni 55 165 cm 121 lb. 55 kg 0, +40 to -30, 0-10, 0-10, 0-10, Classical Technique, concurrent Schubschlag Relaxed posture at entry and release, high arc to back swing. International debut of the Carcano tandem or Italian rig.

Secretly, cine film was made of this to prove it, and the boats were definitely faster. However, the Italian Rowing Committee insisted that only one team could use the Carcano rowing system. In the Melbourne Olympics, the Carcano team got the Gold Medal whilst the other team only got Silver.2553 In Australia, the European Champion coxless-four rowing a standard rig, Abbondio Marcelli, Giovanni Zucchi, Attilio Cantoni and stroke-man Giuseppe Moioli, now 29 years old, won their heat by open water over Poland and Finland while
2553

the Vancouver/British Columbia four2554 set a time 5.3 seconds faster in winning their heat. The Italians then placed second by more than ten seconds to the U.S. in their semifinal, becoming the slowest qualifier for the final. Moto Guzzi was never a factor in the final.
1 CAN 2 USA 3 FRA 4 ITA 7:08.8 7:18.4 7:20.9 7:22.5

Bill Lomas, Bill Lomas World Champion Road Racer, Redline Books, Gateshead, UK, 2004, p. 7

It was the coxed-four who came to Lake Wendouree rowing what soon became known as the Carcano tandem or Italian
2554

See Chapter xxx.

751

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

Official Report XVI Olympiad

1956 Mens Coxed-Four Final 1 ITA 7:19.4, 2 SWE 7:22.4, 3 FIN 7:30.9, 4 AUS 7:31.1

rig. The bow-man was a young Moto Guzzi employee, Romano Sgheiz from Colico, a town 40 km north of the factory in Mandello del Lario. La Reppublica, 2004: Now Romano Sgheiz gives homemade honey to a visitor at his home overlooking Lake Como, the waters of his deeds. The physique is still impressive, a vague resemblance to John Charles.2555 A natural Hercules who at 18 began to row and at 19 won the Olympics. I had seven brothers. My mother was widowed from 45, and at 16 I began working as a laborer at Moto Guzzi in Mandello. I washed the engines of the racing department. Passing between departments I noticed Alippi, the rowing coach. Seeing I was big and strong, he asked me to go with him to the shed on the lake.
2555

a Welsh footballer during the 1950s.

Moto Guzzi had already built a legend, not only with motorbikes but also with boats. In London in 48, an all-Moto Guzzi crew had won the Gold in the coxlessfour. I started rowing, and my life was this: 5AM train from Colico to Mandello, training for two hours, then work from 8:30 till 17:00, then another two hours of workout. Then train back, dinner, sleep. The next year was already time for the Olympic Games, and Moto Guzzi had plenty of workers, and therefore also plenty of rowers. In addition to the historic coxlessfour, they also decided to boat a coxed-four. Ivo Stefanoni coxswain (who back then sat at the back of the boat), rowing stroke-man Franco Trincavelli, 3 Alberto Winkler, 2 Angelo Vanzin, and bow-man Romano Sgheiz. A very young crew. Trincavelli was 21 years old, Sgheiz 19, the others 24, and they

752

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

needed to develop. They finished third at the European Championships in Bled. The Olympics were in Melbourne in November, so there was time to improve. Trincavelli and Sgheiz weighed 90 kg, Winkler and Vanzin in the middle weighed 75, but they could not push the boat like the first two. Stefanoni could not reach by six to eight kilos the minimum weight of 50 kg required by regulation. His teammates worked harder, but he was determined to pay them back with better tactics. But the arrangement of the oars was the trademark of this boat. Rather than have the oars alternating, Trincavelli had a port oar. Then followed the two starboards, and then Sgheiz rowing port. But what happened? Sgheiz: Engineer Carcano, the brilliant inventor of so many motorcycles, had filmed the movement of the Official Report XVI Olympiad boat. He noticed that with Romano Sgheiz receives his medal from alternating oars, the boat had IOC President Avery Brundage. an imperceptible zigzag, while with the new disposition, the movement and grasses. For this reason, there were only was straight, kind of like a leaping dolphin. four lanes.2556 As a result, many have imitated us, but no one ever knew whether the Carcano The races started, and the coxed-four tandem was actually advantageous. easily won their heat and semifinal, The Olympics were on Lake eliminating Russia [Silver Medal in Bled]. Wendouree, a couple of hours from The finals were against the two European Melbourne. The crew had gained opponents, [European Champion] Finland confidence. The boat ran smoothly. and Sweden, and Australia. During warmSgheiz: We felt in shape. The race ups prior to the start, there was moment of course was carved from a basin full of reeds suspense. Vanzin cracked an oar like it was
2556

See photo, p. xxx

753

INTERNATIONAL ROWING TURNS PROFESSIONAL

caught in a vise. With the race only a few minutes away, the four rushed hundreds of meters through the reeds to get to the support dock and back, rowing like mad to return by five minutes before the start, as the regulations required. The race had no suspense. Moto Guzzi, or Italy, took the lead and left Sweden behind. Each time the Swedish boat made contact, Stefanoni accelerated the rating, and Italian boat took off. Sgheiz: We were in Lane 3. We started at 38-40 strokes per minute for the first 250 meters, then slowed to 32. We would return to around 40 for the finish. They won by 3.0 seconds over Sweden and 11.5 on the Finnish European Champions. Moto Guzzi added another title to its epic: in addition to Olympic titles, they won five Europeans in the coxless-four between 49 and 56, two Europeans in the eight in 57 and 58. These were times when rowing belonged to the workers. The return from the Olympics took an eternity. The federation asked if they wanted to go home by ship or by air, and the five chose the ship. The Neptune sailed from Melbourne in late December only to arrive in Naples thirty-one days later, after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, the Suez crisis having led to the closure of the Canal. In Colico, they hoped for a little convertible for a great triumph. The federation rewarded them with 300,000 lira [$500]. Moto Guzzi gave them a motorbike. Sgheiz: But it was not mine! The first one that woke up at home took it.2557

2557

Corrado Sannucci, I remi magici della Moto Guzzi a Melbourne loro degli operai, La Repubblica, May 7, 2004, p. 56

754