Top 50 Cal Sports Moments -- No. 10: Rowing Gold, 1928

Rowing was a big spectator sport in the Bay Area in the 1920s, and when the Cal crew won the 1928 Olympic gold medal for the U.S. it set off a wild celebration in Berkeley

Crowd greets Cal's gold-medal varsity eight rowers in Berkeley in 1928 /

As the Pac-12 Conference era comes to a close after more than a century, we count down the Top 50 moments involving Cal athletics.

THE MOMENT: Early in the afternoon of Friday, August 10, 1928, the Cal crew, representing the United States in the men’s eight rowing event at the Antwerp Olympics, finished three-quarters of a boat length ahead of the British crew in the finals on Sloten Canal, winning the gold medal.  That victorious moment set off a wild celebration on the Cal campus 20 days later when the nine members of that gold-medal-winning men’s eight boat arrived home from The Netherlands and were paraded through the streets of Berkeley in front of thousands of onlookers.

THE STORY: You need to understand how popular rowing was as a spectator sport in the 1920s. Professional baseball, college football and boxing were the most popular sports in the country in that period, but in the Bay Area – and at Cal specifically – only the football crowds at Memorial Stadium were larger than the crowds of thousands that lined the banks of the Oakland Estuary when Cal competed in rowing events.

Until 1972, the U.S. Olympic representative in the men’s eight event – which was the featured rowing event – was the nation's top collegiate varsity eight crew, which earned its Olympic berth in trials against other collegiate boats.

In 1928, Cal’s varsity eight of coxswain Donald Blessing and rowers Marvin Stalder, John Brinck, Francis Frederick, William Thomas, William Dally, James Workman, Hubert A. Caldwell and Peter Donlon dominated the college scene and won the trials to get the U.S. berth for the Summer Games in Antwerp, The Netherlands.  Seven rowing categories were contested in the 1928 Olympics, but the men’s eight was by far the most prestigious.

Eleven boats from 11 countries were entered in the men’s eight at the Olympics, and they raced two at a time on the 2,000-meter course on the Sloten Canal in Sloten, Holland, to whittle down the field through many qualifying heats. The U.S. boat struggled to eliminate Canada by just 1.8 seconds in the semifinal round, while Great Britain, represented by the Thames Rowing Club and the co-favorite with the Americans, rowed unopposed in its semifinal heat, finishing with a leisurely, slow time.  That figured to give the rested British crew an advantage against the Americans in the final the next day, Friday, August 10.

However, in the Friday afternoon final before a crowd of 10,000, it was the Cal crew that was stronger, finishing the 2,000 meters in a time of 6 minutes, 3.2 seconds, which was three-quarters of a boat length and 3.2 seconds ahead of the British boat. When the U.S./Cal crew crossed the finish line to earn the gold medal it represented a historic moment in Cal sports, rivaling the Rose Bowl victory of 1921. Douglas McArthur, who would later gain fame in World War II, witnessed the victory and exclaimed, “This is the biggest thrill I’ve had.”  The banner headline atop Page One of the San Francisco Chronicle sports section on September 11, shouted “California Oarsman Win Olympic Championship.”

Two weeks later, on April 30, when the Cal crew members and coach Ky Ebright arrived back in the Bay Area, they received the type of hero’s welcome typically reserved for American Presidents. The route of their automobile journey from the Oakland train station to Berkeley was lined with well-wishers causing the short trip to take two hours.  Telegraph Avenue was jampacked with onlookers cheering as the parade of cars carrying the Olympic champions passed by.

The @Cal Varsity Crew team won Gold representing the USA at the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam. On August 30, 1928, they returned home to Berkeley with their 9 Gold Medals, to a tumultuous reception, including this parade up Telegraph Avenue and a rally at the Greek Theatre. pic.twitter.com/sxGfxnXGMi

— Cal Bears History (@CalBearsHistory) August 30, 2023

“No group of California men who ever won an athletic victory ever received a more hearty and enthusiastic welcome,” The San Francisco Chronicle reported the next day. “The entire city of Berkeley and the University of California participated in the ovation given the California crew, Olympic champions.

“41,000 Berkeley school children – given a half-day off – showered cars with flowers. Thousands of others lined the streets, while 10,000 more crammed into the Greek Theatre” where the procession ended and fans further celebrated the nine Cal oarsmen.

“There has been nothing like it in the history of sports,” said California governor C.C. Young at the September 30 affair.

Cal varsity crews won two more Olympic rowing gold medals for the United States – in 1932 and 1948 – but none could compare with the victory in 1928, when the Cal varsity eight, considered one of the best crews in history, won its first gold medal.

*Top 50 Moment No. 11: Big Upset, 1892

*Top 50 Moment No. 12: Pac-12 Dies, 2023

Only specific acts that occurred while the team or athlete was at Cal were considered for the Top 50 list, and accomplishments spanning a season or a career were not included. 

Leslie Mitchell of the Cal Bears History Twitter site aided in the selection of the top 50 moments.

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