# Rowing at the 1928 Summer Olympics – Men's single sculls

The men's single sculls event was part of the rowing programme at the 1928 Summer Olympics. It was one of seven rowing events for men and was the seventh appearance of the event, which had been on the programme for every Games since rowing was added in 1900. There were 15 competitors, each from a different nation (as each nation could enter only one boat in the event). The event was won by Bobby Pearce of Australia, the nation's first medal in the event. Silver went to Ken Myers of the United States, extending that nation's podium streak to three Games (and making the nation four-for-four in reaching the podium each time it appeared). David Collet of Great Britain took bronze; that nation had also earned a medal each time it appeared (six times) and had a five-Games podium streak.

## Background

This was the seventh appearance of the event. Rowing had been on the programme in 1896 but was cancelled due to bad weather. The single sculls has been held every time that rowing has been contested, beginning in 1900.
None of the rowers from the 1924 Games returned. Two-time medalist and reigning champion Jack Beresford competed in the eight, but not the single sculls. The 1928 Diamond Challenge Sculls winner was Joseph Wright Jr. of Canada; he was the closest thing to a favorite in a relatively open field.
Japan and South Africa each made their debut in the event. Great Britain made its sixth appearance, most among nations, having missed only the 1904 Games in St. Louis.

## Competition format

The 1928 competition expanded the repechage system introduced in 1924, giving losing rowers a second chance at advancement. However, the number of rowers in each race was once again limited to two after multiple Games with more than two boats per race. These changes led to the tournament having a total of seven rounds (five main rounds and two repechages).
* The first round had 15 rowers in 8 heats, with one of the rowers having a bye and the other 14 competing one-on-one. The winner of each heat advanced to the second round, while the loser went to the first repechage (as long as he finished the race).
* The first repechage had 6 rowers (one first-round heat was a walkover, one heat saw a competitor not finish). They were placed in 3 heats. The winner of each advanced to the second round while the loser was eliminated. Rowers advancing via the first repechage had a continuing disadvantage to those who advanced directly from the first round, as they were not eligible for the second repechage.
* The second round had 11 rowers, with 10 competing in 5 heats and a sixth heat being a walkover. Winners advanced to the quarterfinals, while losers went to the second repechage (if they had advanced directly from the first round) or were eliminated (if they had already been through the first repechage).
* The second repechage had 4 rowers, competing in 2 heats. The two winners advanced to the quarterfinals, with the two losers eliminated.
* The quarterfinals were the first round without a repechage. Eight rowers had advanced to the quarterfinals; they competed in 4 heats, with winners advancing to the semifinals and losers eliminated.
* The semifinals placed the 4 rowers in 2 heats. Winners advanced to the "A" (gold medal) final, with losers competing in a "B" (bronze medal) final.
* The final round consisted of a gold medal A final (for gold and silver) and a bronze medal B final (for bronze and 4th place).
The course used the 2000 metres distance that became the Olympic standard in 1912.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Round |
| Friday, 3 August 1928 | | Round 1 |
| Saturday, 4 August 1928 | | First repechage |
| Sunday, 5 August 1928 | | Round 2 |
| Monday, 6 August 1928 | | Second repechage |
| Tuesday, 7 August 1928 | | Quarterfinals |
| Wednesday, 8 August 1928 | | Semifinals |
| Friday, 10 August 1928 | 13:00 | Finals |

## Results

Source: Official results; De Wael

### Round 1

Winners advanced to the second round. Losers competed in the first repechage.

#### Round 1 heat 1

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | David Collet | Great Britain | 8:29.6 | Q |
| 2 | Édouard Candeveau | Switzerland | 8:35.8 | R |

#### Round 1 heat 2

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Bobby Pearce | Australia | 7:55.8 | Q |
| 2 | Walter Flinsch | Germany | 8:21.8 | R |

#### Round 1 heat 3

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Joe Wright | Canada | 7:57.8 | Q |
| 2 | Bert Gunther | Netherlands | 7:58.4 | R |

#### Round 1 heat 4

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Vincent Saurin | France | 8:09.2 | Q |
| 2 | Jack Mottart | Belgium | 8:14.8 | R |

#### Round 1 heat 5

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Béla Szendey | Hungary | 8:03.2 | Q |
| 2 | Arnold Schwartz | Denmark | 8:06.0 | R |

#### Round 1 heat 6

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Ken Myers | United States | 8:14.2 | Q |
| 2 | Hendrik de Kok | South Africa | 8:19.2 | R |

#### Round 1 heat 7

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Josef Straka | Czechoslovakia | 8:05.2 | Q |
| 2 | Kinichiro Ishii | Japan | DNF | E |

#### Round 1 heat 8

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Michelangelo Bernasconi | Italy | 8:02.0 | Q |

### First repechage

Winners advanced to the second round, but were ineligible for a second repechage if they lost there. Losers were eliminated.

#### First repechage heat 1

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Arnold Schwartz | Denmark | 8:20.2 | Q |
| 2 | Walter Flinsch | Germany | 8:23.4 | E |

#### First repechage heat 2

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Bert Gunther | Netherlands | 8:11.6 | Q |
| 2 | Jack Mottart | Belgium | 8:17.0 | E |

#### First repechage heat 3

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Édouard Candeveau | Switzerland | 8:28.6 | Q |
| 2 | Hendrik de Kok | South Africa | 8:50.0 | E |

### Round 2

Winners advanced to the third round. Losers competed in the second repechage, if they had advanced by winning in the first round, or were eliminated if they had advanced through the first repechage.

#### Round 2 heat 1

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Bert Gunther | Netherlands | 8:23.8 | Q |
| 2 | Béla Szendey | Hungary | 8:33.8 | R |

#### Round 2 heat 2

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Josef Straka | Czechoslovakia | 8:36.4 | Q |
| 2 | Joe Wright | Canada | 8:45.0 | R |

#### Round 2 heat 3

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Bobby Pearce | Australia | 7:28.0 | Q |
| 2 | Arnold Schwartz | Denmark | 7:47.6 | E |

#### Round 2 heat 4

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Ken Myers | United States | 7:46.8 | Q |
| 2 | David Collet | Great Britain | 7:56.4 | R |

#### Round 2 heat 5

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Vincent Saurin | France | 8:38.2 | Q |
| 2 | Michelangelo Bernasconi | Italy | 9:10.2 | R |

#### Round 2 heat 6

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Édouard Candeveau | Switzerland | 9:06.6 | Q |

### Second repechage

Winners advanced to the third round, while losers were eliminated.

#### Second repechage heat 1

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Joe Wright | Canada | 7:49.6 | Q |
| 2 | Michelangelo Bernasconi | Italy | DNF | E |

#### Second repechage heat 2

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | David Collet | Great Britain | 7:35.2 | Q |
| 2 | Béla Szendey | Hungary | 7:42.4 | E |

### Quarterfinals

The competition became single-elimination from this point, with losers being eliminated even if they had not previously had to advance through a repechage.

#### Quarterfinal 1

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | David Collet | Great Britain | 7:52.2 | Q |
| 2 | Joe Wright | Canada | 7:57.6 | E |

#### Quarterfinal 2

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Bert Gunther | Netherlands | 7:57.4 | Q |
| 2 | Josef Straka | Czechoslovakia | 8:04.8 | E |

#### Quarterfinal 3

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Ken Myers | United States | 8:05.6 | Q |
| 2 | Édouard Candeveau | Switzerland | 8:11.0 | E |

#### Quarterfinal 4

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Bobby Pearce | Australia | 7:42.8 | Q |
| 2 | Vincent Saurin | France | 8:11.8 | E |

### Semifinals

Winners advanced to the gold medal final, with the losers competing for bronze.

#### Semifinal 1

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Bobby Pearce | Australia | 7:01.8 | QA |
| 2 | David Collet | Great Britain | 7:08.6 | QB |

#### Semifinal 2

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Ken Myers | United States | 7:14.2 | QA |
| 2 | Bert Gunther | Netherlands | 7:18.0 | QB |

### Finals
#### Final B

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time |
| | David Collet | Great Britain | 7:19.8 |
| 4 | Bert Gunther | Netherlands | 7:31.6 |

#### Final A

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Time |
| | Bobby Pearce | Australia | 7:11.0 |
| | Ken Myers | United States | 7:20.8 |

## Results summary

| Rank | Rower | Nation | Round 1 | First repechage | Round 2 | Second repechage | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals |
| | Bobby Pearce | Australia | 7:55.8 | Bye | 7:28.0 | Bye | 7:42.8 | 7:01.8 | 7:11.0 |
| | Ken Myers | United States | 8:14.2 | Bye | 7:46.8 | Bye | 8:05.6 | 7:14.2 | 7:20.8 |
| | David Collet | Great Britain | 8:29.6 | Bye | 7:56.4 | 7:35.2 | 7:52.2 | 7:08.6 | 7:19.8 |
| 4 | Bert Gunther | Netherlands | 7:58.4 | 8:11.6 | 8:23.8 | Bye | 7:57.4 | 7:18.0 | 7:31.6 |
| 5 | Joe Wright | Canada | 7:57.8 | Bye | 8:45.0 | 7:49.6 | 7:57.6 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 5 | Josef Straka | Czechoslovakia | 8:05.2 | Bye | 8:36.4 | Bye | 8:04.8 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 5 | Édouard Candeveau | Switzerland | 8:35.8 | 8:28.6 | 9:06.6 | Bye | 8:11.0 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 5 | Vincent Saurin | France | 8:09.2 | Bye | 8:38.2 | Bye | 8:11.8 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 9 | Béla Szendey | Hungary | 8:03.2 | Bye | 8:33.8 | 7:42.4 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 10 | Michelangelo Bernasconi | Italy | 8:02.0 | Bye | 9:10.2 | DNF | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 11 | Arnold Schwartz | Denmark | 8:06.0 | 8:20.2 | 7:47.6 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 12 | Jacques Mottard | Belgium | 8:14.8 | 8:17.0 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 12 | Walter Flinsch | Germany | 8:21.8 | 8:23.4 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 12 | Hendrik de Kok | South Africa | 8:19.2 | 8:50.0 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| 15 | Kinichiro Ishii | Japan | DNF | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |