The men's eight (M8+) competition at the 1984 Summer Olympics took place at Lake Casitas in Ventura County, California, United States. It was held from 31 July to 5 August. There were 7 boats (63 competitors) from 7 nations, with each nation limited to a single boat in the event.[1]New Zealand had won the last two world championships, and the other strong team, East Germany, was absent from the event due to the Eastern Bloc boycott. This made New Zealand the strong favourite. But the final was won by Canada, with the United States and Australia the other medallists, and New Zealand coming a disappointing fourth.[2]
Background
This was the 19th appearance of the event. Rowing had been on the programme in 1896 but was cancelled due to bad weather. The men's eight has been held every time that rowing has been contested, beginning in 1900.[1]
The "eight" event featured nine-person boats, with eight rowers and a coxswain. It was a sweep rowing event, with the rowers each having one oar (and thus each rowing on one side). The rowing competition consisted of two main rounds (semifinals and finals), as well as a repechage round after the semifinals. However, neither the semifinals nor the repechage eliminated any boats; all seven teams advanced to the "A" final, and no "B" final was held. The course used the 2000 metres distance that became the Olympic standard in 1912 (with the exception of 1948).[11] Races were held in up to six lanes, except the final in which (very unusually) seven boats raced.
Semifinals: Two heats with three or four boats each. The top boat in each semifinal (2 boats total) went to the "A" final, while the remaining boats (5 total) went to the repechage.
Repechage: A single heat with five boats. All five advanced to the "A" final.
Finals: The "A" final consisted of all seven boats, competing for the medals and 4th through 7th place.
^The Chilean rowers are listed as per the official Olympic record, but the listing is wrong, as it has the cox in seat one, when he should be listed for seat nine[13]
Perelman, Richard B., ed. (1985). Official Report Los Angeles 1984, Volume 1: Organization and Planning. Los Angeles: Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee.
Perelman, Richard B., ed. (1985). Official Report Los Angeles 1984, Volume 2: Competition and Summary and Results. Los Angeles: Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee.