Swans

Swans recur in two brief scenes, first as an obstacle to the Washington crew’s Olympic trial and later as quiet company for the rowers seeking relief from attention in Berlin-Köpenick. Their changing place in the action—from interruption to fellow presence on the water—links the pressure of competition with the crew’s need for solitude.

At Lake Carnegie

A large white swan blocked the Washington crew as it tried to back its boat into a starting stall for the final Olympic trial. The other crews had already maneuvered into position, but the swan held up the launch. Bobby Moch yelled through his megaphone and waved his arms until it slowly moved aside, clearing the way for the boat to enter its stall. In a scene otherwise organized around precise preparation for a high-stakes race, the bird’s unplanned intervention briefly made the water—and access to it—belong to something other than the competitors.

Evening Company in Berlin-Köpenick

During the team’s stay in Berlin-Köpenick, crowds of townspeople repeatedly surrounded the rowers to ask for autographs. To get some peace and quiet, the boys began renting boats in the evenings and rowing around the castle, sometimes in the rain. Swans plied the same waters, sharing the setting as the crew sought a reprieve from its unwanted celebrity. Here, unlike at Lake Carnegie, the birds do not interrupt the rowers: they accompany a withdrawal from public attention, making the water a space of relative quiet.