A year ago, Stuart Sim and Ben Davison, on leave from the Washington men’s rowing team, were on the threshold of becoming Olympians, a lifetime achievement for any athlete.
Both trained for months with their national teams — Sim as coxswain of the Australian men’s eight, Davison as a member of the U.S. men’s quadruple sculls (four rowers, two oars each). Both needed strong showings at the ultracompetitive Final Olympic Qualification Regatta last May in Lucerne, Switzerland, known among rowers as the Regatta of Death.
Both performed valiantly, and both, needing to finish first or second, fell just seconds short.