Crimson Eight Prepares For Olympic Trials

Harvard's unbeaten heavyweight crew, one of the finest eights in Crimson history, is only five days and 2000 meters away from a trip to the Tokyo Olympics.

The crew is tapering off its Charles River workouts, as Coach Harry Parker is trying to give the oarsmen a little rest before the Olympic trials begin Wednesday on Orchard Beach Lagoon, New York.

Harvard, which has polished off every major crew in the East, faces two major hurdles in the four-day trials. The most formidable is the unbeaten University of California, which utilizes the revolutionary short, high-speed stroke with which a German, shell dethroned the U.S. in the 1960 Olympics.

Laconia Breeds Trouble

The other opposition for Harvard was born in Laconia, New Hampshire last month. Jack Frailey, the M. I. T. crew coach who is guiding the Laconia experiment, took the best oarsmen from eight college crews and has assembled three "all star" boats with which he hopes to spoil the Olympic aspirations of Harvard and California.

The Crimson crew has been getting better and better all season. In early May the eight vanquished previously unbeaten Princeton on the Charles. The victory was a significant upset, but the crew began to smell the Olympics when they swept to a stunning one-length triumph over traditional powerhouse Cornell in the E. A. R. C. Sprint Championships.