Allen Perry Rosenberg (November 29, 1931 – December 7, 2013) was an American rowing coxswain and coach. As a coxswain he won a gold and a silver medal at the 1955 Pan American Games and a silver at the 1958 European Championships. As a coach he was responsible for more than 24 gold and silver medals at the Olympics and world championships.

Early life

Rosenberg was Jewish. He was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, Pennsylvania, and grew up in the Strawberry Mansion section of Philadelphia until his family moved to

Bucks County, Pennsylvania Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...

. He graduated from Central High School in Philadelphia, where he ran the quarter mile and wrestled. Rosenberg first attended Pennsylvania State University, where he wrestled, and then

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then calle ...

and

Temple University School of Law The Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law is the law school of Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1895 and enrolls about 530 students. Student body Admission for fall 2019 entering class was highly comp ...

, from which he graduated with degrees in pharmacy and law. He was a

patent attorney A patent attorney is an attorney who has the specialized qualifications necessary for representing clients in obtaining patents and acting in all matters and procedures relating to patent law and practice, such as filing patent applications and op ...

Rowing career

Rosenberg competed in from the mid-1950s through the early 1960s, and won four U.S. and three Canadian national rowing titles: in 1954, he won the U.S.

coxed four A coxed four, also known as a 4+, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat with sweep oars and is steered by a coxswain. The crew consists of four rowers, each having one ...

s and Canada eights; in 1955, he won the U.S. eights; and in 1957 and 1958, he won both the U.S. and Canadian eights. Internationally he won a silver medal in the eights at the 1958

European Rowing Championships The European Rowing Championships is an international Rowing regatta organised by FISA (the International Rowing Federation) for European rowing nations, plus Israel which, though not a member of the European federation is treated as a Europea ...

, a gold medal and a silver medal at the 1955 Pan American Games, and a gold medal at the

1961 Maccabiah Games The 6th Maccabiah Games were held in Tel Aviv, Israel in 1961, with 1,100 athletes from 27 countries competing in 18 sports. The Games were officially opened in an Opening Ceremony on August 29, 1961, in Ramat Gan Stadium by Israeli President Yit ...

Coaching career

Rosenberg began coaching while he was still competing. He coached the

Vesper Boat Club The Vesper Boat Club is an amateur rowing club located at #10 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1865 as the Washington Barge Club, the Club changed its name to Vesper Boat Club in 1870. Vesper' ...

in Philadelphia, and became the rowing coach at St. Francis College. He was head coach of a number of United States National Rowing teams from 1961 to 1976. He coached the 1964 U.S. Olympic 8 pared shell to a gold medal victory, and also won two gold medals (in Eights and Pairs with Coxswain), a silver medal (in

Double Sculls A double scull is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two persons who propel the boat by sculling with two oars each, one in each hand. Racing boats (often called "shells") are long, narrow, and broadly ...

), and a bronze medal (in Four Without Cox). He coached the 1974 World Championships team that won a gold medal in Eights. He also coached teams that won a silver medal at the 1965 World Championships and a gold medal at the 1974 World Championships, as well as a silver medal at the 1976 Olympics. His teams won two golds, a silver, and a bronze at the

1975 Pan American Games The 1975 Pan American Games were held in Mexico City, Mexico, from October 12 to October 26, 1975, exactly twenty years after the second Pan American Games were held there. It was the third major sporting event held in the Mexican capital in se ...

. He coached U.S. teams at the

and

1965 Maccabiah Games The 7th Maccabiah Games in 1965 saw 1,500 athletes from 29 different countries compete in 21 sports. It was the first Maccabiah Games for Iran, Jamaica, Peru, and Venezuela. The United States delegation won the most gold medals, followed by Israel, ...

, that each won three gold medals. Rosenberg coached into the early 2000s with crews that consistently placed in the top tier Nationally and Internationally. His rowing techniques became internationally known as the "Rosenberg Style", and employed by the majority of world-class rowing crews. He was named the first U.S. National Technical Director of American Rowing. He also was president of the Rowing Coaches of America.

Halls of Fame

Rosenberg was inducted into the Rowing Hall of Fame in 1984. He was inducted into the

International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame ( he, יד לאיש הספורט היהודי, translit=Yad Le'ish HaSport HaYehudi) was opened July 7, 1981 in Netanya, Israel. It honors Jewish athletes and their accomplishments from anywhere arou ...

in 1994, the Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1997, and the Greater Washington, D.C. Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.

Death

Rosenberg died at

Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially unincorporated, in practice it is an edge city, with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 ce ...

, on December 7, 2013. He had suffered from

Lewy body dementias Lewy body dementias are two similar and common subtypes of dementia—dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD). Both are characterized by changes in thinking, movement, behavior, and mood. The two conditions have s ...

in his later years.Allen Rosenberg, Olympic Rowing Coach Who Transformed the Sport, Dies at 82 – The New York Times
Nytimes.com (December 13, 2013). Retrieved on 2017-06-14.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosenberg, Allen Coxswains (rowing) 1931 births 2013 deaths Sportspeople from Philadelphia Temple University alumni Pennsylvania State University alumni Sportspeople from Bucks County, Pennsylvania Temple University Beasley School of Law alumni American patent attorneys Rowing coaches American pharmacists Jewish American sportspeople Maccabiah Games gold medalists for the United States World Rowing Championships medalists for the United States Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in rowing Rowers at the 1955 Pan American Games American male rowers European Rowing Championships medalists Central High School (Philadelphia) alumni Medalists at the 1955 Pan American Games 21st-century American Jews Rowers from Philadelphia