Issue link: http://www.wacmagazine.com/i/697572
28 | Washington Athletic Club Magazine | JULY / AUGUST 2016 A lan Forney hangs an Olympic flag in his office every four years during the Summer Games. As a rower on the four without coxswain team in 1984, Alan's Olympic experience almost never happened. "I was the last guy [chosen]," Alan told e Seattle Times in June of that year. After winning a six-minute stationary row-off, he traveled with the U.S. team to Europe to train and race in pre-Olympic competition. When the U.S. four won at the world championships in Lucerne, Switzerland, Alan knew he'd made the Olympics. "I've never worked as hard or gone through as much," he recalled at the time. A month later, the Games started in Los Angeles. Mary Lou Retton and Carl Lewis would soon become household names. On Lake Casitas outside Santa Barbara, Alan and three teammates finished the 2,000-meter final in 6 minutes, 6.1 seconds, good for the silver medal. Alan was 24 years old. It was a thrill a minute. People were waving the American flag in the streets everywhere we went. It's not just the accomplishment but also meeting so many people along the way." ALAN FORNEY Rowing 1984 | " Remembering 1984 Flip through the official U.S. book of the 1984 Olympics: wac.net/1984-olympics "It was a lot of fun," Alan says now. "Nobody expected us to be in the medal round and we were. The gold medal team from New Zealand had been together three years. We were together six weeks." Alan grew up north of Seattle and swam for Woodway High School in Edmonds. He went on to the University of Washington and picked up rowing. He quickly recalls the team's motto: "Be hungry, be humble, be fast." He remains involved with the UW program and is thrilled to see four Husky rowers on this year's men's eight Olympic team. "The UW program is one of the most elite rowing programs in the world," he says. "I felt lucky to be a part of it." Looking back on Los Angeles, Alan smiles. "It was a thrill a minute," he says. "It's kind of hard to describe the feeling. People were waving the American flag in the streets everywhere we went. It's not just the accomplishment but also meeting so many people along the way. It was a fantastic time." Alan Forney, right, and the men's four-oar team training on the Connecticut River near Dartmouth College a few days before the 1984 Olympics.