1932 Olympics

Reclaiming Olympic Gold
It may have been in the heart of the depression, but 1932 was a good year for American swimmers:  The Olympic Games in Los Angeles saw Clarence "Buster" Crabbe win gold in the 400-meter freestyle in the then-world-record time of 4:48.2 and Helene Madison win gold medals in both the 100- and 400-meter freestyle events.  U.S. swimmers claimed nine medals in all, in many cases besting swimmers from the powerful and heavily favored Japanese team.   The competition was held in an eight lane, 50-meter pool positioned quite literally in the shadow of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.  Just as the names and records of those swimmers have faded across 70-plus years, so too had the swimming pool and its companion recreation pool.  Although they had remained in near-continuous use for generations, the old vessels were supplanted when a modern swimming pool complex opened on the nearby campus of the University of Southern California in anticipation of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympiad. Early in 2003, we at Rowley International of Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., were asked to renovate the old facility's two swimming pools.  The City of Los Angeles, along with support from the Amateur Athletic Federation (AAF), set a goal that didn't involve