Olympian Davey Hearn Denies Vandalising Washington’s Reflecting Pool, Faces Arrest
On Saturday, 67‑year‑old former US Olympic canoe champion Davey Hearn was stopped by Park Police and a pair of National Guard soldiers at the edge of Washington DC’s Reflecting Pool after he finished a long bike ride. The officers claimed he had touched a strip of rubbery material that appeared to be delaminating from the pool’s bottom, a claim Hearn disputes, saying he merely wiped his cycling glove on the surface and that nothing was removed or damaged.
Hearn – who has won two world championships in slalom canoeing and participated in three Olympic Games – says the paint on the pool was already peeling before he arrived. He even photographed the peeling paint minutes before the arrest and insists the state of the pool did not change when he was detained. According to him, the incident has been a “capricious prosecution” and a way for higher authorities to “make an example” of him.
The pool itself has a storied history. Stretching 2,030 feet between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, it has long suffered from leaks, algae growth, structural deterioration and feather‑ed paint patches. A $13 million facelift in the Trump era—including a new blue paint colour allegedly chosen by the president—has not eliminated the issues. Video footage posted on social media shows Hearn being handcuffed, detained for about five hours and denied a phone call.
President Donald Trump, on Truth Social, has called for immediate repairs and claimed that “multiple individuals” had vandalised the pool, adding that “corrosive chemicals” were poured into the water. The comments have intensified public scrutiny of maintenance and the decision to award no‑bid contracts for the refurbishing work.
While Park Police have not replied to inquiries, the incident underscores the continuing debate over how best to preserve Washington’s iconic landmarks. For now, Hearn remains a defendant on a misdemeanor charge of destruction of government property, while he maintains that the Reflecting Pool is still “beautiful” despite its lingering problems.
