David Hearn (canoeist)

David Carter Hearn (born April 17, 1959) is a former slalom canoeist who competed from the late 1970s to the early 2000s. He represented the United States at the 1992, 1996, and 2000 Summer Olympics.

David Hearn was born in 1959 in Bethesda, Maryland.^[1] Hearn has said that his decision to begin pursuing a competitive career in canoe slalom came after hearing the news of Jamie McEwan's bronze medal in whitewater slalom at the 1972 Summer Olympics on the radio with his sister Cathy. He would often train at Great Falls with his sister and Jon Lugbill.^[2]

Hearn won seven medals in the C1 event at the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships with two golds (1985, 1995) and five silvers (1979, 1981, 1983, 1987, 1989). He also won six consecutive world championship gold medals in the C1 team event (1979–1989).^[3] Hearn competed in three Summer Olympics, earning his best finish of ninth in the C1 event in Atlanta in 1996. Hearn's sister, Cathy, and his ex-brother-in-law, Lecky Haller, also competed in canoe slalom for the United States at the Olympics.^[1]

In 1996, Hearn canoed in the Potomac River after heavy rains and was ordered to stop by United States Park Police officers, who asserted that it was dangerous. When he did not stop canoeing, he was arrested on charges of disobeying a police officer and resisting arrest.^[4] The charges were dismissed because the Park Police did not have jurisdiction over the portion of the river that he was in.^[5] Later that same year, he used his canoeing skills to help Park Police retrieve fishermen who were stranded offshore without life vests.^[6]

On June 19, 2026, Hearn was arrested by United States Park Police officers on the charge of misdemeanor destruction of government property near the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C.^[5] Prior to the incident, U.S. President Donald Trump had claimed, without proof, that vandals had sabotaged the pool's 13ドル.1 million renovation, which was plagued with algal blooms and peeling paint days after its completion.^[5] In an interview with The Washington Post , Hearn said he had reached into the pool to feel the texture of the peeling paint, and had not removed or damaged any material.^[5] He was indicted on one charge of felony destruction of property on July 2, 2026.^[7] He pled not guilty on July 9.^{[8] [9]} The case against Hearn was dropped on July 31 after the Department of Justice admitted that the damage to the pool was caused by flawed installation of the renovation.^[10]

• Official website
• David Hearn at Olympics.com Edit on Wikidata
• David Hearn at TeamUSA.com Edit on Wikidata
• David Hearn at TeamUSA.org (archived)Edit on Wikidata
• David Hearn at Olympedia Edit on Wikidata
• David Hearn at InterSportStatsEdit on Wikidata