Swimming (1)

Swimming

Aquatics/Swimming

Swimming is an individual or team sport that uses arms and legs to move the body through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water and is part of the Aquatics sports in the Olympics and other international competitions. Other disciplines under Aquatics include:

• Diving
• Synchronized Swimming
• Water Polo
• Open Water Swimming

Historical Background of Swimming

Greeks

The Greeks were the first group to discover swimming activities by observing animals.

Nicolaus Wynmann (1538)

A German professor of language who wrote the first book on swimming, The Art of Swimming.

Melchisedech Thevenot (1696)

A Frenchman who wrote a more scientific treatise on swimming activities.

USA Swimming Olympic History

Men’s Division

• 1896: Swimming Olympic competition began.
  • First venue: USA.
  • Four swimming categories introduced.
• 1932: Japanese men swimmers won 5 out of 6 events, followed by success in 3 of 6 events in 1936.
• 1964: Australian swimmers emerged as top competitors after the Japanese.
  • Don Schollander (USA) won 5 gold medals, matching Johnny Weissmuller’s dominance.
• 1980: USSR (Russia) swimmers won 7 gold medals out of 10.
• 1984: USA swimmers claimed 9 gold medals out of 15.
• 1988: USA swimmers won 5 gold medals, led by Matt Biondi, who also earned 1 silver and 1 bronze medal.

Women’s Division

• 1912: Women’s swimming competitions introduced.
• 1920: Ethelda Bleibtrey (USA) won:
  • 100-meter freestyle
  • 300-meter freestyle
  • 4x100-meter freestyle relay at the Antwerp Olympics
• 1932: Helene Madison (USA) led the USA team and won:
  • 6 out of 7 gold medals, including diving events.
  • 1936: Won 3 additional gold medals.
• Post-WWII:
  • Dawn Fraser (Australia) dominated women’s swimming.
  • Shane Gould (Australia): Won 4 gold medals, 1 silver, and 1 bronze.
• Kristin Otto (Germany): Won 6 gold medals in a single event, breaking all Olympic records.
• Janet Evans (USA):
  • Won the 400-meter individual event.
  • 800-meter freestyle event.
  • 400-meter freestyle with a world record time of 4:03.03.

Notable USA Swimmers

• Duke Kahanamoku (Hawaii):
  • Born in Honolulu, Hawaii.
  • Won the 100-meter freestyle in 1912 and 1920.
• Johnny Weissmuller (USA):
  • Dominant swimmer in the 1924 Olympics.
  • Won 5 gold medals across two Olympiads.
  • First to swim freestyle in under a minute.
• Don Schollander (USA):
  • Won 5 gold medals in 1964 and 1 gold in 1968 (4x200-meter relay).
• Mark Spitz (USA):
  • Member of the USA relay team.
  • Won 7 gold medals and set world records.
• Matt Biondi (USA):
  • Dominated the 1988 Olympics with 5 golds, 1 silver, and 1 bronze.