I still remember my first brush with swimming superstardom. I was in my first (maybe 2nd) year of competitive swimming, 15 years old at an age group meet, in 1986, when I saw Alex Baumann on deck, probably helping out his club team. I don’t recall that he was swimming at the meet, but he may have been.

I was awestruck....

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Swimming Workout of the Day:

Favourite Swim Sets:

2020 National Masters Champion - M50-54 - 50m Butterfly

This was my first exposure to truly great swimming in person:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMT-vPMAoIA

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What a great race, what was the format that they were head to head? A pro swim off of some kind? Funny thing years later one of my masters coaches was the guy that was 3rd in the world to these two guys, Steve Crocker. They had eliminated the 3 person from the games in qualifying, and he was something like 1/100th back in 3rd in the trials. 3rd fastest guy in the world, and sitting home and watching the games. He did however take the big pro 25 yard race a few times, he had the best start and breakout in all of swimming back then.

Those two were the Ali/Fraser of swimming for many years, and I believe pioneered the pro movement in swimming..

Some great posts on the past. My story was swimming my first 1500 meters long course in 1974. It was the first summer I had trained/swam (only did in season first 3 years High School until then) . The meet was at Portage Park in Chicago where I lived and John Murphy, 1972 Olympic gold medalist in 4x100 free and bronze in 100 back was being “punished” by his Hinsdale Swim Club coach for missing practices and he stepped up on the blocks next to me, in the slowest heat. He was about a foot taller and 60lbs heavier and pretty angry. He cruised along while I flailed away and beat me by about 45 seconds. But for a 16 year old “middle of the pack” kid to swim next to an Olympic gold medalist it felt pretty cool.

Here's a link to my earliest hero in the pool, https://www.olympic.org/...rst-four-gold-winner. My buddies and I would try and emulate Don whenever we raced or trained. We always believed that we could improve and become as good. None of us ever did. But following the Olympics and his triumphs was a highlight of my young life

Steve

By the way, Monty. I really enjoyed your link. Inspiring. It made me want to get to a pool and swim.

I wasn't a swimmer yet when he did this, I was 8 and a little surf grom. But I remember hearing about it, as it was big news to win 4 golds in one games. And look at that pool, the waves at the end makes it look like a crappy gym pool. To go 53 with those caveman like conditions, well just incredible..Thanks for sharing..

Look at the start and look for the goggles.

Look at the start and look for the goggles. //

Since I started swimming around 1970, I already knew the before goggle time. Those are some of my most vivid memories of those early days, barley being able to see through bloodshot eyes, swollen into their sockets. You know, back in the days when they just threw buckets of chlorine into the pools every few days, never mind actually testing to see if they needed it!!

I have vague recollections of going to those trials on a couple of different days. I was 10 at the time.

Great article, thanks!!! What struck me the most was the Mission Viejo swimmers going 24,000 meters/day, long course. Even if they got Sundays off, that is 144,000 meters/wk, or about 158,000 yds/wk. Holy frigging sore shoulders, Batman!!! It just floors me that those guys swam that much. I mean, that is 5-6 hrs/day in the water, pus whatever dry land training they did. Just mind-boggling. :)

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"Anyone can be who they want to be IF they have the HUNGER and the DRIVE."

Alexandre Popov winning gold in 50 and 100 free at Barcelona:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bguWqpr0pME

This 100 free race is probably the one swim race I have watched. Still probably my fave freestyler.

For a triathlete wanting to go fast, your stroke might resemble that of Anders Holmertz more than Sun Yang:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7TdRD0Zams

Thanks Monty,
Definitely brings back memories! I spent my senior year in high school casing Mike Bruner at daily swim workouts (from a long distance back). He would often swim freestyle events in big meets butterfly, and win my a big margin. One of the things I remember most about Mike is his body was incredibly soft, no muscle definition what so ever. I also played water polo with him, but other than being very fast, he was only a very average polo player. I have not heard from him since high school, but certainly was aware when he won his gold medals, and set his world records. There was nobody in Stockton, Ca that was even remotely close to as fast as him, so everything he achieved was from self discipline.
I currently swim in the Ventura area with guys like Jim McConica- who was not in that final but was mentioned in the article.
I had forgotten all about the “bad old days” of stinging and itching red eyes and green hair from no goggles and too much chlorine, and how crappy the first group of goggles were, until I spoke to Emilio at the swim start of the SB Tri a decade or so ago and he was not wearing goggles and said he never had, which reminded me I had spent the majority of my big yardage AG days without them.

Ya, I've watched that video several times. I really felt for Anders since he led like 99% of the race only to be touched out in the last 2 meters!!! Holmertz has long been my fave freestyler b/c he swam really, really fast despite having almost no kick. I have worked very hard on my kicking but alas my kicking times still suck compared to my pulling times, so I felt like Anders was a "kindred spirit", kinda sorta, even though he's tons faster than I've ever been. If only I could turn over as fast as he does...:)

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"Anyone can be who they want to be IF they have the HUNGER and the DRIVE."

Yes I believe it was a made for TV kind of thing for Wide World of Sports. The race was at the Tracy Caulkins Natatorium, and it was brand spanking new. The event was also a way for the year round club teams in Nashville to pull in a lot of kids who were summer-league only swimmers-- including me and my sister who joined Nashville Aquatic Club-- I think local news was even showcasing it as an almost certainty that a world record would be set to draw in attendance.

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Definitely brings back memories! I spent my senior year in high school casing Mike Bruner at daily swim workouts (from a long distance back). //

I remember hearing though the swimming grapevine about some of the workouts Mike B. used to do, could hardly believe them. And yes, in the early days of triathlon we did not wear goggles, at least those of us from lifeguarding backgrounds. We never used them in our lifeguard races, so just got used to it. Sighting was way easier without them(once your eyes were salt water resistant), so it was just natural to continue on that tradition. I remember someone posting a start pic of some 1983 USTS race, and I could see myself and 3 other lifeguards as the only ones without goggles. Finally succumbed at some point, maybe I got paid some money from someone.


There are so many great stories pre 2000 in swimming, especially the 70's here in the US. Keep em coming!!!

I'm not looking any of this up, because nostalgia means never having to say you're sorry.

Pablo Morales won 12 NCAA championship races in the 80's. 2 individual, 1 relay, every year of his college life.

I wore yellow goggles in HS and College because Rowdy Gaines said his lucky pair was yellow.

I hated, in a naive nationalistic way, Michael Gross, "The Albatross."

I swam with Doc Counsilman.

That article brings back some good memories. In 1976 I was going to school at Long Beach State, living in Seal Beach. Belmont Plaza pool was around the corner. I went to some early prelim meets for the trials, never for any finals, but I followed the action in the press. It was amazing having Olympic trials in my back yard. I wasn't a swimmer, but followed the sport.

That was a well written article. Sure wished I could have been in the stands.

Without question, the greatest swimmer of all time, IMO!

I was fortunate to be working at the Australian Institute of Sport while Popov was training there in preparation for his 1996 Olympic bid. I have never seen a swimmer, or any athlete FTM, so in control of every session. Every stroke of every length was right on plan. Even when swimming at max, his stroke NEVER broke down, even deep into 100K weeks.

I remember the first time that I arrived at the AIS and met with the coaches, Popov was swimming an easy cooldown -super slow stroke rate, effortless - so I thought what a great opportunity to jump in and swim side by side with one of the greatest swimmers in history! My plan was quickly foiled when I dove in and discovered that these easy effortless laps were clocking ~1:05/100 (LCM!) Needless to say, we weren't swimming side by side for too long

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Alan Couzens, M.Sc. (Sports Science)
Exercise Physiologist/Coach
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alan_Couzens
Web: https://alancouzens.com

This one was a pretty good race with the old guard still swimming on fumes, and the new young gun coming up. As I recall, it was near the beginning of the suit wars, and a lot of folks thought Thrope a kook for wearing that full legs/arms suit. No doubt the race would have looked way different without that suit. Take a look at it at the finish, all water has dripped off of it. I swear it was pretty close to a super thin wetsuit, and the guys with leggings were just out suited..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X0ih5iMJoc

That was an awesome read, Monty. So we’ll written, as if I was there to watch it. I had a love/hate relationship with Belmont Plaza. I was typically slow there, but also recorded a few of my best times... go figure.
I swam against a few of those mentioned, and got my ass kicked, during high school days. Well, I wasn’t exactly a freestyler back then.
This brought back that scary day, a few years ago. On the blocks at Nadadores long course regionals. To my left, Brian Goodell and on my right, Tito Morales. I look over at coach, Mike Collins. He’s pointing at me and laughing – his way of saying “good luck!” The gun goes off. I dive and my goggles slip below my nose! I fix them at the far wall, letting both lane neighbors pull a body length ahead. Working it more than I should, due to anger with the start, I creep up and pass Brian, but the remainder of the race, I can’t pull an inch on Tito. The last 200, I make some headway and get about even with his feet. On the final turn, I’m half a body length behind. I treat it as a sprint, eyes more or less closed and probably only took three breaths, it was everything I had. I beat Tito. Brian took another few seconds to finish. He said he thought we went out too fast and he could catch us. He was impressed. I didn’t quit break 20 minutes, 20:04, I believe, and there was another heat yet to swim, with even faster dudes in our age group. I ended up third for a medal. Ribbons for 4th through 6th. So glad I got hardware!
I saw Tito like a year later. He said he couldn’t believe I passed him. He was trying to break 20.. he said he eventually did, down to 19:40ish. I never broke it for long course. But, I beat a world record holder!!!

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Proud member of FISHTWITCH: doing a bit more than fish exercise now.

What a great story Steve, and yes, that is the strategy, outlive all those old gold medal guys. At some point, I figure that age and life will have put us all on an equal footing, and then the real races will begin...

Mike said later that he’s impressed by Brian. Asked him why and he said Brian is a world record holder. He has nothing to prove. Most all of them have quit swimming, leaving only those of us who never scored big in the world scene, still competing. It’s great that Brian continued on with swimming. Have to agree. He’s inspiring.

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Proud member of FISHTWITCH: doing a bit more than fish exercise now.

Agreed. He went faster without the suit back in 2001 but he had the (significantly greater) advantage of being coached by Doug Frost at that point

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Alan Couzens, M.Sc. (Sports Science)
Exercise Physiologist/Coach
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alan_Couzens
Web: https://alancouzens.com