CONTENTS Introduction 4 Swimming in the Seine 6 The Grand Duke 9 The Dawn of Australian Swimming 12 Mark the Shark 15 Counterfeit Deutsche Marks 19 Swimming Like the Dolphins 22 Flawless 25 Thorpedo Rocks the Pool 28 Eric the Eel 32 Touch of Gold 36 Medals for the Ages 42 The Games of 2012 44 Endnotes 46 Resources 47 Index 48 SUMMER OLYMPIC LEGENDS
INTRODUCTION Throughout human history people have always sought to challenge themselves to compete against others and to discover the limits of their capabilities Such desires can turn destructive leading to war But the ancient Greeks also recognized the good in these human traits and it was because of them that the Olympic Games featuring running races jumping contests throwing competitions and wrestling and boxing matches began more than 2,700 years ago The ancient Olympics ended in a d 393 but the Games were revived in 1896 in hopes of promoting world peace through sports Fittingly the first modern Olympics were held in Athens Greece but they moved around the world every four years after that In 2009 it was announced that the Games would be held in South America for the first time going to Rio de Janeiro Brazil in 2016 Every 1896 Olympian received a medal reading International Olympic Games Athens 1896 4
Only five sports have been contested at every Summer Olympic Games athletics known today as track and field cycling fencing gymnastics and swimming In the first three Olympics swimming competitions were held not in pools but in open water These sites included the Mediterranean Sea in Athens Greece in 1896 the Seine River in Paris France in 1900 and an artificial lake in Forest Park near St Louis Missouri in 1904 In 1908 in London England Olympic swimming was permanently moved to a pool in that case one built inside the Games outdoor track and field oval Early stars of Olympic swimming included Duke Kahanamoku and Johnny Weissmuller of the United States but swimming glory was also claimed by athletes from Australia France Great Britain and other countries Women participated in Olympic swimming beginning in 1912 in Stockholm Sweden and soon such female swimmers as Dawn Fraser of Australia and Krisztina Egerszegi of Hungary were inscribing their names in the sport’s record books With each Olympiad swimming technique training and technology have improved and the world’s greatest swimmers have cut through Olympic waters with ever greater speed As times have been lowered excitement has been raised making the pool one of the most thrilling venues for Olympic competition INTRODUCTION 5
