Famous Olympic Swimmers

Swimming has been a part of the Summer Olympic Games since their inception back in 1896. Women's swimming was introduced in 1912. Over the years, there has been a pantheon of greats who have dominated the swimming pool. Here are some of them.

Swimming is one of the most popular events of the Olympic Games. Olympic swimmers vie for fame and glory in 17 recognized events, held in a pool measuring 50 meters in length. In the Athens games of 1896, swimming only had 4 events: the 100 m freestyle, 500 m freestyle, 1200 m freestyle and 100 m freestyle for sailors. The 500 m, 1200 m and the 'sailor special' have been discarded since. Women's swimming began in 1912 with only 2 events: 100 m freestyle and the 4 x 100 m relay. The backstroke and the breaststroke were added as separate events in 1900 and 1904, respectively. At first, the butterfly was regarded as a variation of the breaststroke. It was recognized as a separate stroke in the Olympics of 1956. Medleys were the last discipline to be added to the sport, in 1964. From these humble beginnings, swimming has now become a world-favorite sport.

Presently, four swimming strokes are recognized in the Olympics, viz. the freestyle, the breaststroke, the backstroke, and the butterfly. Apart from the separate stroke events, the 'individual medley', or IM, is made up of all the four strokes combined and performed in a particular order - the butterfly, the backstroke, the breaststroke, and then freestyle. Given below are some of the famous Olympic swimmers who have accomplished great feats in these events.

Michael Phelps

Date of Birth: June 30, 1985

Nationality: American

Olympic Participation: Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 (6 Gold, 2 Bronze), Beijing 2008 (8 Gold), London 2012 (4 Gold, 2 Silver)

He is a holder of world records in a number of categories. Amongst his achievements are the 8 gold medals he won at the Summer Olympics of 2008 held in Beijing, the highest gold medal haul in a single Olympic by any athlete. His total of 22 Olympic medals is also a world record, with his 18 gold medals standing head and shoulders above the best of the rest. He was named the World Swimmer of the Year in 2003, 2004, 2006, and 2007. Phelps announced his retirement from the sport after the 2012 London Olympics, leaving his name carved in golden letters in the very highest echelons of Olympic folklore.

Ian Thorpe

Date of Birth: October 13, 1982

Nationality: Australian

Olympic Participation: Sydney 2000 (3 Gold, 2 Silver), Athens 2004 (2 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze)

Ian Thorpe is, without doubt, one of the greatest swimmers ever, if not one of the greatest athletes. No other Australian has been able to match his Olympic gold tally. In addition to that, he has been nominated four times as the World Swimmer of the Year by the Swimming World International magazine.

Dawn Fraser

Date of Birth: September 4, 1937

Nationality: Australian

Olympic Participation: Melbourne 1956 (2 Gold, 1 Silver), Rome 1960 (1 Gold, 2 Silver), Tokyo 1964 (1 Gold, 1 Silver)

Dawn Fraser is regarded as the greatest female swimmer in the world, being the first woman who swam the 100-meter event in less than a minute. When she was 12 years old, in 1952, a Sydney coach at one of the local baths spotted her. Fraser earned acclaim in 1955 when she broke existing records in the freestyle events right up to 880 yards. She shot into international fame at the Melbourne Olympics held in 1956 when she broke the 100-meter freestyle record, which was set 20 years back by Willy den Ouden. When she was just 18, she won 3 medals from her first Olympic games. She became the first of only three swimmers, along with Michael Phelps and Krisztina Egerszegi, in Olympic history to have won the gold medal in the same discipline for 3 successive Olympic games when she won the 100 m freestyle event in 1964.

Jennifer Beth Thompson

Date of Birth: February 26, 1973

Nationality: American

Olympic Participation: Barcelona 1992 (2 Gold, 1 Silver), Atalanta 1996 (3 Gold), Sydney 2000 (3 Gold, 1 Bronze), Athens 2004 (2 Silver)

She has won 12 Olympic medals, which includes 8 golds, making her the most decorated female American Olympian in history. She was the USA Swimmer of the Year in 1993 and 1998, and Women's Sports Foundation's Athlete of the Year in 2000.

(Buzzle)