Commentary: Fittingly, Leon Marchand Attacking Double That is Stuff of Legends
by JOHN LOHN – EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
30 July 2024, 02:38pm
Commentary: Fittingly, Leon Marchand Attacking Double That is Stuff of Legends
Around 8:45 on Tuesday night, an overwhelming roar echoed through La Defense Arena as the venue’s spectators rose out of their seats. It wasn’t difficult to figure out what was happening. The enhanced decibel level meant the home-nation hero of the Olympic Games was walking toward the starting blocks for the semifinals of the 200-meter butterfly.
About 75 minutes later, the scene repeated itself. Spectators hollered. Some whistled. Cameras and cell phones snapped photographs and captured video. This time, the Face of the Paris Games approached the starting blocks for the semifinals of the 200 breaststroke.
Leon Marchand is already a national treasure. He reached that status on Sunday night, when the 22-year-old delighted France by capturing the gold medal in the 400-meter individual medley. That victory arrived in style, as Marchand torched the field with the No. 2 performance in history, an effort that narrowly trailed only his world record.
A day off followed Marchand’s entry into French sporting lore and allowed him the opportunity to reset for the remainder of the nine-day competition. As much as his initial gold was a major achievement, Marchand is seeking much more at this home Olympiad. Look no further than the double-duty he pulled on Day Four of action.
It’s one thing to contest multiple events at a collegiate meet or Pro Series stop in San Antonio. Marchand has embraced many of those sessions, whether during his stellar collegiate career at Arizona State University or during long-course preparation that has taken him to USA Swimming competitions around the country.
But the Olympic Games is an entirely different entity. It’s every-fourth-year nature ratchets up the pressure on the athletes, who don’t know whether this first, second or third opportunity might be their last. It’s a stage on which the margin for error is minimal, when all athletes are seeking to peak and where one error can be the difference between a moment of glory and heartache.
In preparation for the Games, scheduling decisions are the norm for the world’s multi-event stars. What combinations work? Is there enough rest between events? What is the risk/reward of embracing a program with multiple entries? These are just a few of the questions that arise and are answered differently following athlete-coach conferences.
For Marchand, there were certain guarantees related to his schedule. At least three events was always part of the plan, with two of those disciplines the 200 individual medley and 400 individual medley. What to do beyond those events required discussion between Marchand and coach Bob Bowman – and some power brokers in the sport.
At the 2023 World Championships, Marchand earned gold in three events. His medley double, which was anticipated, was complemented by a title in the 200 butterfly. Yet, as Marchand and Bowman gazed ahead to Paris, they looked at the option of racing both the 200 fly and 200 breaststroke. One problem. The events occupied the same dates on the schedule, proving a conundrum.
Sure, Marchand is as adept as anyone on the planet at handling doubles. But the original Olympic schedule had the finals of the 200 fly and 200 breast back-to-back, making that double an impossibility. So, to give Marchand an opportunity, the French Federation lobbied World Aquatics for a change. Ultimately, the governing body shuffled the program, moving the final of the 200 breaststroke to the penultimate slot in the session – and nearly two hours after the final of the 200 butterfly.
Credit World Aquatics for its decision. No, not all parties were happy with the shift, but sports are built around the athletes. If one needs to be accommodated for a chance at history, and to attract greater attention, make the move.
As for Marchand, credit the young Frenchman for chasing this double. It’s not going to be easy. Never was. The 200 butterfly features Hungarian Kristof Milak, the world-record holder, and the 200 breaststroke includes reigning Olympic champ Zac Stubblety-Cook of Australia. Nonetheless, Marchand wanted to test himself at the ultimate level – and it doesn’t get any better than the Olympic stage.
Marchand opened the night by winning his semifinal of the 200 butterfly, and earning the second seed for the final. There, Marchand will duel with Hungary’s Kristof Milak, the reigning Olympic champion and world-record holder. A little more than an hour later, Marchand sped to the fastest time in the semifinals of the 200 breaststroke.
If Marchand finds a path to double gold on Wednesday night, the evening will go down as one of the great performances in swimming history. Get Marchand’s suit. Get his cap. Prepare them for display at the International Swimming Hall of Fame. That’s the level of difficulty we’re talking about. If Marchand comes up short, such is sporting life. Not all pursuits come to fruition.
The beauty is that Marchand is taking on this challenge. He is seeking out greatness, similar to how a certain 28-time Olympic medalist asked: What can I do? He is not afraid to fail. He wants to test his limits.
That approach is what makes legends.
Paris Olympics, Day 4 Semifinals: Kristof Milak Tops 200 Fly In 1:52.72 As He Seeks To Defend Tokyo Crown
Kristof Milak: Photo Courtesy: Andrea Staccioli / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
by LIZ BYRNES – EUROPE CORRESPONDENT
30 July 2024, 12:06pm
Paris Olympics, Day 4 Semifinals: Kristof Milak Tops 200 Fly Semis In 1:52.72 As He Seeks To Defend Tokyo Crown
Michael Phelps is the only man to have won the Olympic 200 fly title on more than one occasion with the 23-time gold medallist visiting the top of the podium three times.
Seven countries have been represented atop the rostrum by the likes of Mark Spitz, Michael Gross and Chad Le Clos on the 17 occasions the event has been contested since its introduction to the Olympic programme at Melbourne 1956.
Phelps won at Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and Rio 2016 and would have been a four-time champion were it not for Le Clos accelerating into the finish with a perfect touch at London 2012.
Kristof Milak, however, is one step away from becoming a two-time champion after posting 1:52.72 in the semis although he faces a challenge from Leon Marchand who went 1:53.50.
World Record: Kristof Milak, HUN – 1:50.34 (2022)
Olympic Record: Kristof Milak, HUN – 1:51.25 (2021)
Tokyo Olympic Champion Kristof Milak, HUN – 1:51.25
It’s five years and six days since Milak first broke the 200 fly world record, crushing Phelps’ previous standard that had stood for 10 years.
Then 19, he cut 0.76 from the WR of 1:51.51 set at the 2009 worlds, a time he subsequently lowered to 1:50.34 in front of a home crowd at Budapest 2022.
Milak won 200 gold in Tokyo in 1:51.25, the fourth-fastest time of his career and one that he alone has eclipsed.
However, in 2023 he withdrew from the Fukuoka worlds to focus on his mental health with Leon Marchand winning the title in 1:52.43, a French record as he went third-fastest all-time.
Milak didn’t return to full-time training as planned and only made his competitive comeback at the Hungarian Championships in April this year.
The 24-year-old returned to Olympic waters on Tuesday morning and was the only man inside 1:54 in prelims as he posted a season’s best of 1:53.92, the second-fastest time in the world this year behind only Tomoru Honda who shockingly finished 22nd in 1:57.12.
Come the semis and Marchand – willed on by an exuberant crowd at La Defense Arena – posted the third-swiftest time of his career before heading off to warm down and prepare for the 200m breaststroke.
Milak then came to the blocks: out in 24.50, he split 28.84/29.29 before coming home in 30.09 for the 13th-fastest time of his career, underlining the quality of the Hungarian who holds the five fastest times in history.
Ilya Kharun of Canada was third in 1:54.01 followed by Noe Ponti in a Swiss record of 1:54.14, Kregor Zirk of Estonia (1:54.22), Krzysztof Chmielewski (1:54.28), Italian Alberto Razzetti (1:54.51) with Martin Espernberger of Austria claiming the eighth and final spot in 1:54.62.
U.S. Water Polo Star Maggie Steffens Coping with Death of Sister-In-Law at Olympics
Photo Courtesy: CG Sports Network
by MATTHEW DE GEORGE – SENIOR WRITER
30 July 2024, 03:43am
U.S. Water Polo Star Maggie Steffens Coping with Death of Sister-In-Law at Olympics
U.S. women’s water polo star Maggie Steffens is playing with a heavy heart in Paris after the unexpected death of her sister-in-law.
Lulu Conner died last Tuesday after a medical emergency in Paris after traveling there to the Games. The sister of Steffens’ husband, Bobby Conner, was 26 years old.
“She was so excited for the Olympic Games,” Steffens told the Associated Press. “We’re really close. She’s the light of the world. She just brings so much joy to everyone. She always brings people together.”
Lulu Conner attended UC Davis and worked as an artist. She brought a clock that included Steffens’ picture as a gift for U.S. water polo booster Flavor Flav to wear during the Olympics.
Steffens, the all-time leading scorer among women in Olympic water polo competition, has played in both of the Americans’ matches in Paris, a win over Greece to open group play and a loss on Monday to Spain.
Steffens memorialized Conner by dropping a small bouquet of flowers into the River Seine from the U.S. boat during Friday’s Opening Ceremonies.
“It definitely helps to play,” Steffens said. “I’m like so out of body in a way right now. And I just keep trying to remind myself what Lulu would want and how she would be, you know, how can I embody her spirit the best. And Lulu was somebody that she gave 150% to everything she did.”
Steffens is vying to help the U.S. win gold for the fourth straight Games. She’s the only member of the team to have been part of the squad for each of the last three Olympics.
USA water polo has experience with tragedy before an Olympics, with coach Adam Krikorian losing his brother, Blake, just before the 2016 Olympics. It proved a galvanizing event for the group, which is immensely close. Many of Steffens’ closest friends are on the team, and it’s a group that has endured personal and professional heartache through their decade on top of the world.
“It’s going to be a really hard couple weeks for all of us,” Steffens said. “My team has been a really big support system for me. I’ve been obviously really struggling, and my husband as well, and his entire family. I mean, it’s a nightmare, and it’s completely shocking. But I think just feeling her spirit here is, like I said, it’s amazing. And I hope that we can make her proud every single day.”
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Paris Olympics, Day 4 Finals: Kaylee McKeown Tops Regan Smith to Repeat as 100 Backstroke Olympic Champion
Kaylee McKeown — Photo Courtesy: Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
by DAVID RIEDER – SENIOR WRITER
30 July 2024, 12:13pm
Paris Olympics, Day 4 Finals: Kaylee McKeown Tops Regan Smith to Repeat as 100 Backstroke Olympic Champion
The first time Kaylee McKeown and Regan Smith raced each other was at the 2017 World Championships, when Smith was 15 years old and McKeown had just turned 16. Neither won a medal that night (Smith actually fell to eighth), but that moment foreshadowed a long backstroking rivalry between the two.
Smith was the first to break a world record, taking down marks in both the 200 back and 100 back at the 2019 Worlds, but McKeown was victorious in both events on the Olympic stage. At last year’s World Championships, the last time the two met prior to the Paris Games, McKeown got the gold in all three backstroke races, all at Smith’s expense. But the U.S. Olympic Trials last month saw Smith fire back, taking down McKeown’s 100 back world record in fiery fashion.
In Paris, McKeown and Smith would surely meet in a pair of gold-medal finals, with the pair considered a virtual lock to occupy the top-two spots in some order. Round one come in the 100-meter race, and accordingly, Smith and McKeown would swim in the center lanes, the American in four and the Australian in five.
And once again, McKeown has come from behind to overtake Smith at a critical juncture, securing her second consecutive Olympic gold in the event.
The race was almost dead even through the halfway point, with Smith and Canada’s Kylie Masse each flipping at 28.02, just eight hundredths shy of world-record pace, but McKeown and the United States’ Katharine Berkoff were just hundredths behind. Off the turn, Smith’s underwater dolphin kicks propelled her ahead, but Berkoff was not done, and neither was McKeown.
In previous major finals matching up the duo, Smith has taken the early lead, only for McKeown to come charging back, but when Smith broke the world record at last month’s Trials, she went out under world-record pace and then fell a mere one hundredth shy of equaling McKeown’s second-length split. This time, McKeown stayed close enough to put herself in position to pull away.
In the final 15 meters, the medals sorted themselves out: Berkoff fell slightly behind, and then so did Smith as McKeown reached to the wall in 57.33. That tied her best time, which had stood as the world record until last month and remains the Australian, Commonwealth and Oceanic records.
Smith took second in 57.66, earning her fourth Olympic medal and third silver, while Berkoff reached the podium with a bronze-medal time of 57.98. Those medals are the 598th and 599th that the United States has ever collected in the pool. Masse, the winner of bronze in the event in 2016 and silver in 2021, came up just shy of reaching the podium for a third consecutive Olympics as she finished fourth in 58.21.
World Record: Regan Smith, USA – 57.13 (2024)
Olympic Record: Kaylee McKeown, Australia – 57.47 (2021)
Tokyo Olympic Champion: Kaylee McKeown, Australia – 57.47
McKeown became only the second woman to defend Olympic gold in the 100 back, following Natalie Coughlin in 2004 and 2008. McKeown was also trying to become only the second Australian woman to win two consecutive Olympic gold medals in an individual swimming race. Ariarne Titmus joined those ranks earlier this week in the 400 freestyle, following Dawn Fraser’s three consecutive 100 free crowns in 1956, 1960 and 1964.
Over the past five years, Smith and McKeown have collectively lifted this event to new heights. The first decade following the ban on full-body polyurethane suits saw tiny drops in the world record, from 58.12 to 58.00, before Smith became the first woman under 58 with a dramatic relay leadoff at the 2019 Worlds. She actually did not swim the 100 back at that meet, but her world-record-setting effort and gold medal in the 200 back at that meet convinced the U.S. coaching staff to give her medley relay duties.
Two years later, McKeown would take that record down to 57.47, and then she went 57.33 last year before Smith achieved the latest global mark at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Three other woman have followed these two under 58 — with Masse and Berkoff in this final while Mollie O’Callaghan skipped the event to focus on her freestyle swims — but entering the Olympic final, McKeown and Smith combined to own the top-15 times in history, nine by McKeown and six from Smith.
Outside the pool, McKeown and Smith rarely see each other since they live on opposite sides of the world, but they maintain a cordial relationship, with Smith revealing prior to the Olympics how McKeown sent her an Instagram message kindly congratulating her on the record. But their year-after-year backstroking excellence has made this competition a staple of major international meets.
And they still have at least two more high-stakes matchups in Paris, in the 200 back and as leadoff swimmers on the women’s 400 medley relay, with the mixed 400 medley relay also a possibility. Here, McKeown got this gold medal, but Smith is not done in Paris yet.
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ISHOF 2001 Honor Swimmer, Janet Evans: Named Chief Athlete Officer for 2028 LA Olympic Games
Article by John Regardie, Los Angeles Magazine – July 2024 – The Sports Issue
Janet Evans has always been impressive. First s a swimmer, then in life, as she continues to up the ante as she is named Chief Athlete Officer for the LA 2028 Olympic Games. Janet, a Californian by birth, began working with the LA 2024 Organizing Committee and served as Vice Chairman and Athlete Director to promote Los Angeles as a Candidate City, which was ultimately awarded the 2028 Summer Olympic Games for the third time in history at the 131st IOC Session in Lima, Peru, on September 13, 2017.
to read Janet’s ISHOF bio, click here: https://ishof.org/honoree/honoree-janet-evans/
Paris Olympics: Sarah Bacon, Kassidy Cook Claim Synchro Silver for First U.S. Medal
Photo Courtesy: Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
by MATTHEW DE GEORGE – SENIOR WRITER
27 July 2024, 03:38am
Paris Olympics: Sarah Bacon, Kassidy Cook Claim Synchro Silver for First U.S. Medal
The first American medal of the 2024 Paris Olympics belongs to Sarah Bacon and Kassidy Cook.
The U.S. 3-meter women’s synchro pair kicked off Paris with silver in the event at the Paris Aquatics Centre, the first medal for Team USA at the 2024 Olympics.
Bacon and Cook finished 23.04 points behind the winning Chinese pair of Chang Yani and Chen Yiwen. Great Britain was third.
It’s the first Olympic medal for both Cook, 29, and Bacon, 27. Bacon has a pair of silver medals from World Championships in 2019 and 2022 in the individual events. Cook finished 13th on women’s 3-meter individual at the 2016 Olympics.
“We were really consistent,” Cook said. “We were able to dive the way we train. It wasn’t our best performance but we didn’t miss anything, so we’re really happy with how we did. To be able to walk away with a silver medal is freaking awesome.”
The Chinese pair dominated, with the best score in each of the five rounds to tally 337.68 points. Bacon and Cook tied them with the best dive of the second round, scoring 51.00 on their 301B. The Americans then posted the third-best dive of the third, fourth and fifth rounds, each topping 70 points. It led to a score of 314.64.
That consistency saw them outduel the up-and-down British duo of Yasmin Harper and Scarlett Mew Jensen. Cook and Bacon gained six points in the third round, when the Brits had just the sixth-best dive to fall to sixth. Harper and Mew Jensen delivered the second-best dive of the final round to leap over Australia and into bronze. Britain tallied 302.28, with Italy fourth in 293.52. The Aussie pair of Anabelle Smith and Maddison Keeney, which won silver at the Doha World Championships this year, fell to fifth, scoring just 48.60 on their final dive.
“I’ve got no words. I can’t even speak,” Mew Jensen. “I was massively in shock. That’s a really easy dive for them, they are very talented. For that to happen, I don’t want to say it couldn’t have happened better, but for us, that was the ideal. To find joy out of someone else’s failure is really hard, but also, for us, it is really powerful.”
It’s the first Olympic medal for Chen, age 25. She has six golds at World Championships and seven total medals. That includes three straight synchro titles with Chang, 22, also a first-time medalist. She has five golds and seven total Worlds medals.
“We didn’t put too much pressure on our shoulders,” Chen said. “There is some stress but we identified the difficulties upstream. Most important is to keep working together and keep encouraging each other.”
For Cook and Bacon, it’s a culmination of a longstanding friendship even more than partnership. Bacon recalled watching the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Olympics together in Texas. Before they became synchro partners, they were friends, and Saturday’s medal is a celebration of both dimensions of that bond.
“We just had a connection ever since we were young and it has just transferred into our synchro,” Bacon said. “We’re best friends and we enjoy doing it together.”
“We have a special connection in the pool and outside of the pool and that has been a major component of how successful we are as a synchro team,” Cook said.
Pakhalina enters ISHOF as the fifth diver from Russia
Yulia Pakhalina became a member of the Russian Junior National Team very early, winning her first Junior World Championship at the age of 12, eventually joining the Russian National Team in 1998.
She excelled as a springboard diver and at her first World Championships in 1998 she came away with two world titles.
At the Sydney Games, in 2000, Yulia and partner Vera Ilyina won gold in the 3-meter synchro event. In her next two Olympic appearances, 2004 and 2008, the duo won a silver and a bronze in the synchronized events and Yulia won bronze and silver in the 3-meter events.
Pakhalina was a three-time World Champion, a seven-time European Champion, four-times as a soloist, and a three-times with her partner in the3-meter synchronized event.
Come join Pakhalina and the rest of this year’s Class of 2024 in Fort Lauderdale.
If you cannot join us, please consider making a donation.
To make a donation, click here: https://ishof.org/donate/
This year’s International Swimming Hall of Fame Honorees include:
Honor Swimmers:
Lars Frölander (SWE)
Daniel Gyurta (HUN)
Dana Vollmer (USA)
1976 Women’s 4×100 Freestyle Gold Medal Relay Team (USA)
(Includes Shirley Babashoff, Wendy Boglioli, Kim Peyton*, Jill Sterkel)
Honor Divers:
Alexandre Despatie (CAN)
Yulia Pakhalina (RUS)
Wu Minxia (CHN) 2023
Honor Artistic Swimmer:
Virginie Dedieu (FRA)
Honor Water Polo Players:
Carmela “Lilli” Allucci (ITA)
Vladimir Akimov* (USSR)
Honor Coach:
Dennis Pursley (USA)
Honor Contributor:
Dale Neuburger (USA)
ISHOF 59th Annual Honoree Induction weekend
~ HOTEL INFORMATION ~
Host Hotel: Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort & Spa
To make reservations click here: https://book.passkey.com/e/50757008
321 North Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 467-1111. Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $229 per night,
Additional Hotel Option:
Courtyard Marriott Fort Lauderdale Beach
Book your group rate for Honoree Ceremony
440 Seabreeze Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 524-8733
Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $169 – $199 per night
~ TICKET INFORMATION ~
Friday, October 4, 2024: Includes:
The Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame (MISHOF) Induction Ceremony
The ISHOF Aquatic Awards presented by AquaCal and
The ISHOF Specialty Awards
Click here to purchase tickets: MISHOF/AWARDS
Saturday, October 5, 2024: Includes
The 59th Annual International Swimming Hall of Fame Honoree Induction Ceremony
The Al Schoenfield Media Award and
The 2024 ISHOF Gold Medallion Award
Click here to purchase tickets: INDUCTION
Daniel GYURTA joins long list Outstanding Hungarian Swimmers as he is inducted into ISHOF in 2024
Daniel Gyurta, of Hungary, was a breaststroke specialist, specializing in the 200-meter. He is a four-time Olympian, with a gold and a silver and a three-time world record holder. He is a five-time World Champion, all in the 200-meter breaststroke, and an eight-time European Champion, seven in the 200 and one title in the 100-meter breast, both long and short course. Gyurta has over 30 National Championships, with too many national records to count.
He was awarded the Order of Merit by the Republic of Hungary in 2004 (Knight’s Cross), in 2010 (Officer’s Cross), and in 2012, ( Commander’s Cross); Voted Hungarian Swimmer of the Year five times (2004, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013), and was the Hungarian Sportsman of the Year, three times, as voted by journalists (2009, 2012, 2013). He was voted Best Youth Hungarian Athlete of the Year by the National Hungarian Sports Association (2011); He was Swimming World Magazine’s European Swimmer of the Year in 2013; Daniel was given the UNESCO Fair Play Award in 2014. In 2015, he was chosen Hungarian University Athlete of the Year and a year later, in 2016, he was elected to the International Olympic Committee by his fellow athletes.
Come join Gyurta and the rest of this year’s Class of 2024 in Fort Lauderdale.
If you cannot join us, please consider making a donation.
To make a donation, click here: https://ishof.org/donate/
This year’s International Swimming Hall of Fame Honorees include:
Honor Swimmers:
Lars Frölander (SWE)
Daniel Gyurta (HUN)
Dana Vollmer (USA)
1976 Women’s 4×100 Freestyle Gold Medal Relay Team (USA)
(Includes Shirley Babashoff, Wendy Boglioli, Kim Peyton*, Jill Sterkel)
Honor Divers:
Alexandre Despatie (CAN)
Yulia Pakhalina (RUS)
Wu Minxia (CHN) 2023
Honor Artistic Swimmer:
Virginie Dedieu (FRA)
Honor Water Polo Players:
Carmela “Lilli” Allucci (ITA)
Vladimir Akimov* (USSR)
Honor Coach:
Dennis Pursley (USA)
Honor Contributor:
Dale Neuburger (USA)
ISHOF 59th Annual Honoree Induction weekend
~ HOTEL INFORMATION ~
Host Hotel: Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort & Spa
To make reservations click here: https://book.passkey.com/e/50757008
321 North Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 467-1111. Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $229 per night,
Additional Hotel Option:
Courtyard Marriott Fort Lauderdale Beach
Book your group rate for Honoree Ceremony
440 Seabreeze Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 524-8733
Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $169 – $199 per night
~ TICKET INFORMATION ~
Friday, October 4, 2024: Includes:
The Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame (MISHOF) Induction Ceremony
The ISHOF Aquatic Awards presented by AquaCal and
The ISHOF Specialty Awards
Click here to purchase tickets: MISHOF/AWARDS
Saturday, October 5, 2024: Includes
The 59th Annual International Swimming Hall of Fame Honoree Induction Ceremony
The Al Schoenfield Media Award and
The 2024 ISHOF Gold Medallion Award
Click here to purchase tickets: INDUCTION
ISHOF 2022 Honor Swimmer Michael Klim (AUS) prepares to release new book entitled: “KLIM”
Australian Michael Klim was inducted into ISHOF as an Honor Swimmer in 2022. He is coming out with his biography, “KLIM” on August 28, 2024. You can pre-order it now.
From Michael’s FaceBook page: “I can’t wait for the launch of my book “KLIM” which will be on sale from August 28. In it, I delve into my life and career, successes and challenges, and everything in between. I can’t wait to share it with you. I hope you enjoy it. Pre-orders are available now through @hachetteaus at https://geni.us/Klim or my bio above! #KLIM #book “
Below is Michael’s ISHOF Honoree bio. We wish him the best of luck in the selling of what we are sure will be a fascinating story of his career and life, including the highs and lows. Order your copy today!!!
Michael Klim (AUS)
Honor Swimmer (2022)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: 1996 OLYMPIC GAMES: BRONZE (4X100M MEDLEY), 2000 OLYMPIC GAMES: GOLD (4X100M FREESTYLE, 4X200M FREESTYLE), SILVER (100M BUTTERFLY, 4X100M MEDLEY RELAY); 2004 OLYMPIC GAMES: SILVER (4X200M FREESTYLE); 1998 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): GOLD (200M FREESTYLE, 100M BUTTERFLY, 4×200M FREESTYLE, 4×100M MEDLEY), SILVER (100M FREESTYLE, 4×100M FREESTYLE), BRONZE (50M FREESTYLE); 2001 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): GOLD 4×100M FREESTYLE, 4×200M FREESTYLE); 2005 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): BRONZE (4×100M FREESTYLE); 2007 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): GOLD (4×100M MEDLEY); 1995 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): GOLD (4×200M FREESTYLE)’ SILVER (4×100M FREESTYLE, 4×100M MEDLEY), BRONZE (200M FREESTYLE); 1997 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): GOLD (4×200 M FREESTYLE,4×100M MEDLEY), BRONZE (100M FREESTYLE, 100M BUTTERFLY, 4×100M FREESTYLE); 1999 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): GOLD (4×100M FREESTYLE, 4×100M MEDLEY), SILVER (100M FREESTYLE, 200M FREESTYLE, 100M BUTTERFLY)
He was born in Poland, learned to swim in India, lived in Canada and Germany as a youth and ended up swimming for Australia, where his family settled and finally considered home. As much as he moved during his youth, there was always a constant in his life – swimming. No matter where he was, no matter what country, Michael Klim could join the local swim team and immediately fit in.
When the Klim family settled in Melbourne, it wasn’t long before Michael was noticed by the Australia Institute of Sport (AIS). At age 15 he was asked to move and train in Canberra by Coach Gennadi Touretski, coach of ISHOF Honoree and sprinting great, Alexander Popov.
Klim first represented Australia in 1994 at the Commonwealth Games in Victoria, British Columbia. He began to shine in 1995 when he was named Australian Swimming’s Rookie of the Year.
Klim specialized in the freestyle and butterfly in 1996 and became one of the most notable athletes in Australian history. At his first Olympic appearance in Atlanta, in 1996 he was ranked first in the world in the 200m freestyle, but did not make the finals. However, he and his Aussie teammates won the bronze medal in the 4 x 100m medley relay. This was the beginning of Klim’s all-time great career on relay teams.
On December 23rd, 1996, Klim set the first of his 21 world records, in the 4 x100m medley relay at the Australian Short Course Championships. He continued his climb in January of 1998, at the World Cup stop in Sydney, breaking his first individual world record, clocking 51.16 in the 100m butterfly.
It was at the 1998 FINA World Championships in Perth, in front of a home crowd that Klim produced his best performance. On home soil, Klim claimed seven medals in seven events, four of which were gold. His effort is considered today as the most outstanding performance by an Australian at an international swimming event.
Yet, as Klim says, “The Sydney 2000 Olympic Games was Australia’s coming out party,” or at least its return to the greatness that was once common. In 1996, Australia ranked fifth at the Olympics, with just two gold medals won in the pool. After Sydney, Australia was a solid No. 2 behind the United States, with 18 total medals. Klim had a role in two of the gold medals and two of the silver medals. The biggest of these was his lead off swim in Australia’s triumphant 4x100m freestyle relay.
Klim walked away from Sydney with four medals, two gold and two silver, and three world records.
After the 2000 Games, Klim was plagued by a series of physical ailments which took two years to fully heal. The 2004 Games in Athens, was his third Olympics and he won a silver medal as a member of Australia’s 4x200m freestyle relay. He continued his successful comeback in Melbourne at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, winning gold in the 4x100m medley relay, silver in the 4x100m freestyle relay, and individually, a silver in the 100m butterfly and a bronze in the 50m butterfly.
Russian Water Polo Great Akimov to be inducted posthumously into ISHOF as part of Class of 2024
Vladimir Akimov began his spectacular water polo career with club CSK of the Navy (CSK Navi) alongside his brothers, Nikolay and Victor. Vladimir claimed his Olympic gold in 1980 and Nikolay played on the 1972 Olympic champion team while Viktor was many times a national champion. The brothers were involved in the golden era of Soviet water polo when so many champions were on the world stage.
Because of the boycott that saw the USA not attend the 1980 Olympics, the USSR proved that it was rightfully Olympic champion by travelling to Long Beach, USA in 1981, beating all the top teams to secure the World Cup.
1983 became critical in Vladimir Akimov’s life. On the one hand — the last victories: a victory on the Sports contest of the people of the USSR, a victory in the USSR 1983 championship, and on the other hand, an expulsion from the USSR national team, and then his withdrawal from CSK Navymilitary team. In the result of conflict with the senior trainer, Vladimir became a reserve player, which was just unacceptable for ambitions of the Olympic champion and the world champion.
Vladimir’s friend, 1980 Olympic champion and Honoured Master of Sports Mikhail Ivanov (“Dynamo”, Moscow) said in an interview: “Vladimir Akimov’s expulsion from the national team of the Union became the real shock not only for our fans of water polo, but also for all rivals — team players of Germany, Yugoslavia, Hungary and others who always asked: ‘Will he be back in the lineup of the team or not?’ His opponents feared him and respected him simultaneously!”
He will be remembered as agreat athlete, a reliable friend and a man with an inexhaustible sense of humor. He tragically passed away at age 34, on October 5, 1987.
Come join Akimov’s son Roman and the rest of this year’s Class of 2024 in Fort Lauderdale.
If you cannot join us, please consider making a donation.
To make a donation, click here: https://ishof.org/donate/
This year’s International Swimming Hall of Fame Honorees include:
Honor Swimmers:
Lars Frölander (SWE)
Daniel Gyurta (HUN)
Dana Vollmer (USA)
1976 Women’s 4×100 Freestyle Gold Medal Relay Team (USA)
(Includes Shirley Babashoff, Wendy Boglioli, Kim Peyton*, Jill Sterkel)
Honor Divers:
Alexandre Despatie (CAN)
Yulia Pakhalina (RUS)
Wu Minxia (CHN) 2023
Honor Artistic Swimmer:
Virginie Dedieu (FRA)
Honor Water Polo Players:
Carmela “Lilli” Allucci (ITA)
Vladimir Akimov* (USSR)
Honor Coach:
Dennis Pursley (USA)
Honor Contributor:
Dale Neuburger (USA)
ISHOF 59th Annual Honoree Induction weekend
~ HOTEL INFORMATION ~
Host Hotel: Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort & Spa
To make reservations click here: https://book.passkey.com/e/50757008
321 North Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 467-1111. Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $229 per night,
Additional Hotel Option:
Courtyard Marriott Fort Lauderdale Beach
Book your group rate for Honoree Ceremony
440 Seabreeze Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 524-8733
Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $169 – $199 per night
~ TICKET INFORMATION ~
Friday, October 4, 2024: Includes:
The Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame (MISHOF) Induction Ceremony
The ISHOF Aquatic Awards presented by AquaCal and
The ISHOF Specialty Awards
Click here to purchase tickets: MISHOF/AWARDS
Saturday, October 5, 2024: Includes
The 59th Annual International Swimming Hall of Fame Honoree Induction Ceremony
The Al Schoenfield Media Award and
The 2024 ISHOF Gold Medallion Award
Click here to purchase tickets: INDUCTION