Happy Birthday Alain Bernard
Alain Bernard (FRA)
Honor Swimmer (2017)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: 2008 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (100m freestyle), silver (4x100m freestyle), bronze (50m freestyle); 2012 London: gold (4×100m freestyle); 2007 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): bronze (4×100m freestyle); 2009 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): silver (100m freestyle), bronze (4×100m freestyle); 2011 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): silver (4×100m freestyle), bronze (50m freestyle); 2010 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold 4×100m freestyle; 2006 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): bronze (4×100m freestyle); 2008 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): gold (100m freestyle, 50m freestyle); 2010 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): gold (100m freestyle), silver (4×100m freestyle); 2012 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): gold (4×100m freestyle), silver (100m freestyle); 2004 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): gold (4×50m freestyle); 2005 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): silver (4×50m freestyle); 2006 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): silver (4×50m freestyle), bronze (100m freestyle); 2007 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): gold (100m freestyle), silver (4x50m freestyle), bronze (50m freestyle); 2008 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (SC): gold (4×50m freestyle); FOUR WORLD RECORDS: 50m freestyle (LC), 100m freestyle (LC & SC), 200m freestyle relay.
Born in Aubagne, Bouches-du-Rhône, France, Alain Bernard trained at a local club until the age of 16, when he switched to Club Marseille to train under coach Denis Auguin. He made slow but steady progress until 2007, a break-out year in which he set the French record in the 100m freestyle and later claimed his first European Championship title in the same event. Then, at the European Championships in March 2008, he set his first world records, winning the 50m and 100m freestyle. A month later he qualified for the Beijing Olympic Games in both events.
Alain’s experience in Beijing began with bitter disappointment, when the USA took the gold medal from the favored French team in the 4x100m freestyle relay. In addition, he also lost his world record to Eamon Sullivan who led off Australia’s relay with a phenomenal swim.
Alain reclaimed his record two days later in his 100m freestyle semi-final swim, before losing it again to Sullivan in his semi. In the final, however, it was Alain Bernard who won the gold medal, and with his victory, he became France’s first male Olympic gold medalist since Jean Boiteaux, who won the 400m freestyle at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games.
The next day he won a bronze medal in the 50m freestyle event and left Beijing with three medals, each of a different metal.
The next year, Alain ushered in the shiny suit era by becoming the first swimmer to break the 47 second barrier in the 100m freestyle, breaking Sullivan’s record with a time of 46.94 seconds. Unfortunately, the suit he wore was not approved by FINA and his record was unrecognized.
Leading up to the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Alain continued to be among the world’s top sprinters and although he missed qualifying in individual events, he was a member of the French 4x100m freestyle relay that finally won the gold, after knocking on the door of greatness for most of his career. Upon returning to France at the age of 29, he announced his retirement as his country’s most decorated Olympic swimmer, owning a total of four medals (two gold, one silver and one bronze) from two Olympic Games, Beijing and London.
Today he continues to share his love of swimming in his role as ambassador and technical advisor for the French AquaSphere brand of swim equipment.
ISHOF Announces Spectacular Class of 2023; Michael Phelps and Bob Bowman Among Honorees
The International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) is proud to announce its prestigious Class of 2023. This year, ISHOF will induct 13 honorees from eight countries: five swimmers, two coaches, one diver, one water polo player, one synchronized swimmer, one open water swimmer, one contributor and its first Paralympian. The induction event will be held Saturday, September 30, 2023 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
This year’s International Swimming Hall of Fame honorees include:
HONOR SWIMMERS: Michael Phelps (USA), Kosuke Kitajima (JPN), Cesar Cielo (BRA), Missy Franklin (USA) and Kristy Coventry (ZIM); HONOR DIVER: Wu Minxia (CHN); HONOR SYNCHRONIZED (ARTISTIC) SWIMMER: Natalia Ischenko (RUS); HONOR WATER POLO: Heather Petri (USA); HONOR OPEN WATER SWIMMER: Stèphane LeCat (FRA); HONOR COACH: Bob Bowman (USA) and Chris Carver (USA); HONOR CONTRIBUTORS: Sam Ramsamy (RSA) and PARALYMPIAN: Trischa Zorn (USA).
Michael Phelps (USA) is the greatest swimmer to ever grace the pool. It would be hard to imagine that anyone will ever come close to accomplishing even half of what he managed in his Olympic career. During his swimming career, Michael swam in five Olympic Games (2000-2016), won a total of 28 Olympic medals, 23 of which were gold, three silver and two bronze. The beauty of Michael’s career was that he was so versatile. He could swim any stroke. Michael set 39 world records in his record-breaking career. He will go down in history as one of the greatest athletes of all time.
Kirsty Coventry (ZIM) is the most decorated Olympian from the continent of Africa. And not just in swimming, in ALL sports. She and Kristina Egerszegi are tied for having won the most individual Olympic medals in women’s swimming. She has competed in five Olympic Games, from 2000-2016, and she won all but one of Zimbabwe’s Olympic medals. In total, she won two gold, four silver and one bronze Olympic medals, all individual. She is a four-time world champion, and five-time world-record holder. She is a 22-time medalist at her native All-Africa Games, 14 of which were gold. And to show her versatility, the events ran from the 50 to 800m freestyle, to the breaststroke events, IM and her signature backstroke events. Like Phelps, she could swim it all.
Photo by Peter Bick
Kosuke Kitajima (JPN) is a Japanese swimmer who broke seven world records in his career, specializing in the breaststroke. In his first Olympic Games in 2004, he captured gold medals in the 100- and 200-meter breaststroke and a bronze, swimming the breaststroke leg of the 4 x 100 medley relay representing his homeland. During the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, he pulled off a repeat of the 2004 Games, winning the gold medal in the 100- and 200-meter breaststroke, while also breaking the world record in the 100, in a time of 58.91. By winning back-to-back titles in 2004 and 2008, Kitajima became the first and only swimmer to win the breaststroke events at back-to-back Olympic Games. He and his team again won the bronze in 2008 in the medley relay. In 2012, Kitajima and the relay team bettered it in London by winning silver. In the end, Kitajima won four gold, one silver and two bronze medals in Olympic competition.
Missy Franklin (USA) became America’s darling at her Olympic debut in London at the 2012 Summer Games at the age of 17. She is a two-time Olympian, and five-time Olympic gold medalist, who specialized in the backstroke events. She is a four-time world record holder, two in the 200-meter backstroke, both long and short course, and also in the 4×100-meter medley relay, also in the long and short course. Missy brought home a total of five Olympic medals for the USA, four of which were gold. In 2012, she swept the women’s backstroke events, capturing gold in both the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke. She also won two more gold in London in the 4 x 200m freestyle relay and the 4 x 100 medley relay. At those Games, she and her teammates won bronze in the 4 x 100 freestyle relay. In Missy’s second Games, she left Rio with another gold medal to add to her resume in the 4 x 200 freestyle relay. In total, she has won 28 medals in international competition: 17 gold, six silver, and five bronze, combining her participation at the Olympic Games, the FINA World Championships, both long and short course, and the Pan Pacific Championships. Her 11 gold medals at the World Championships set a record in women’s swimming until an up and comer, named Katie Ledecky broke it in 2017.
Photo by Speedo
Cesar Cielo (BRA) was a Brazilian swimmer who specialized in the sprint events. He is considered the most successful Brazilian swimmer in history, having won three Olympic medals: Gold in the 50-meter freestyle in 2008, as well as a bronze in the 100 freestyle and a second bronze in 2012 in London in the 50m freestyle. Cielo is also a six-time world champion and broke two world records. His 50-freestyle world record of 20.91 has lasted an astounding 15 years, broken Dec. 18, 2009. His second world record (46.91 in the 100 freestyle) endured almost as long and was just broken last summer (August 13, 2022). Cielo’s gold medal at the Beijing Olympic Games in the 50m freestyle is Brazil’s only Olympic gold medal in swimming to date. Cielo was the first man to swim under 47 seconds in the 100-meter freestyle and the first man under 41 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle. He was also a six-time national champion at Auburn University.
Honor Diver
Wu Minxia (CHN) is a diver from China, specializing in the 1- and 3-meter springboard events, as well as the 3-meter synchronized events. She represented China at every Asian Games, FINA World Championships and Olympic Games beginning in 2001 through 2016. She is an eight-time world champion, and a five-time Olympic and Asian Champion, making her one of the most decorated divers in Chinese history. In the 3-meter synchro event, she was originally partnered with Guo Jingjing in 2001, where she won her first world title. She would go on to win on three more occasions with Jingjing. After Jingjing retired, Wu partnered with He Zi and continued winning. At the 2012 Olympic Games, Wu won the gold in the synchro event, becoming the first woman to win gold in a diving event in three consecutive Olympic Games. No one has won more gold medals in the 3-meter synchronized springboard diving event than Wu Minxia.
Honor Water Polo Player
Heather Petri (USA) stands tall right alongside Brenda Villa as one of the most decorated women’s water polo players of all time. She has four Olympic medals, one gold (2012), two silver (2008, 2000) and one bronze (2004). She has three World Championships titles (2009, 2007, 2003) and one silver medal (2005). She scored four goals on the way to a gold medal and an Olympic berth at the 2011 Pan American Games. She won gold as well in the two other Pan Am Games that she competed in (2003, 2007). She scored the USA’s gold medals win over Canada at the 2003 Pan Am’s to qualify for the 2004 Olympic Games. She was part of the first Olympic Games to offer water polo in 2000, and she and her USA teammates took silver.
Honor Synchronized Swimmer (Artistic Swimming)
Natalia Ischenko (RUS) was the first Russian to win solo, duet, and the team event at a single World Championships. She was honored by FINA as the Synchronized Swimmer of the Year 2010-2012. She is a five-time Olympic Champion, and 19-time world champion. In 2008, at her first Olympic Games in Beijing, she won gold in the team event. In 2012, in London at her second Games, she took gold in Team and Duet and in her third and final Games, she again took gold in Team and Duet. Her 19 World Championships wins began in 2005 and her career ended in Kazan in 2015. She also has two silver medals, one from 2005 from a solo event and the other from 2007 from the solo free routine. She retired in April of 2017 and since then, Natalia has served as Vice Minister of Sports Kaliningrad Oblast.
Honor Open Water Swimmer
Stéphane Lecat (FRA) was the premier professional marathon swimmer in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was the FINA World Cup Series Champion in 1997, 1999 and 2000. He won the bronze medal in the 25k at the 2011 FINA World Championships. He competed at the European Championships in the 25k event three times, winning a medal each time. In 2000 he won gold, in 1997 he took silver, and in 1995 it was bronze. At the Mediterranean Championships in 1997, he won gold in the 15k event. He swam the English Channel in 2003 in a time of 8 hours and 19 minutes, and he was a 10-time national champion. He was inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame in 2018. In addition, that same year, he was awarded the Irving Davids/Captain Roger W. Wheeler Memorial Award by ISHOF for his contribution to the administration of the French Open Water National Swimming Team/Program in 2018, and he was awarded “Glory of Sport” by the French Olympic Committee in 2022.
Honor Coaches:
Bob Bowman (USA) is best known as the coach of 23-time Olympic gold medalist, U.S. Swimmer, Michael Phelps. He is currently the head coach at Arizona State University, whose men’s team just won the Pac-12 Conference championship for the first time in history. He was the 2016 U.S. Men’s Head Olympic Swimming Coach in Rio. Bowman has served as an assistant Olympic Coach in 2004, 2008 and 2012. He was just recently named the U.S. Men’s Head Coach for the 2023 World Aquatics (formerly FINA) Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. He served as head coach at the University of Michigan, and prior to that, he spent a significant part of his career at North Baltimore Aquatic Club, where he began coaching five-time Olympian and 28-time Olympic medalist, Michael Phelps, who began swimming with Bob as an age group swimmer. Bowman is the author of best-selling book, The Golden Rules: 10 Steps to World Class Excellence in Your Life and Work (2016).
Chris Carver (USA) is a ground-breaking synchronized swimming choreographer and coach of the world renown Santa Clara Aquamaids. As the co-head coach of the U.S. National Team, the team won every gold medal in elite international competition between the 1991 Pan Am Games and 1996 Olympic Games. With four of her club swimmers on the 1996 Olympic team, Carver choreographed the USA Team to win the Olympics’ first gold in the team event, earning the first perfect 100 score in Olympic history. Seven of the nine members of the 2000 US Olympic Team were Carver’s own swimmers, as were eight of the nine in 2004, including Alison Bartosik and Anna Kozlova, who won bronze medals in duet. She has produced more than 50% of the USA’s Synchronized Swimming Olympians since 1984. In an era when the USA was Sychro’s world leader, Carver was named Coach of the Year by U.S. Synchronized Swimming 14 consecutive times and her Santa Clara Aquamaids have won 14 U.S. National Team championships since 1985.
Honor Contributor
Sambasivan RAMSAMY (RSA) was the founding member of the South African Council for Sport, established in 1973. In 1976, he became Chairperson of the South African Non-Racial Olympic Committee (Sanroc). In 1976, Ramsamy petitioned countries to formalize a boycott of South African Sports, which culminated in the Gleneagles Agreement of 1977. During the transition to democracy, he encouraged international support for the black sports body, the National Olympic Committee of South Africa and became its head in 1991. He led the first non-racial South African team to the Olympic Games in 1992 Barcelona. Ramsamy has spent most of his adult life fighting for the eradication of the color bar in sport and toward creating unity in the sporting arena where selection for teams is based on merit and where athletes of all races are given an equal chance to participate. Ramsamy was first elected to the FINA Bureau as a member in 1996. He is currently FINA’s first Vice President, since May 2021, after serving many years as Second Vice-President (2017-2021), Vice President (2004-2017), and Bureau Member (1996-2004). He has more than 60 years’ experience in sport and was himself an athlete in several sports including football and swimming.
Honor Paralympian
Trischa Zorn (USA) is an American Paralympic swimmer who has been blind from birth. She is the most successful athlete in the history of the Paralympic Games. She swims all events and the first Paralympic Games she competed in was in 1980, Arnhem, where she brought home seven gold medals. She has competed in seven Paralympic Games, winning a total of 55 medals, 41 of them gold. At the 1996 Games in Atlanta, she won more medals than any other athlete: two gold, three silver and three bronze. She also topped the individual medal table at the 1992 Paralympic Games with 10 gold medals and two silver. She held world records in eight events in her disability category (50m backstroke, 100m backstroke, 200m backstroke, 200m IM, 400m IM, 200m breaststroke, 4 x 50m medley relay, 4 x 50 free relay). Zorn was inducted into the International Paralympian Hall of Fame in 2012.
Look for more information coming soon and visitwww.ishof.org and www.swimmingworld.com regularly to keep up with all the news.
Hotel and ticket Information coming soon….
contact: Meg Keller-Marvin
Honoree & Olympian Liaisonmeg@ishof-org
570.594.4367International Swimming Hall of Fame
One Hall of Fame DriveFt. Lauderdale, FL 33316
High Diving World Cup
Click here for all the information you need for the World Aquatics High Diving World Cup in Fort Lauderdale, May 26-27, Practice Days: May 24-25, 2023 at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center
Information on:
Tickets, Map and About the Event ~ Purchase tickets here right from link below
https://usadiving.ticketspice.com/2023-world-aquatics-high-diving-world-cup-fort-lauderdale
Guess who stopped by ISHOF for a visit ??? Masters Hall of Famer’s Felix Grossman and John Denninger…..
United States Masters Diving is in Fort Lauderdale to host its annual National Championships. Honorees John Denninger and Felix Grossman are in town to compete, so they stopped by the Museum to have a look at their Honorees Boards and say hello!
Felix Grossman
John Denninger
The U.S. Masters Nationals run at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center through the weekend. Good luck to all participants!
#ishof #masters #diving #fortlauderdale #museum #nationalchampionships #usa #newaquaticcenter #honorees #ishofhonorees #beach #pool #27metertower #theted #triptoflorida
ISHOF Board Member and Honoree Dara Torres Shines as usual in South Florida/Las Olas Lifestyle…..
Dara Torres, ISHOF Board Member and Honoree, recently did a cover shoot and article for a local South Florida Magazine, Las Olas Lifestyle featuring ISHOF and the Hall of Fame Aquatic Center. Enjoy the article and great photos!
Since Dara Torres joined the ISHOF Board in 2021, she has continued to help in any way she can. Now a resident of Fort Lauderdale, she is able to be more active than ever.
Torres has been to five Olympic Games, winning twelve medals, four gold, four silver and four bronze.
Dara was inducted into ISHOF in 2016. She would have gone in years earlier, but she keep make comebacks! :} And killing it we might add!
Read Dara’s Honoree write up here:
Dara Torres (USA)
Honor Swimmer (2016)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: 1984 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (4×100 m freestyle); 1988 OLYMPIC GAMES: silver (4×100 m medley), bronze (4×100 m freestyle); 1992 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (4×100 m freestyle); 2000 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (4×100 m freestyle, 4×100 m medley), bronze (50 m freestyle, 100 m freestyle, 100 m butterfly); 2008 OLYMPIC GAMES: silver (50 m freestyle, 4×100 m freestyle, 4×100 m medley); 1986WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (LC): silver (4×100 m freestyle); 1987 PAN PACIFIC CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (100 m freestyle, 4×100 m freestyle, 4×100 m medley); 1983 PAN AMERICAN GAMES: gold (4×100 m freestyle); SIX WORLD RECORDS: three individual (50m free), three relays (4x100m free, 4x100m medley)
https://youtube.com/watch?v=kCLaQWQ-9bU%3Ffeature%3Doembed
Dara Grace Torres grew up in Beverly Hills, California, where she learned to swim in her family’s backyard pool. At the age of seven, she followed her brothers to swim practice at the local YMCA. During her junior year of high school, Torres moved to Mission Viejo, CA, to train with Hall of Fame Coach Mark Schubert, and in 1983 she broke the world record in the 50-meter freestyle. The next year, while not yet a senior in high school, she won her first Olympic gold medal as a member of the USA’s 4×100 freestyle relay team.
Swimming for Randy Reece at the University of Florida, Torres earned 28 NCAA All-American swimming awards and at the 1988 Olympic Games, she won two silver medals swimming on relays. She finished her collegiate athletic career playing volleyball and took two years off before returning to win her second Olympic relay gold medal in Barcelona, Spain during the summer of 1992.
After 1992, Torres lived what appeared to be a glamorous life. She moved to New York City, worked in television, and as a Wilhelmina model she became the first athlete model in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. Then in the spring of 1999, despite not having trained in a pool for seven years, she decided to give the Olympics one more try.
Training with coach Richard Quick in Palo Alto and Santa Clara, Dara made the Olympic team for the fourth time, at the age of 33. She returned home with five medals, more than any other member of the team, including three in individual events, and retired.
In 2005, while pregnant with her first child, Dara began swimming three or four times a week at the Coral Springs Aquatic Complex, to keep fit. After giving birth to her daughter, Tessa Grace, in April 2006, she entered two Masters meets and posted times that emboldened her to try another comeback. She asked Coral Springs coach Michael Lohberg if he would coach her, and a little over a year later, she won the 100-meter freestyle at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis. Three days later, she broke the American record in the 50-meter freestyle for the tenth time – an amazing 24 years after setting it for the very first time. In 2008, Dara qualified for her fifth Olympic team and at the 2008 Beijing Games, she became the oldest swimmer to compete in the Olympics. Dara returned home with three silver medals, including the heartbreaking 50-meter freestyle race where she missed the gold by 1/100th of a second.
In 2009, Dara won the ESPY award for “Best Comeback,” was named one of the “Top Female Athletes of the Decade” by Sports Illustrated magazine and became a best selling author with the release of her inspirational memoir, Age is Just a Number.
Dara continued swimming after recovering from reconstructive knee surgery and with the encouragement of coach Lohberg, she set her sights on making a record sixth U.S. Olympic swim team. When she just missed making the London Olympics by nine-hundredths of a second in the 50-meter freestyle at the 2012 US Swimming Olympic Trials, she announced her retirement with a smile on her face and her six-year old daughter Tessa in her arms.
Olympian, television personality, fitness guru, Queen of the Comeback, best-selling author and mother. Dara Torres is many things to many people, but above all, she is an inspiration.
International Marathon Class of 2023 Inductions and Awards only two weeks away ~ New York City May 6th, 2023
Tickets sold out..check later for 2024 Ceremony – 125 expected
All attendees must show proof of ID and COVID vaccination (and booster when applicable)
Local hotels > Click here
Car Parking > Click here
Fordham University / Manhattan Campus
113 West 60th Street (corner of Columbus Avenue) New York, NY 10023.
Registration/happy hour 5:30-6:30
Call to dinner 6:45, Salad 7:00, Dessert 7:45, Program 8:00.
Dress code: Business casual or better: men in dress shirt, jacket, slacks (not jeans) and dress shoes – ladies always know! See pictures from this previous ceremony
Saturday morning 10am (Brighton Beach) swim – see below: up to 10 km swim with CIBBOWS (historic water temperatures – 13C/56F) – full details later
Inductees and Award Winners:
Diane Struble: Honor Swimmer
Brenda Fisher, BEM: Honor Swimmer
Kevin Murphy: Poseidon Award
Australian Long Distance Swimming Federation: Honor Organizatio
Rita Kovács: Honor Swimmer
Jaime Lomelín Gavaldón: Honor Swimmer
Sally Anne Minty-Gravett, MBE: Irving Davids and Captain Roger W. Wheeler Memorial Awa
Colleen Blair, MBE: Honor Swimmer
David Yudovin: The Dale Petranech Award
Keywords > https://www.imshof.org/
International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame IMSHOF Open water swimmer Long distance swim Honor Honoree Inductee Induction ceremony award 10k FINA association federation webb Ederle Sarah Thomas English Channel
Saturday Morning Swim
Please join NYC’s group of joyful year-round swimmers at Brighton Beach on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at 10 am. This is a public beach that is used year-round. The official beach season will not have started yet, and as such there will be no lifeguards. We trust you to use your own discretion and adjust your swim accordingly.
For up-to-date conditions, please reference https://shallweswim.today/. We are a bare-bones group. Don’t bring valuables (or passports) on the beach–there are no lockers. Everybody helps keep an eye on everyone else’s stuff. There are no showers or indoor spaces – we change on the beach. Locals will bring what they can to assist those who are lacking in their kit (warm water, extra towels, pastries ~ the most important recovery method, etc.). We look forward to seeing you there.
We gather at Grimaldo’s chair (see directions below).
Here is a basic distance chart for those who want to plan ahead:
Swim Distances
For an interactive map check out Google Maps. You can also see a single 3mi swim loop (Grimaldo’s Chair to the “White” Building (it’s now red), then to the Coney Island Pier, then back to Grimaldo’s Chair) with this Gmap Pedometer Course. Here are some swim distances, parallel to the shoreline approximately 100 yards out, past the jetties.
FromToYardsMeters
Grimaldo’s ChairSmall rocks (West of Grimaldo)416382
Grimaldo’s ChairLarge rocks (West of Grimaldo)619566
Grimaldo’s Chair“White” Building (Now Red)824753
Grimaldo’s ChairCyclone1,4801,287
Grimaldo’s ChairConey Island Pier1,9561,789
White BuildingConey Island Pier2,7792,541
Coney Island PierSeagate1,7031,557
West 22nd St.Next set of rocks (either direction)200183
West 22nd St.Coney Island Pier503460
Ex-White Building (Now Red)Seagate4,4824,098
Rocks (East of Grimaldo)Small Rocks (West of Grimaldo)776710
Rocks (East of Grimaldo)Large Rocks (West of Grimaldo)959877
Ex-White Building (Now Red)Large Rocks (West of Grimaldo)1,4431,319
Grimaldo’s Chair is easily accessible by public transportation.
By subway (get on train by 8:45 am latest) from Manhattan and Brooklyn
Take Q train to Brighton Beach stop
For Grimaldo’s Chair, exit station onto Brighton Beach Ave and take 6th St to boardwalk
Walk south on boardwalk past Cafe Volna to the concrete gazebo
Swimmers meet behind Grimaldo’s chair, which is located on the beach beyond the gazebo
By car from Manhattan and Brooklyn
Take Exit 2-Battery Tunnel toward I-78 & Brooklyn
Merge onto I-478 East
I-478 East becomes Brooklyn Queens Expressway
Merge onto Belt Parkway E via exit on left
Take Exit 8 to Coney Island Avenue
Go Straight to Shore Parkway
Turn right into Brighton 6th Street
Turn Left onto Brighton Beach Avenue
Parking
If you plan to drive in, street parking and a municipal lot (Brighton 4th St & Brightwater Ct) are available. The Municipal parking lot is free on Sundays.
Today we Celebrate the Birthday of one of the first great women to fight for women’s rights: Hilda James of Great Britain
Hilda James (GBR)
Honor Pioneer Swimmer (2016)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: 1920 OLYMPIC GAMES: silver (4x100m freestyle); SEVEN WORLD RECORDS: two (300yd freestyle), two (150yd freestyle), one (440yd freestyle), one (400m freestyle), two (220yd freestyle), three (300m freestyle); 29 ENGLISH RECORDS: four (300yd freestyle), one (440yd freestyle), one (500yd freestyle), four (220yd freestyle), four (100yd freestyle), four (150yd freestyle), two (440yd freestyle), two (500yd freestyle), one (440m freestyle), one (1750yd freestyle), one (880yd freestyle), one (1000yd freestyle); EIGHT U.K. NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: four (220yd freestyle), one (100yd freestyle), two (Thames Long Distance from Kew Putney five miles 50yd), one (440yd freestyle); FOUR SCOTTISH RECORDS: one (220yd freestyle), two (200yd freestyle), one (300yd freestyle), one (400m freestyle); FOUR OTHER MEET RESULTS: gold (300yd individual medley), gold (220yd freestyle), gold (110yd breaststroke), one River Seine 8k Race.
To avoid attending Church of England religious education classes, which conflicted with her parents religious beliefs, this 11-year old Liverpudlian was assigned to swimming classes at the Garston Baths.
Five years later, Hilda James was Great Britain’s best female swimmer and left for the 1920 Olympic Games with high expectations. Unfortunately in Amsterdam, the USA women completely dominated, sweeping the gold, silver and bronze medals in the 100m and 300m freestyle, the only individual swimming events for women at the 1920 Games. And while the British did win silver medals in the 4x100m relay, they finished a full 30 seconds behind the Americans. The following day Hilda cheekily asked the American coach, Lou de B. Handley, to teach her the American Crawl.
In 1922, Hilda was invited by her American friends to visit the USA for the summer racing season. While she was still behind the American stars Helen Wainwright and Gertrude Ederle, she was closing the gap.
By 1924, Hilda held every British and European freestyle record from 100 meters to the mile, and a handful of world records as well. She easily made the 1924 Olympic team, and it was widely believed that she would return from Paris with a handful of medals. When Hilda’s mother insisted she accompany her daughter as chaperone, and the British Olympic Committee refused, Hilda’s mother refused to let her go. Unfortunately, Hilda was not yet 21, was under the care of her parents – and had to obey.
Hilda turned 21 shortly after the Olympic Games, gained her independence, and took a job with the Cunard Shipping Company, traveling the world as a celebrity spokesperson, at a time when women were just starting to gain their freedom.
We will never know how Hilda would have fared in the 1924 Olympic Games, but she was a trailblazer and one of Europe’s first female sports superstars who inspired future generations of girls to follow in her wake.
Hilda’s grandson, Ian McAllister wrote the story of her life, “The Lost Olympics”, if you would like to read it, it’s a great read, I promise you will love it! You can get it on Amazon in paperback or Kindle:
Happy Birthday to the QUEEN of ISHOF ~ Donna deVarona
Of the over 800 Honorees that have been inducted into ISHOF, probably none have a closer tie to the institution than Donna deVarona. Since the very beginning, she has been a part of ISHOF. She was invited to the grand opening of the Hall of Fame Pool in 1965, and was named the “Queen”, as she was one of the most recognized faces around, having just won two gold medals at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo. She had also just been on the covers of several major national magazines, including “Life” and “Sports Illustrated“. A few years later, she was inducted in 1969 as an Honor Swimmer, see her bio below. But Donna always made ISHOF a priority and kept coming back to Fort Lauderdale. She returned anytime she was asked, and sometimes even when she wasn’t! Donna was a favorite of ISHOF Founder and Executive Director, Buck Dawson, and you can bet he asked frequently. She returned for many induction ceremonies through the years, whether to emcee the event or just to attend and show support. If Buck needed help with an introduction to someone, or a phone call for assistance, Donna was always there. And she knows everyone. With her job in television, she knows stars, athletes, politicians, you name it. And she is still part of us today. We just saw her in January, 2023, at the new 27-meter Tower Dive Challenge and Aquatic Center Grand Opening. So, today on her birthday, we would just like to say thank you for her years of friendship to ISHOF and we celebrate YOU Donna!
Igor Milanovic, Tom Gompf, Donna
Donna DeVarona (USA)
Honor Swimmer (1969)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1960 (participant); 1964 gold (400m individual medley, 4x100m freestyle relay), 5th (100m butterfly); WORLD RECORDS: 8 long course events; AMERICAN RECORDS: 10 short course events (she broke and re-broke her World and American records in these events many times); NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: 37 individual titles in backstroke, butterfly and freestyle (including 18 gold medals and 3 national high point awards); AWARDS (1964): America’s Outstanding Woman Athlete, Outstanding American Female Swimmer, San Francisco’s Outstanding Woman of the Year, Mademoiselle Award, National Academy of Sports Award, and others.
Eleanor Holm, Donna, Ed Kennedy at Donna’s 1969 Induction
What Eleanor Holm and Esther Williams were to the “Aquacades” 20 years earlier, Donna deVarona was to swimming in the 1960s. Her glamour and showmanship seen on television, in swimsuit ads, and as an after-dinner speaker are a popular reflection of a swimming record second to none in her time.
Miss deVarona won 37 individual national championship medals, including 18 golds and three national high point awards. She held world records in 8 long course events and American records in 10 short course events, which would have been world records if FINA still recognized 25 yard pool times as they did until 1957. Most of Donna’s world and American records were broken and re-broken numerous times by Donna herself, so she actually held many times more records than the 18 events she held them in.
Donna helping William E. Simon, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury/Gold Medallion
Her versatility is reflected in her absolute dominance of the tough four stroke Individual Medley, often thought of in tract terms as “the decathlon of swimming.” She further won national titles and set world fastest times in 3 of the 4 strokes in individual events (backstroke, butterfly, and freestyle), establishing herself at various times as the world’s fastest as well as the world’s best all-round swimmer of her day. Her day was a 5-year period which extended from the Rome Olympics until retirement after the Tokyo Games. She was the youngest American on the 1960 team, and four years later she won two gold medals.
Grand Opening group including Donna and Eleanor Holm
In between and following these two Olympics, she was the Queen of Swimming and was so recognized by the International Swimming Hall of Fame at its first International Meet in 1965. During her reign, as most photographed woman athlete, Donna was cover girl on “Life”, “Time”, “Saturday Evening Post” and twice on “Sports Illustrated”.
Murray Rose and Donna
Her biggest award year was 1964 when she was voted America’s Outstanding Woman Athlete, Outstanding American Female Swimmer, and San Francisco’s Outstanding Woman of the Year, plus the Mademoiselle Award, National Academy of Sports Award and many others in as many languages. She has represented the United States, “doing her thing” in Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Peru, Brazil, England and Italy.
USMS Spring Championships: Nathan Adrian, Anthony Ervin, Jenny Thompson Lead Superb Field of 2500 (Psych Sheets)
by DAN D’ADDONA — SWIMMING WORLD MANAGING EDITOR
The U.S. Masters Swimming (USMS) Spring National Championships kick off on Thursday in Irvine, California. It is the first time since 1981 a USMS national meet will be held in the Southern California city.
The event is expected to be the largest in USMS history with nearly 2,500 swimmers entered.
Thursday’s first session will feature the 1650 freestyle and 1000 free events, with Friday’s slate offering the 100 breaststroke, 200 backstroke, 50 butterfly, 200 IM, 100 free and mixed 200 free relay. Saturday will feature the 500 free, 100 butterfly, 200 breaststroke, 100 IM, 50 backstroke, 200 medley relay and 200 freestyle relay. Sunday’s final session will include the 400 IM, 50 free, 200 butterfly, 100 backstroke, 200 free, 50 breast and mixed medley relay.
Several of the top Masters swimmers over the years are slated to compete, including Laura Val, who has been a Swimming World Masters Swimmer of the Year on several occasions. Meanwhile, several Olympic stars are entered, led by gold medalists Nathan Adrian, Anthony Ervin and Jenny Thompson. There will be at least 22 Olympians competing in the meet, including 13 who represented the U.S.
Former Stanford NCAA record-holder Ally Howe is slated to compete. She once held the NCAA record in the 100 backstroke. Felicia Lee, another NCAA champion, is slated to compete in multiple events, as is former national teamer Becca Mann.
For the men, Vladimir Morozov is slated to compete in the 50 free. Mission Viejo’s David Heron and Grant Shoults are scheduled to swim the 500 free and are seeded one hundredth apart. Former NCAA champions Abram DeVine and Andrei Minakov are also scheduled to compete.
Elite breaststrokers Jeff Commings and Steve West are on the psych sheets and have routinely produced top-tier performances through the years.
The oldest competitor is 101-year-old Maurine Kornfeld, who swims for Rose Bowl Masters in Pasadena. The oldest male competitor is Albert Edgerton, 97, who is from California. There are six swimmers who are at least 90 years old and 57 swimmers who are at least 80 years old.
Age for the meet is determined as of April 30, 2023, except for 18-year-olds, who must be 18 by April 26, 2023. Age groups for individual events: 18–24, 25–29, 30–34, 35–39 … (five-year increments as high as necessary). Relay events: 18+, 25+, 35+, 45+, etc (10-year increments as high as necessary, determined by the age of the youngest relay member).
Masters Divers are headed to Fort Lauderdale!
2023 Masters Spring National Championship in Fort Lauderdale, FL
Masters Divers vying the chance at National Titles
Fort Lauderdale, FL— April 28, 2023 — USA Masters Diving is excited to hold the2023 USA Masters National Championships at the newly renovated Fort Lauderdale AquaticComplex from Friday, April 28 – Sunday, April 30, 2023.
Talented Field of Athletes
The very best springboard and platform divers from around the country, as well asnumerous international competitors, aged 21 to 89 will gather to determine the USA MastersNational Champions in the 1 meter, 3 meter and platform events. Many decorated competitorswill be comprising the field, including past Masters Nationals Champions, Masters PanAmerican Champions, and Master World Champions.
Competition begins Friday morning.
MISHOF Honoree John Denninger
MISHOF Honoree Jennifer Mangum
MISHOF Honoree Felix Grossman
The divers will begin competition on Friday and will continue through Sunday, beginning eachday at 9:00 AM. Spectators are welcome to witness these amazing athletes’ talents throughout theweekend. Competition will not only include individual diving events, but also synchronized diving.Come out to watch all the action at The Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex at 501 Seabreeze Blvd, FortLauderdale, FL 33316.
For more information, press only:Heather Carrano – Chair, USA Masters Divinginfo@mastersdiving.org
For more information on USA Masters Diving:http://mastersdiving.org/