On this day, in 1872, John Arthur Jarvis, British Olympic gold medalist in swimming was born…..
JOHN ARTHUR JARVIS (GBR) 1968 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1900 gold (1000m, 4000m freestyle); 1906 silver (1 mile freestyle), bronze (400m freestyle; 4x250m freestyle relay); WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1907 gold (500m freestyle); His 108 swimming championships included: Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee 1-mile championship; German Kaiser’s Championship of Europe; Austrian Emperor’s World Championships at Vienna; the King of Italy’s World’s Distance Championship; the Queen of Holland’s World’s Championship at 4,000m; King Edward VII coronation Cup One Mile; English Mile Championship – six year in succession; English Long Distance Championship (7 miles) – eight years; Half Mile Championships – 4 times in succession; 500yd Championship – 4 times; 400yd salt water championship- twice; plunging championship of England, 1904; 2 gold cups for 15 mile swim through London; Grand Prix of Antwerp, 1000m; Cup de la Meuse, Belgium; holder of the Royal Humane Society’s Medal for Life Saving.
John Arthur Jarvis called himself “Amateur Swimming Champion of the World” and he had 108 swimming championships to prove it. In 1900 (Paris), he was the first Olympic triple gold medal winner as he touched first at 100 meters, 1000 meters and 4000 meters. He followed with a gold and a silver at the 1906 Athens Olympics. Jarvis swam the overarm sidestroke and all races were “freestyle.” Jarvis and Joey Nuttall, the English professional champion, developed a special kick to go with this stroke which became known as the Jarvis-Nuttall kick. Some of Jarvis’ records with this stroke lasted 28 years.
After the 1907 world championships at Charenton, a newspaper report states: “The event of the day was the exhibition made by Jarvis in the 500 meter championship. The Englishman at once took the lead and swam with a regularity so perfect as to seem absolutely mechanical. He covered the 500 meters in 7 min., 43-4/5 sec. and turning, watched as an interested spectator, the struggle for second place. Boin arrived 46 seconds later, and Gegoire was third in 8 minutes, 50-1/5 sec.”
Jarvis saved innumerable lives in his later career teaching lifesaving including one famed rescue in which he brought in twin sisters. He introduced lifesaving techniques to Italy on one of his many international trips with the English water polo team. His other achievements and awards included Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee one mile championship; German Kaiser’s Championship of Europe; Austrian Emperor’s World Championships at Vienna; the King of Italy’s World Distance Championship; the Queen of Holland’s World’s Championship at 4000 meters; King Edward VII Coronation Cup One Mile (presented by His Majesty); English Mile Championship–six years in succession; English Long Distance Championship (7 miles), eight years; Half Mile Championship, four times in succession; 500 yards championship, four times; 400 yards salt water championship, twice; plunging championship of England, in 1904; two gold cups for 15-mile swim through London, open to the world; Grand prix of Antwerp, 1000 meters; Cup de la Meuse, Belgium; holder of the Royal Humane society’s Medal for Saving Life.
At the period when English swimming was first and swimming was a most important wonder of sport, J. A. Jarvis was certainly the wonder of English swimming. He was later respectfully referred to as “Professor Jarvis” and 3 of his daughters, all swimming teachers, came to Fort Lauderdale to represent him at the induction ceremonies.
Happy Birthday Coach Skip Kenney !!!
SKIP KENNEY (USA) 2004 Honor Coach
FOR THE RECORD: 1996 OLYMPIC GAMES: Head Coach Men’s Team; 1988 OLYMPIC GAMES: Assistant Coach Men’s and Women’s Team; 1984 OLYMPIC GAMES: Assistant Coach Men’s and Women’s Team; 1994 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: Assistant Coach Women’s Team; 1993 PAN PACIFIC CHAMPIONSHIPS: Head Coach; 1987 PAN AMERICAN GAMES: Head Coach; Coach of Stanford University (1979-present) winning a total of 7 NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS; Coach of 18 OLYMPIC SWIMMERS winning 16 OLYMPIC medals.
Skip Kenney was never a competitive swimmer, but he surely knew how to coach them. He developed all of local, state, national, collegiate and Olympic champions not only as individual champions, but also team champions.
Born February 24, 1943, he grew up in Fresno, California attending Fresno High School, playing baseball and doing a little diving. Upon graduation, he joined the U.S. Marines, went through boot camp and served in Viet Nam in the mid-1960s.
Kenney’s first swim coaching position was as Don Gambril’s assistant from 1968-1971 at Phillips 66 Long Beach. He also coached at Long Beach State during that time. When Gambril moved to Harvard University so did Skip, and he stayed there for one season before taking his first head coaching position at the Houston Dad’s Club in Texas. After a few years, Skip moved to Charlie Keating’s Cincinnati Marlins where he coached Renee Magee and Charles Keating, Jr. to the 1976 Montreal Olympics and Glenn Mills, Bill Barret and Kim Carlisle to the 1980 Olympic Team that was never able to compete due to the boycott.
In 1979, Kenney became the head coach of the Stanford University Men’s Swimming Team, a position he has held now for a quarter of a century. In collegiate swimming, he has won seven NCAA National Team titles and a record 23 PAC-10 Conference titles. He is a 15-time PAC-10 Coach of the Year, coached 93 All Americans to 785 All-America honors and developed over 63 NCAA champions. In his first 24 years at Stanford, Kenney has recorded a 177-35 overall record, including an 88-5 record (.946) over the past 11 years.
In the international arena, Coach Kenney was head coach of the U.S. Men’s Team at the 1996 Olympic Games after serving as the assistant coach of both the men’s and women’s teams at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and 1988 Seoul Olympics. He was the assistant coach of the women’s team at the 1994 World Championships and head coach at both the 1993 Pan Pacific Championships and 1987 Pan American Games. Skip will be the men’s coach for the U.S. Team at the 2004 Short Course World Championships in Indianapolis.
Kenney has coached 18 swimmers to Olympic competition winning ten gold, three silver and three bronze medals. His swimmers in World Championship competition have won five gold, three silver and two bronze medals. Some of his swimmers include Dave Bottom (American record holder); Ray Cary (1996 U.S. Olympian); Wade Flemons (1980 Canadian Olympian); Kurt Grote (1996 Olympic gold medalist); Joe Hudopohl (1992 and 1996 Olympic gold medalist); Jeff Kostoff (1984 and 1988 U.S. Olympian); John Moffet (1980 and 1984 U.S. Olympian and world record holder); Pablo Morales (three-time Olympic gold medalist and four-time world record holder); Jay Mortensen (1988 Olympian); Anthony Mosse (1988 Olympic bronze medalist); Sean Murphy (1988 Canadian Olympian); Eddie Parenti (1992 and 1996 Canadian Olympian); J. Plummer (1988 Australian Olympian); Brian Retterer (American record holder); Jeff Rouse (1992 and 1996 Olympic gold medalist and world record holder); John Simons (1980 U.S. Olympian); Derek Weatherford (American record holder); and Tom Wilkens (2000 U.S. Olympic bronze medalist).
Skip’s international coaching achievements are held in high esteem by his peers and he is respected for his ability to teach as well as coach. His strong sense of character is revered by his swimmers.
Skip is also a great clinician whose purpose is to promote swimming better at all ages.
ISHOF salutes Black History Month and Harry N. George
The General Slocum steamship disaster was the greatest single catastrophe in New York City’s history until 9/11. On June 15, 1904, the Gen. Slocum was taking a group of almost 1400 passengers, mostly women and children, on a trip of New York City’s East River to a picnic on Long Island. The ship caught fire shortly after leaving dock. Most of the passengers tried to escape the fire by jumping into the water, and because they didn’t know how to swim, they drowned. Bodies of mothers, grandmothers, and girls washed up on the shorelines for days. One of the forgotten heroes, saving some of the passengers, was Harry N. George, an African American.
The lesson from the Slocum disaster wasn’t lost on the nation: “Learn to swim!” commanded an editorial in the New York Herald that was repeated throughout the country. “That should be the resolve of every intelligent woman who does not already know how, upon reading the pitiful story of how woman after woman drowned within just a few feet of shore.
As a consequence of the Slocum disaster, the American Red Cross were moved to being its water safety and lifesaving programs and swimming became an essential part of public education. Unfortunately, most African Americans were denied the same opportunities to learn to swim, as virtually all pools and beaches were closed to non-whites during the first half of the 20th Century, in spite of the heroics of Harry N. George. It would not be until the 1930s when the first African Americans were certified as Red Cross Water Safety instructors and Lifeguards.
On this day, British swimmer, Lucy Morton was born……
LUCY MORTON (GBR) 1988 Honor Pioneer Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1924 gold (200m breaststroke); WORLD RECORDS: (200yd breaststroke; 150yd backstroke); AMATEUR SWIMMING ASSOCIATION CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1920 (150yd backstroke; 200yd breaststroke).
Lucy Morton became the first British woman to win an Olympic gold medal for swimming at the 1924 Paris Olympics. At the age of 26, she swam a come-from-behind race to beat Britain’s world record holder Irene Gilbert. Under the watchful eye of her coach George Swarbrick, Miss Morton held two world records in the 200 yard breaststroke prior to her Olympic victory and would have had a good chance of a gold in 1920, but there were no breaststroke events for women in the Antwerp Games. Lucy also held the first world record for the 150 yard backstroke in 1916 in the days of the English double over-arm and frog leg-kick. In 1920, she was the first Amateur Swimming Association champion in the 150 yard backstroke and 200 yard breaststroke. Lucy Morton retired soon after the Olympic Games, but continued for 42 years as a swimming teacher, coach, official, traveling-team chaperone, and a friend within the sport.
The medals of Lucy Morton go home to Blackpool……..
In 2019, the Olympic medals and other memorabilia of British Swimmer, Lucy Morton, went to auction, and the City of Blackpool, where Lucy was from, was able to win the bid at the auction and get Lucy’s items and bring them home. Above is a video from the auction house of the items Blackpool won, the pinnacle being her Olympic medal.
Article from Blackpool Council: 18 September 2019
I am absolutely delighted to announce that Blackpool Council and Blackpool Civic Trust have successfully purchased Lucy Morton’s Medals at a recent auction. We considered these to be very important to Blackpool and its Heritage..
“Blackpool Civic Trust made a contribution to the Council’s successful bid to ensure that a significant part of Lucy Morton’s memorabilia will return to Blackpool. The memorabilia included, crucially, the gold medal for 200m Breast Stroke that Lucy Morton won at the 1924 Olympics.
Joan Humble , said ‘I am so glad that Blackpool Civic Trust was able to support Blackpool Council in securing this important memorabilia to celebrate a remarkable woman. Visitors to the Town Hall can see the Blue Plaque that the Civic Trust put up in 2012, detailing her outstanding achievements. We can now look forward to seeing her Olympic Gold and other medals on display.”
The archive of the memorabilia will be housed at at the History Centre in Blackpool Central Library that preserves and gives access to Blackpool’s heritage collections. The story of Lucy Morton will also feature in Blackpool’s first museum when it opens to the public.’
The first ever Olympic gold swimming medal won by a British woman for an individual event in 1924 is expected to sell for thousands at auction.
It has been uncovered along with 39 other gold and silver medals won by Lucy Morton (later Heaton) in the early 1900s together with an archive of her life which shows how her success was born out of one of the biggest put-downs any child could receive.
In Lucy’s handwritten memoirs, she explained: “At the age of 10 I was at Christchurch School in Blackpool and Mrs Phillips, the headmistress, sent a note to my father stating that I was the biggest dunce in the school and suggested swimming might brighten my ideas up a bit.”
Swimming certainly paved the way to glory for Lucy. Some 15 gold medals and 25 silver medals, with an overall estimate of £30,000-£40,000, will go under the hammer at Hansons Auctioneers’ Sports Memorabilia Auction on August 22. They include her Olympic gold medal, estimate £10,000-£12,000, and a bracelet made out of five gold medals awarded for breaking world records between 1913 and 1920, estimate £15,000-£20,000.
Happy Birthday Elaine Tanner !!!
ELAINE TANNER (CAN) 1980 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1968 silver (100m, 200m backstroke), bronze (freestyle relay); WORLD RECORDS: 5 (100m, 200m backstroke, 220yd butterfly; 440 yd freestyle relay); U.S. NATIONAL AAU Titles: 2 (1966: 100yd backstroke); COMMONWEALTH GAMES: 1966 gold (110yd, 220yd butterfly; 440yd individual medley; 440yd freestyle relay), silver (110yd, 220yd backstroke; medley relay); PAN AMERICAN GAMES: 1967 gold (100m, 200m backstroke), silver (100m butterfly, 400m freestyle; medley relays); U.S. OPEN RECORD: 1 (100yd backstroke); CANADIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: 17.
“Mighty Mouse”, a tiny girl of heroic proportions, was no 98 lb. weakling. She dominated women’s swimming in Canada in virtually every stroke and distance in the middle 1960s, and with Ralph Hutton brought her country into the front rank of world swimming. Certainly she was the world’s most versatile woman swimmer of her era. Canadian press and public always expected her to win and she usually did in spite of the pressure of carrying her nation’s honor on her back. She came to the U.S. Nationals in 1966 and won over all in the 100 back and butterfly, the backstroke in world’s fastest time. In 1966 she dominated the British Commonwealth Games as no athlete ever had with seven gold or silver medals, won two gold and three silvers again in the 1967 Pan Am Games, and topped her career with two silvers and a bronze in the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico. Her road show included trips to South Africa (three times), New Zealand, England, and Russia, and she always went head-to-head with the host country’s best. She was the first Canadian woman to medal in any Olympics. Elaine was elected the Outstanding Athlete of the Commonwealth Games and the Canadian Athlete of the Year. Her honors included 17 National titles in four years and 50 Senior and Age Group Canadian records.
Happy Birthday Doug Russell !!!
DOUGLAS RUSSELL (USA) 1985 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1968 gold (100m butterfly; relay); WORLD RECORDS: 4 (100m butterfly; 100m backstroke; 2 relays); PAN AMERICAN GAMES: 1967 gold (200m individual medley; 1 relay); AAU NATIONALS: 1969 (100m butterfly); NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1968 (100yd butterfly; 1 relay); AMERICAN RECORDS: 6 (100yd backstroke, 5 relays).
Doug Russell is the butterflier who won two Olympic gold medals Mark Spitz was supposed to win in Mexico–the 100m Butterfly and the Medley Relay at the1968 Games. In addition to his two Olympic gold medals, Russell, with his coach, Don Easterling, (then of Texas at Arlington, now at North Carolina State), made a habit of knocking off favorites in several different strokes.
Russell won a Pan American gold medal in the 200 I.M. and set an American Record in the National A.A.U.’s in the 100m Backstroke. In the World University Games in Tokyo, he set a World backstroke Record in the preliminaries only to lose in the finals to Hall of Famer Charlie Hickcox. As great as he was in the Backstroke and Individual Medley, he was at his best in the Butterfly.
If anyone was surprised by his Olympic performance, it wasn’t Russell. One of swimming’s all-time “head” swimmers, Russell often won because he wouldn’t believe he could be beaten.
Happy Birthday Steve Lundquist !!!
STEVE LUNDQUIST (USA) 1990 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1984 gold (100m breaststroke; relay); U.S. NATIONALS: 14 (100yd, 200yd, 100m, 200m breaststroke; 200yd, 200m individual medley); NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS: 7 (100yd, 200yd breaststroke; 200yd individual medley); WORLD RECORDS: 9 (100m breaststroke; 200m individual medley; relays); PAN AMERICAN GAMES: 1979 gold (100m, 200m breaststroke; 1 relay); 1983 gold (100m, 200m breaststroke), bronze (200m individual medley; 1 relay); AMERICAN RECORD holder: (100yd, 200yd breaststroke); 1981, 1982 U.S. Swimmer of the Year; First swimmer in the world to break 2 minute barrier in the 200yd breaststroke.
“Lunk” the other swimmers called him except for the late Victor Davis who called him “the intimidator.” “It takes one to know one,” was Steve Lundquist’s reply. He was and is the golden boy of swimming, going right from the pool, medaling to modeling and a featured part on the afternoon “soap” “Search for Tomorrow”. He may have been a hot dog in the same sense as Johnny Weissmuller and Buster Crabbe. Steve was the first man in the world to break two minutes for the 200 yard breaststroke. “Lundquist can swim and win anything he wants to train for,” said Hall of Fame Honor Coach Walt Schlueter. He was almost as brilliant in the freestyle sprints and butterfly as he was in his breaststroke specialty. Steve was an honorary member of the 1980 Olympic Team. Unfortunately since the U.S. did not attend, Steve’s 100 meter breaststroke time, even though it was faster than the winning time, did not garnish him an Olympic gold. All totaled, he won two Olympic gold medals, set nine world records, won 14 U.S. Nationals, seven NCAA crowns and six gold medals in the Pan American Games. As an athlete in football, track, wrestling, water and snow skiing, tennis and especially swimming, he self-destructed on motorcycles and in dormitory wrestling matches, but that was only between races. In the pool he was always awesome. “Swimming World” magazine picked him as 1981 and 1982 World Swimmer of the Year. To all of this, Weissmuller and Crabbe might add, “Yes, old Steve is a pretty fair country swimmer.” The “country is Lake Spivey of Jonesboro, Georgia, USA where the Lunk was born in 1961.
Happy Birthday Becky Dyroen-Lancer !!!
BECKY DYROEN-LANCER (USA) 2004 Honor Synchronized Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: 1996 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (team); 1991 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (team); 1994 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (solo, duet, team, figures); 1991 PAN AMERICAN GAMES: gold (solo); 1995 PAN AMERICAN GAMES: gold (solo, duet, team, figures); V, VI, VII FINA WORLD CUPS: 9 gold (solo, duet, figures – 1993-1995, team – 1991, 1993, 1995); 1995 FINA PRIZE recipient; Swimming World’s World Synchronized Swimmer of the Year: 1993, 1994, 1995. Never beaten in FINA competition 1993-1997.
Becky Dyroen-Lancer may very well be the most dominant synchronized swimmer of all time. She is certainly one of the most decorated synchronized swimmers in history. Through hard work, concentration, and faith in God, she rose from an age group swimmer to World and Olympic Champion.
At age five, doctors repaired a hole in Becky’s heart. But it did not stop her, and at age nine, the San Jose, California native splashed into a sport in which she was to reign for many years. She was a Santa Clara Aquamaid from the beginning and with Coach Chris Carver she never looked back.
She became a national team member in 1988, and just three years later she began to stamp her mark in synchronized swimming history. At the 1991 Pan American Games in Havana, Becky won as solo champion. She was solo, duet and team champion at the French Open and team champion at the V FINA World Cup, Mallorca Open, and at the Perth World Championships. In 1992, she was the silver medalist at the U.S. Nationals and U.S. Olympic Trials, and gold medalist at the Swiss Open in solo, duet, team and figures.
With the Olympic Champions of 1992 retiring, Becky was ready to step in as the new generation of swimmers succeeded to the awards stand. At age 21 in 1993, with an astonishing aerobic capacity, her relentless international-winning career began to take hold.
Synchronized swimming to Becky was a family affair. Mother Paula designed her swim suits, sister Suzannah was a national teammate who was soon-to-be World and Olympic Team Champion with Becky and husband Kevin who taught ballet for body control. She won the solo and duet events at the FINA World Cup and German Open in 1993. It was also the year she won the U.S. National Championships Grand Slam, winning solo, duet, team, and figures in the same meet. She became the only swimmer to equal and then beat 1967 Hall of Famer Margo McGrath’s successive Grand Slam National Championships – winning all four events. Most all of Becky’s duet competitions were won with her teammate and partner Jill Sudduth.
During her career, Becky won an unprecedented and unequaled nine Grand Slams in National Championships and International Competition. A grand slam in synchronized swimming is similar to hitting a home run with the bases loaded in baseball like Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron did so many times, or winning all four major international tennis tournaments in a year like Rod Laver and Steffi Graf did. From 1993, she never lost a FINA international competition. In 1994, she was the most decorated athlete at the Rome World Championships, winning gold medals in all of solo, duet, and team, and also winning the figures competition. Her three gold medals totaled more than any swimmer or diver at the championships. In 1995, she was awarded the FINA Prize, the highest award presented annually by FINA to a swimmer, diver, synchronized swimmer, water polo player, coach or contributor for his or her outstanding accomplishments and excellence in sport. Becky is the first synchronized swimmer to receive this award.
During 1995, Becky received three grand slams, winning solo, duet, team, and figures at the Pan American Games, FINA World Cup and U. S. National Championships. At the 1996 U.S. Olympic Trials she was elected team captain.
The only synchronized swimming event at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics was the team event. As team captain, Becky led the U.S. Team to the gold medal with a perfect score of 100, winning their five minute free routine titled “Fantasia on the Orchestra.”
Becky is “Swimming Worlds” World Synchronized Swimmer of the Year 1993, 1994, 1995; a Sullivan Award nominee 1993, 1994, 1995; and a U.S.O.C. Top Ten Sportswoman of the Year.
Becky, with husband Kevin Lancer, has two children – Dyroen, age five and Thomas, age two. She is currently a performer in the famed Cirque du Soleil’s “O” and a preschool exercise class instructor.
Happy Birthday Peng Bo !!!
Peng Bo 2014 (CHN) Honor Diver
FOR THE RECORD: 2004 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (3m springboard); 2001 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (3m springboard synchro); 2002 ASIAN GAMES: gold (3m springboard synchro); 2001 UNIVERSIADE GAMES: gold (3m springboard synchro); 2003 UNIVERSIADE GAMES: gold (3m springboard synchro); 2005 UNIVERSIADE GAMES: gold (3m springboard synchro); 2007 UNIVERSIADE GAMES: gold (3m springboard, 3m springboard synchro).
He was born in Nanchang, capital of the Jiangxi province of China in 1981 and began training in diving at the age of six at the Nanchang Sports School. He was selected to be a member of the Jiangxi Provincial Diving Team in 1991, joined the diving team of the PLA Navy in 1995 and became a member of the National Team in 1998.
Peng and his synchronized diving partner, Wang Kenan, won gold medals at the 2000 World University Games, at the 2001 FINA World Championships in Fukuoka and at the 2002 Asian Games.
In 2003, Peng won the Chinese national Championships in the 3 meter individual event and finished second at the FINA World Championships in Barcelona.
For the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Peng was selected to compete in both the 3 meter individual and synchronized event with partner Wang. First up was the synchro event and heading into the final round of dives, Peng and Wang held a comfortable lead. Then came disaster. A dreadful error by Wang resulted in a failed dive – a zero – and no medal.
Comeback, for diver Peng Bo, is a particularly appropriate word. You see, Bo means, “never give up” in Chinese. And eight days later, in the final of the individual event of the 3 meter springboard, Peng came back with a vengeance.
Overcoming his earlier disappointment, Peng Bo led from start to finish.
His victory was fourth of the six gold medals China would win in Athens, and with a margin of victory of over 30 points his was the most dominating performance in diving at the Games in Athens.
On this day in 1946, Alexei Barkalov was born….
ALEXEI BARKALOV (URS) 1993 Honor Water Polo Player
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1972 gold, 1980 gold, 1968 silver; EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1977 gold; WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1975 gold.
As the captain of many Soviet water polo teams, Alexei Barkalov was a magnificent attacking and defensive player. Not only was Barkalov a leading member of the Olympic gold-medal-winning 1972 and 1980 Olympic teams, numerous competitions turned gold for the Soviets with Barkalov as a member of the squad during the intense water polo decade of the 1970s.
Alexei Barkalov made his Olympic debut in 1968, winning the silver medal, as the Soviets were defeated by Yugoslavia 13-11 in overtime. Four years later, at the Games in Munich, the Soviet team was back on top as they defeated Hungary for the gold medal by point differential.
The 1972 Olympic water polo tournament in Munich has been described as one of the best, going down to a final game, reminiscent of the dramatics of the 1956 Olympic showdown between the USSR and Hungary.
Statistically the USSR and Hungary tallied three victories, a tie, and a single defeat. In scoring, the USSR outscored it opponents for 22-16 in the final round. Hungary scored 23 goals to 18 for opponents. The largest difference between winning and losing was the Soviet’s decisive 4-1 victory over Italy in preliminary competition. It was this game that secured the gold medal for Barkalov and his teammates.
However, by 1980, the Olympic gold medal favorite was Yugoslavia, having won the coveted Tungsram Cup over the Hungarians earlier in the year. The Soviets chose to not compete in the Tungsram Cup tournament and, for the most part, kept a low profile until the Games in Moscow, where they defeated the Yugoslavian team 8-7 in the final game.
The 1980 gold medal victory for Barkalov and the Soviet team marked the sixth Olympic medal for the Soviets since first winning the bronze medal in 1956. The Soviet Union has won the Olympic gold medal twice, and Barkalov proudly was a member of both teams.
