Happy Birthday John Naber !!
JOHN NABER (USA) 1982 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1976 gold (100m, 200m backstroke; 2 relays), silver (200m freestyle); WORLD RECORDS: 6 (100m, 200m backstroke; 2 relays); AAU NATIONALS: 25 (100yd, 200yd backstroke, 1650yd freestyle; 7 relays); PAN AMERICAN GAMES: 1977 gold (500m freestyle; 100m, 200m backstroke); NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS: 15 (100yd, 200yd backstroke; 500yd freestyle; 5 relays); WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1973 bronze 9200m backstroke); 1976 Southern California Athlete of the Year; 1976 World Male Swimmer of the Year; 1977 AAU Sullivan Award; 1977 Trophy of the International Committee for Fair Play (Warsaw, Poland).
Six foot-six inch John Naber (USA) was high man at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, winning four gold medals all in World Record time and taking a silver in the 200 meter freestyle behind his USC teammate Bruce Furniss, who set a world record to beat Naber. John’s honors were highlighted but not limited to the Olympics.
He entered competitive swimming at age 13, won 25 AAU titles and holds the record of ten individual and 15 NCAA relay titles in his four years of college (1974-77). In milestone achievements, Naber was the first man under two minutes for the 200 meter milestone achievements. Naber was the first man under two minutes for the 200 meter back, the first under 1:50 for 200 yd. back, the first under 50 seconds for the 100 yard back, and the first under 56 seconds for the 100 meter back.
He won the Sullivan Award as the USA’s No. 1 athlete in 1977, was 1976 Southern California Athlete of the year, 1976 World Male Swimmer of the year, and was even named USA Sportsman of the year by the USSR’s Tass News Agency.
As an indication of things to come after competition, as an inspiration to to other swimmers, he was the first American swimmer awarded the Trophy of the International Committee for Fair Play in Paris, France for the year 1977. He pays his debts to swimming every day with his inspirational speaking tours, sportscasting, and as a consultant to MacDonald’s in the sponsorship of age group swimming, and a traveling ambassador for Speedo. He was also a member of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games Organizing Committee. He lived it and tells it like it was and has a message for everyone. John Naber makes us all feel like we could be winners!
Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Gertrude Ederle and Her English Channel Crossing
by Ned Denison
15 January 2026
Now that 2026 has arrived, we can embark on a year-long celebration of Gertrude Ederle, who became the first woman to cross the English Channel a century ago.
One hundred years ago, Gertrude Ederle became the first woman and sixth individual to swim the English Channel. Her 1926 time of 14 hours and 39 minutes crushed the previous speed record of 16 hours and 33 minutes. When Ederle returned to New York City, she enjoyed a ticker-tape parade, celebrated by an estimated two million supporters on August 27, 1926. She was a media darling with nicknames of “Queen of the Waves” and “America’s best girl.”
Ederle broke several barriers with her swim. Prior to her achievement, women were generally not accepted in sport and certainly not in endurance sports. She became a media star for many years. Ederle was deaf from childhood measles – and perhaps one of the first famous sporting heroes with a physical disability. On the technical side, she wore a revolutionary two-piece bathing suit and personally designed wrap-around goggles, which were kept watertight with molten candle wax. Finally, she was born in the USA to a German immigrant butcher and her fame, so soon after World War I, served as a healing moment for both the country and the world.
Ederle’s swimming journey, in the New York City area, benefited from several key initiatives in the sport. The Women’s Swimming Association was fairly new and sanctioned events allowed her succeed at an early age. Swimming had progressed from breaststroke to trudgen to the new freestyle. Her success started in 1917 at age 12, with the 880-yard freestyle. She became the youngest world-record holder in swimming, and in the ensuing years, she set eight more world records and held 29 U.S. national and world records from 100 meters to 500 meters.
Photo Courtesy:
Females were allowed to swim in the Olympics starting in 1912 in Stockholm. Ederle qualified for the 1924 Paris Olympics and won three medals: gold and a world record as the leadoff swimmer on the 400-meter freestyle relay; bronze in the 100-meter and 400-meter freestyle races. Johnny Weismuiller was the only swimmers to top her three medals with four – including one in water polo. The United States Olympic team enjoyed its own ticker-tape parade in New York City, two years before Ederle had her own.
Ederle decided to turn professional in 1925 before her Channel swims, a common decision in the era of commercial sporting promotions. An early event was her 22-mile (35 km) swim from Battery Park (New York) to Sandy Hook in 7 hours and 11 minutes. This record time held for 81 years. That year, the Women’s Swimming Association sponsored two women, Ederle and Helen Wainwright, for English Channel attempts. Ederle joined a select group of swimmers and coaches at the Channel who were planning and training. Her coach was Jabez Wolffe (Great Britain) and her support crew was Ishak Helmy (Egypt) – both later inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame. Jabez made at least 22 unsuccessful English Channel attempts between 1906 and 1913 and was the leading expert on the “waters” while Ishak, after several unsuccessful attempts, finally crossed in 1928.
Ederle’s first crossing attempt was on August 18, 1925. In the interest of safety, Wolffe was worried about her condition and ordered Helmy to pull her out of the water during the swim. Perhaps the coach was right to end the swim or possibly her hearing was an issue. There was also an accusation that she had been poisoned. In any event, Ederle vehemently disagreed with the decision to pull her out of the Channel.
She returned the next year, in 1926, with different sponsors and coach/crew. This time, she completed the 21-mile (33 km) swim from France to England. Already famous, the media attention exploded.
Her fame led to a starring role in a movie, “Swim Girl, Swim.” She competed, among a field of 53 females, in the 10-mile (16.1 km) 1928 Canadian National Exhibition. It was the biggest race of the era in cold, eel-infested waters. Ederle placed sixth. In the longer 15-mile (24 km) men’s race, not a single swimmer completed the tough course. As a professional, Ederle exhibited her skills in theatres, vaudeville circuits, and aquacades. Her last known event was a cameo appearance at Billy Rose’s Aquacade at the New York World’s Fair in 1939.
Ederle, who never married, taught deaf children during her post-swimming career. Her influence on the sport was recognized through induction into the inaugural classes of the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (1963) and International Swimming Hall of Fame (1965). They continue to immortalize her achievements. She passed away in 2004 at the age of 98 and there are several other reminders of her greatness:
The annual Ederle Swim in New York.
The Gertrude Ederle Recreation Center in New York City.
A park and amphitheatre in Highlands, New Jersey, where the Aquacade was held.
A New York City sidewalk marker on Broadway just north of Beaver Street, on the left when traveling south.
Kingsdown, England plaque in the pub, “Rising Sun.”
Two annual English Channel Awards: The Channel Swimming Association World Record Two-Way Swim; and the Channel Swimming & Piloting Federation – For the most meritorious swim of the year by a woman.
Gertrude Ederle also was the first female to set an overall speed record in a major marathon. This paved the way for more women to accomplish a similar feat:
Florence Chadwick and Tina Bischoff – English Channel.
Arianna Bridi – Capri to Naples.
Tamara Bruce – Rottnest Channel.
Karen Burton Reeder – Catalina Channel.
Grace “Gracie” van der Byl and Suzanne Heim-Bowen – several speed records.
Marcia Cleveland – Triple Crown.
Penny Lee Dean, EdD – English and Catalina Channels.
Ida Elionsky – Manhattan Island.
Brenda Fisher, BEM – Morecambe Bay
Irene van der Laan – Two-Way English Channel
Michelle Macy – Oceans Seven
Judith de Nijs – Lac St. Jean
Shelley Taylor-Smith – Manhattan Island and Sydney to Wollongong
The sport of marathon swimming has exploded in the past 20 years. Thousands of women who have completed marathon swims will take special notice of 2026, the centennial anniversary of Gertrude Ederle’s record setting English Channel swim.
When ISHOF Honoree Tamas Darnyi Took the 200 IM Under 2:00; Celebrating the 35th Anniversary of a Special Achievement (Race Video)
by John Lohn – Editor-in-Chief
13 January 2026
The rich tradition of Hungarian swimming stretches back more than a century, to the days of early Olympians Alfred Hajos and Zoltan Halmay. Most recently, the men’s banner has been carried by Hubert Kos, the reigning Olympic titlist in the 200-meter backstroke. Plenty of stars have filled the years in between, including Laszlo Cseh, the multi-event talent who was recently elected to the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
The greatest Hungarian of them all, however, is widely considered to be Tamas Darnyi. From the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, Darnyi established himself as the premier individual medley performer in the world. After doubling in the IM events at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Darnyi replicated that feat at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. He also earned multiple world titles in the medley disciplines, set several world records and was a European champion in the 200 butterfly.
This week, we celebrate the 35th anniversary of his barrier-breaking performance in the 200-meter individual medley.
On January 13, 1991, while racing at the World Championships in Perth, Darnyi took the 200 medley under the two-minute threshold for the first time. Clocking a time of 1:59.36, Darnyi earned a comfortable triumph over American Eric Namesnik, who secured the silver medal in 2:01.87. More, Darnyi took down the world record of 2:00.11, set by the United States’ David Wharton at the 1989 Pan Pacific Championships.
Barrier-breaking performances hold a special place in the sport. Jim Montgomery will forever be remembered as the first athlete to crack 50 seconds in the 100 freestyle. Natalie Coughlin will always be the first female to go sub-minute in the 100 backstroke. John Naber was the first athlete to touch in 1:59 in the 200 backstroke.
Before Wharton broke the world record, Darnyi set a pair of global standards in the 200 IM. At the 1987 European Championships, Darnyi registered an effort of 2:00.56, and he took the mark lower at the 1988 Olympic Games, where a 2:00.17 outing landed him the gold medal. At the time, it seemed like a 1:59-something performance was right around the corner. Yet, it would be two-plus years until the barrier was broken.
Darnyi sat in second place after the opening butterfly leg, but was in the lead as the swimmers surfaced on backstroke. From there, Darnyi extended his lead, eventually stopping the clock at a point that previously was unattainable. The Hungarian also set a world record in the 400 medley at that edition of the World Champs, going 4:12.36.
The swim stood as the world record for more than three years, until Finland’s Jani Sievinen blasted a 1:58.16 performance on the way to the gold medal at the 1994 World Champs. Sievinen’s world record endured for almost nine years, until Michael Phelps went 1:57.94 at the 2003 Santa Clara Invitational. Within two months, Phelps had gotten down to 1:55.94, and the event was no longer the same.
Darnyi’s sub-2:00 skill in the 200 IM played a major role in his being named Swimming World’s Male World Swimmer of the Year for 1991, and it was a highlight of a career that eventually was recognized with Hall of Fame induction.
‘Butterfly’ Short Film Depicting Life of ISHOF Honoree Alfred Nakache on Oscar Short List (VIDEO)
Photo Courtesy: Sacrebleu Productions
by Dan D’Addona — Swimming World Managing Editor
09 January 2026
A swimming film made the 98th Academy Awards shortlist for Animated Short Film. “Butterfly” depicts the life of Jewish French swimmer Alfred Nakache, who competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympics in Nazi Germany and was held captive at Auschwitz, where he lost both his wife and daughter. After surviving Auschwitz, Nakache made a triumphant return and competed in the 1948 Olympic Games.
The film by Sacrebleu Productions is directed by Florence Miailhe and produced by Ron Dyens. It depicts the life of International Swimming Hall of Fame member Nakache, who was born in French Algiers in 1915. He was the top swimmer in North Africa by 1931 and was one of the pioneers of the butterfly stroke.
Nakache was on the French Olympic team in 1936 in Berlin, coming face-to-face with Nazi Germany.
He broke the world record in the 200 breaststroke in 1941, but two years later his family was arrested and sent to Auschwitz. He survived, but his wife and daughter did not.
Swimming was his outlet for his grief, and he returned to the Olympics in 1948.
“Like the flight of the fragile and unpredictable butterfly, life confronts us with its uncertainty and its storms. But Nakache’s life story shows us that it is possible to find the strength to overcome adversity, rebuild oneself, and offer a message of hope to the world, even in the most difficult moments.”
Several pools are named in his honor, including in Toulouse, where Leon Marchand began training.
Photo Courtesy: Sacrebleu Productions
The animation of the movie has a technique where a glass plate is painted with oil paint to create the various stages of movement. The drawings are then photographed by a camera overhead, erased and meticulously transformed. Repeated several thousand times, the method creates an illusion of fluid movement, as water, which is the central element of the film.
“Choosing to talk about water through direct animation in paint was an obvious choice for me,” Miailhe said. “The paintings are transformed little by little and as the transformations take place, I create new images. In this way, the film can be invented according to the materials that emerge during the process of creating movement.”
Miailhe has been directing since 1991. She won a Cesar for best short film in 2020 for “Au Premier Dimanche d’Aout” and a special mention at the Cannes Film Festival for “Conte de Quartier” and has been honored for several other films. Her father fought in the French resistance where he met Nakache.
“I wanted to make the whole film and Nakache’s memories be linked to water,” Miailhe said. “To achieve this, I had to transform one or two episodes from his life. Then we had o ensure the whole ting can be understood, including all the flashbacks. The most difficult aspect of the animation was depicting the repetitive nature of the swimming with an animation technique that doesn’t allow for many loops, as well as depicting the slowness of certain underwater movements.
“I wanted the audience to understand the different symbolisms and the multifaceted nature of water. So each ‘water’ was treated differently: The se, the clear and transparent waters of childhood, the murky waters of the camps, and the sea of lovers.”
Happy Birthday Tracy Caulkins!!
Tracy Caulkins (USA)
Honor Swimmer (1990)
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1984 gold (200m, 400m individual medley; relay); 1980: member of U.S. Olympic Team; WORLD RECORDS: 5 (200m, 400m individual medley; 200m butterfly; relay); WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1978 gold (200m butterfly; 200m, 400m individual medley; 2 relays), silver (100m breaststroke); 1982 bronze (200m, 400m individual medley); PAN AMERICAN GAMES: 1979 gold (200m, 400m individual medley; 2 relays), silver (100m breaststroke; 400m freestyle); 1983 gold (200m, 400m individual medley), silver (200m butterfly); U.S. NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: 48 (200m butterfly; 200yd, 200m, 400yd, 400m individual medley; 500yd freestyle; 200yd backstroke; 100yd, 100m, 200yd, 200m breaststroke; relays); AMERICAN RECORDS: 63 (100yd, 500yd freestyle; 100yd, 100m, 200yd, 200m breaststroke; 200yd backstroke; 200yd, 200m, 400yd, 400m individual medley; relays) NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS: 12 (100yd, 200yd butterfly; 100yd, 200yd, 400yd individual medley; 100yd breaststroke); 1978 Sullivan Award; 1982, 1983 Broderick Cup; 1981, 1984 Sportswoman of the Year; 1980, 1981 American Swimmer of the Year.
Tracy Caulkins burst onto the international scene at the 1978 Berlin World Championships with five golds and one silver. In the ensuing years she accumulated more National Championship titles (46) and set more American records (63) than any other swimmer. At 15, Tracy was the youngest recipient of the AAU Sullivan Award given to United State’s finest amateur athlete.
Tracy Caulkins trained with her sister Amy at the Nashville Aquatic Club, a team her parents helped to organize. She was America’s queen of the individual medley for eight years and her versatility was phenomenal. Tracy’s performances from 1971 to 1984 included every stroke and distance at the AAU, USS and NCAA National Championships. She brought further notoriety to her already famous coaches Paul Bergen, Don Talbot, Ron Young and Randy Reese.
Tracy was a standout in the classroom and was the top vote-getter in the College Sports Information Directors Association 1983 and 1984 Academic All-American Teams.
Sports Illustrated Honors Michael Phelps With Muhammad Ali Legacy Award; Recognizes Olympic Legend’s Work in Mental Health Space
by John Lohn – Editor-in-Chief
29 December 2025
Sports Illustrated Honors Michael Phelps With Muhammad Ali Legacy Award
Nearly a decade after last competing on the international stage, Michael Phelps continues to make an impact. As an athlete, he provided inspiration to up-and-coming swimmers. These days, the Olympic legend is a leading advocate for mental health awareness, and Phelps has been recognized by Sports Illustrated for his advocacy and willingness to share his story with the world.
On Monday, Sports Illustrated announced that Phelps has been named SI’s Muhammad Ali Legacy Award winner. The Sports Illustrated award is designed “to honor a current or former athlete who embodies the ideals of sportsmanship, leadership and philanthropy as vehicles for changing the world.” Longtime Sports Illustrated scribe Tim Layden, a legend in the sports journalism field, wrote the feature on Phelps’ for the Muhammad Ali Award.
FULL SPORTS ILLUSTRATED ARTICLE
It was Layden who wrote the feature story on Phelps in late 2015 that shed light on Phelps’ challenges, including his mental health. In the years since, Phelps has tirelessly worked as an adovcate for the mental health space, traveling the world to tell his story in the hope of helping others. More, it has been a goal of Phelps’ to make mental health part of the daily discussion, and not a stigmatized issue.
“We grow up in a society that does not speak totally stigma-free,” psychiatrist Christine Yu Moutier, chief medical officer of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, told Layden for his latest feature on Phelps. “But that culture is changing, and Michael Phelps has been a part of that change. We are social creatures. We are unconsciously watching and mimicking those around us. Using your own lived experience story in the mental health and suicide prevention space in the way that Michael has is an enormous force for good. He has been part of a movement of fantastic change.”
In being named the 2025 Muhammad Ali Legacy Award winner, Phelps joined previous honorees such as Colin Kaepernick, Allyson Felix and LeBron James.
Friends we’ve lost in 2025
Carol Penny Taylor – November 4, 2025
Swimming loses an Icon in Carol “Penny Taylor at age 96
Joan Harrison May 20, 2025
Today on Facebook, on the Swimming History of Southern Africa Page, they announces the death of Joan Harrison Breetzke, who was inducted into ISHOF as an Honor Swimmer in 1982. Joan came to Fort Lauderdale in 1982 for her induction to celebrate the milestone. Pictured below is Joan accepting award, doing her footprints in cement and looking at her ISHOF display.
Joan Harrison (RSA) 1982 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1952 gold (100m backstroke); COMMONWEALTH GAMES: 1950 gold (400m freestyle), bronze (100m freestyle); 1954 gold (100m backstroke; relay), silver (relay), bronze (100m freestyle).
Born in 1935 of a swimming mother and a rugby-playing father in East London, South Africa, Joan Harrison wasted little time taking advantage of her sporting heritage. At 13, she already held three Jr. and two Sr. national records, and that year won the 220 and 500 yd. Senior Freestyle National Championships.
In 1950, at age 14, she won the 440 yd. freestyle at the Commonwealth Games in Auckland, New Zealand, beating the old record by 13 seconds and finishing 7 seconds ahead of the field. It was her first international competition and she was declared the outstanding woman swimmer in the Games.
Her second International Games was the Helsinki Olympics in 1952, where she won South Africa’s first and only Olympic gold medal for swimming. In 1954, at the Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, she won two gold medals, a silver, and a bronze before retiring at the ripe old age of 17.
She won the Helms Foundation Award for the best African athletic performance in any sport in 1952, and while concentrating on field hockey after 1954, she did manage to come back two more years to win the Nationals in her favorite 100 meter backstroke and in the 300 I. M. in 1956. She was South Africa’s supreme swimmer in freestyle, backstroke and I.M. for six years.
RIP Joan Harrison Breetzke.
Heinz Kluetemeier January 14, 2025
IMSHOF Honoree Linda McGill, MBE, OAM died 30 July 2025
Linda McGill, MBE, OAM was the first to swim around Hong Kong Island in 17 hours and 6minutes; across Port Phillip Bay, Victoria; and from Townsville to Magnetic Island, Queensland,Australia. She established a new women’s record in 9 hours and 59 minutes across the EnglishChannel in 1967 – which held until 1975.She completed the English Channel a total of 3 times; around Manhattan swim three times in 1983,1984 and 1986; and St-Jean in 1968.Linda competed in the pool in the 1964 Olympics.Expanded Biography (Openwaterpedia)Long Swims Database (Marathon Swimmers Federation)
Irene Sarah Wakeham died 19 October 2025
Not an Honoree – a long term contributor
Every summer (which gets longer and longer) for several decades, Irene was part of the “beach crew” in Dover England. An unpaid volunteer she helped aspiring English Channel swimmers: greeting them by name, checked them in/out of the water, “guarded” their clothes bags, met them hourly at the water’s edge with drink bottles of carbo-mix, encouraged them to keep going, made sure they staggered back after to their clothes after long sessions (sometime 10+ hours), and told them that they were wonderful and on-track for a future success. Every swimmer knew that Irene cared about them as individuals.
Pictured between Michael Oram (IMSHOF) and Kevin Murphy (ISHOF and IMSHOF) at an annual ceremony dinner.
Happy Birthday David Marsh!!
David Marsh (USA)
Honor Coach (2021)
2016 WOMEN’S USA OLYMPIC TEAM HEAD COACH; THREE-TIME USA MEN’S OLYMPIC TEAM ASSISTANT COACH (1996, 2000, 2012); 2003 USA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS HEAD COACH; 1994 USA WOMEN’S ASSISTANT COACH-WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP; 2005 USA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS MEN’S ASSISTANT COACH; 1995 USA MEN’S PAN-PACIFIC TEAM HEAD COACH; 1999 USA MEN’S PAN-PACIFIC TEAM ASSISTANT COACH; 2014 USA WOMEN’S TEAM ASSISTANT PAN PAC CHAMPIONSHIPS; HEAD COACH AUBURN UNIVERSITY, WINNING (12) TWELVE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS (SEVEN MEN – 1997, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007 AND FIVE WOMEN – 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007); (6) SIX-TIME CSCAA MEN’S (1994, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2007) AND FOUR-TIME WOMEN’S COACH OF THE YEAR (2001, 2002, 2003, 2007); 2016: ONE OF THE PIONEERS OF PROFESSIONAL SWIMMING, ESTABLISHNG TEAM ELITE, ONE OF THE COUNTRIES FIRST PROFESSIONAL SWIM TEAMS.
David Marsh is considered one of the top coaches in swimming today. He skyrocketed to swimming fame in 1990 when he was named Head Men and Women’s Coach of his alma mater, Auburn University.
Seven years later he went on a championship winning spree that was unparalleled. He led the Auburn men’s team to seven NCAA National Championships and the women’s team to five. Marsh is the most successful Auburn coach regardless of sport. He is arguably the most successful in the state of Alabama and the SEC with his 12 NCAA titles surpassing the six won by legendary football coach Bear Bryant at Alabama. Marsh has been called the Kingmaker of sprinters and during his tenure at Auburn, Marsh coached three of the fastest sprinters in the world, Cesar Cielo, Frederick Bousquet and George Bovell. Cielo broke the world record in the 50 free long course, on December 18, 2009 and the record still stands today.
In 2016, Marsh was named the Head Women’s Swimming Coach for the U.S. Olympic Team after serving as the U.S. Assistant Coach to the Men in 1996, 2000 and 2012. Marsh’s club team placed more athletes on the U.S. Olympic Team that headed to Rio than any other program in the U.S. Those names include Kathleen Baker, Cammile Adams, co-captain, Anthony Ervin, Jimmy Feigen, Ryan Lochte and Katie Meili, all earning gold medals. If his club team were a country, they would have placed third in the 2016 Rio Olympic medal standings. In all, the entire Team USA won the most medals in USA Swimming’s already storied Olympic history.
In his early coaching career, Marsh implemented a technique focused program that has now become the model for countless programs around the globe. In the process, he was named USA Swimming’s Developmental Coach of the Year for 2013 and 2014.
At the Senior and Elite level, he established and created the first USA Swimming Center of Excellence, now known as Team Elite. While medals are the goal in the pool for Team Elite, the highest calling for a member is to be a great role model for young swimmers and other age-group swimmers in the community. His goal is to give back to the sport he loves so much.
In May 2017, Marsh moved his Team Elite to San Diego, where he is now headquartered. In addition to coaching, Marsh is currently working on a project called “Coach Marsh Consulting”. His consulting business has David sharing his knowledge by mentoring and developing coaches from all over the world, both formally and informally. Whether he is formally speaking or making a presentation, or just on deck with another coach, he is helping to shape the next generation of coaches.
He has coached more than 60 Olympians from 20+ different countries and his swimmers have combined to win 89 individual NCAA titles and 277 individual SEC titles. Auburn swimmers have also brought home 90 medals from international competitions such as the World Championships, Goodwill Games, Pan-American Games, and the Olympics.
Coach Marsh was inducted into the Auburn, American Swim Coaches Association and North Carolina Halls of Fame, and in December 2016, he was named “Professional Advisor” of the Israel Swimming Association. Most recently, he was named head coach for the LA Current of the International Swim League.
What Was the Year? An Event-By-Event Look at the Last Time the USA Won Olympic Gold (Men’s Edition)
by John Lohn – Editor-in-Chief
24 December 2025
What Was the Year? An Event-By-Event Look at the Last Time the USA Won Olympic Gold (Men’s Edition)
No country has won as many gold medals at the Olympic Games as the United States. The American arsenal has always been stacked, from the early days of Johnny Weissmuller to the greatness of Mark Spitz to the legendary performances of Michael Phelps. Most recently, Bobby Finke was crowned an Olympic champion, as the distance star repeated as the gold medalist in the 1500-meter freestyle at the 2024 Games in Paris.
50 Freestyle
Last Gold Medal: 2020Winner: Caeleb DresselNote: The gold medal for Caeleb Dressel in the freestyle was complemented by titles in the 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly.
100 Freestyle
Last Gold Medal: 2020Winner: Caeleb DresselNote: The 100 freestyle has produced 14 American champions since the event debuted at the 1896 Games in Athens.
200 Freestyle
Last Gold Medal: 2008Winner: Michael PhelpsNote: The title from Michael Phelps accounted for a percentage of his eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
400 Freestyle
Last Gold Medal: 1984Winner: George DiCarloNote: The 400 freestyle has not produced an American champion in 41 years, the longest stretch of any event.
800 Freestyle
Last Gold Medal: 2020Winner: Bobby FinkeNote: The 800 freestyle did not debut as a men’s Olympic event until the 2020 Games in Tokyo, where Bobby Finke won the inaugural gold medal.
1500 Freestyle
Last Gold Medal: 2024Winner: Bobby FinkeNote: When Bobby Finke won the first of back-to-back golds in the event in 2020, it snapped an eight-Games streak without an American titlist.
100 Backstroke
Last Gold Medal: 2016Winner: Ryan MurphyNote: The gold medal won by Ryan Murphy extended the United States’ winning streak to six Games.
200 Backstroke
Last Gold Medal: 2016Winner: Ryan MurphyNote: As was the case in the 100 backstroke, the United States won the 200 backstroke at every Olympics from 1996 to 2016.
100 Breaststroke
Last Gold Medal: 1992Winner: Nelson DiebelNote: It has been eight Olympics since the United States sent an athlete to the top of the podium.
200 Breaststroke
Last Gold Medal: 1992Winner: Mike BarrowmanNote: The victory by Mike Barrowman at the Games in Barcelona was delivered in dominant fashion, as he topped the field by more than a second.
100 Butterfly
Last Gold Medal: 2020Winner: Caeleb DresselNote: The still-standing world record of 49.45 in the 100 butterfly was produced by Caeleb Dressel during his Tokyo Games victory.
200 Butterfly
Last Gold Medal: 2016Winner: Michael PhelpsNote: When Michael Phelps won this event in Rio de Janeiro, it marked a reclaiming of the throne, as he prevailed in the event in 2004 and 2008, before finishing just behind Chad le Clos in 2012.
200 Individual Medley
Last Gold Medal: 2016Winner: Michael PhelpsNote: The title by Michael Phelps in the 200 IM in Rio de Janeiro made him the first swimmer to win the same event at four consecutive Games.
400 Individual Medley
Last Gold Medal: 2020Winner: Chase KaliszNote: American men have won the 400 IM on nine occasions.
Happy Birthday George “Dad” Center!!
Country: USA
Honoree Type: Pioneer Coach
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC COACH: 1920; USA AMERICAN TEAM COACH: 1927; Outrigger Canoe Club Coach 1914-1932; Coach of seven Olympians.
The islands of Hawaii turned out the top swimmers in the world from 1910 through the mid-1950s. At the time L. de B. Handley was building the WSA swim program in New York, George David “Dad” Center was building the Outrigger Canoe Club swim program in Honolulu.
Center developed swimming greats Duke Kahanamoku, James Lovett, Olga Clar, and the Crabbe brothers, Buddy and Buster. Kahanamoku and Buster Crabbe without a doubt were his most successful swimmers and went on to win Olympic gold medals and set World Records.
Known affectionately to his athletes as “Dad”, Center was born in 1886 in Kipahulu, Maui to the son of a sugar plantation manager. He participated in all sports, but was most active in swimming, surfing and canoeing.
Dad coached the Outrigger swimming teams when the Duke went to the Olympics and returned a champion. Dad’s other love was canoeing and he was the first coach to use canoeing as a conditioning sport for swimming, since the same muscles are used for both sports.
As club captain, Dad was in complete charge of all athletic programs and served as the “guiding spirit” who encouraged all young members to participate. His leadership roles lead him to the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp, serving as coach of the U.S. team. Along with Kahanamoku and Mariechen Wehselau, Hawaiian swimmers included Pua and Warren Kealoha, Stubby Krueger, Helen Moses, and Joseph Gilman. His USA team won all the men’s and women’s events except one. Dad later coached the U.S. National team which competed against Japan.
He retired in 1932, but continued to inspire young athletes to compete to the best of their ability. Dad died in 1962 at the age of 75. He was loved by all who knew him as an exceedingly thoughtful, kind, and gentle person who lived with a heart of gold.
The information on this page was written the year of their induction