Happy Birthday to our 2016 Synchronized Swimmer from Russia, Elena Azarova ~
In 2016, ISHOF held the Honoree Induction Ceremonies in Santa Clara, California, Elena traveled from Moscow with her husband and two young boys to attend her induction. They had a wonderful time! Here she is pictured with Honor US Coach, Gail Emery.
Elena Azarova (RUS)
Honor Synchronized / Artistic Swimmer (2016)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: 1996 OLYMPIC GAMES: 4th (team); 2000 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (team); 2004 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (team); 1998 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (team); 1991 WORLD CUP: bronze (team); bronze 1995 WORLD CUP: bronze (duet, team); 1997 WORLD CUP: gold (team); 1999 WORLD CUP: gold (team), bronze (duet)
She tried gymnastics, dancing and swimming before she joined the synchronized swim-ming team at the age of five. It was at the Seagull Sports School where she learned to love the water and sports, and it became her second home.
Elena Azarova was paired up with Natalia Gruzdeva at a very young age by her coach, Olga Vasilchenko. The two were considered very promising in the USSR and in 1985, their duet won the youth nationals. The next year they won a bronze medal at the European Junior championships, held in West Berlin, and a gold in the team competition.
Elena joined the National Team in 1989 and very shortly after she was named captain, a role she held until the end of her career. Elena was paired up with a new partner as a member of the National Team, Olga Novokshchenova. Elena continued her success with Olga, winning the duet title at the European Championships in 1995 and as a part of the team, she won gold at the European Championships an astounding six times.
Elena’s first trip to an Olympic Games was in 1996 when the only event on the program for synchro was the team event. The Russian team finished fourth, but after the Atlanta Games they would come to dominate the sport. In 1997, they won the World Cup in Guanzhou, China, the Goodwill Games in New York City in 1998 and at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, her team won its first gold.
After the Sydney Games, Elena took a two and a half year break, but then decided to get back into training and try to make the 2004 Olympic team. It was much harder competing against younger athletes, but with Elena’s talent, she made the 2004 squad. They were favorites going into Athens in 2004 but during their routine the music simply stopped. The girls continued performing the routine until they were given the signal from the judge. They had to perform the routine again and despite the incident the first time, they clearly were the best. They had won the gold again.
After the 2004 Games, Elena retired for good. Today, she is a synchronized swimming coach in Moscow and is busy developing programs and her club. She is married and has two boys.
Happy Birthday Susie Atwood
Susie Atwood (USA)
Honor Swimmer (1992)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1968 Olympic team member; 1972 Olympic bronze (100m backstroke); 1972 Olympic silver ( 200m backstroke); WORLD RECORD: 1 (200m backstroke); 3 WORLD RECORDS: relays; 18 AAU (100yd & 200yd backstroke, 200yd & 400yd individual medley); 5 AAU relays; Won 100yd & 200yd backstroke four consecutive years (indoors); PAN AMERICAN GAMES: 1971 silver (100m & 200m backstroke, 200m individual medley), bronze (400m individual medley); Long domination in the AAU Nationals; Held 200m backstroke World Records three years. AMERICAN RECORDS (Short Course): 9 (100yd & 200yd backstroke, 200yd & 400yd individual medley), 4 relays; AMERICAN RECORDS (Long Course): 2 (100m & 200m backstroke), 5
A dominant figure in United States swimming from 1969 through 1971, Susie Atwood’s record in U.S. National Championships was outstanding. She captured 23 national titles during her career which included a berth on two Olympic teams. A four-time World Record holder in the 200-meter backstroke and as a backstroker on the 400-meter medley relay, her prowess as America’s finest backstroke and individual medley swimmer of her era distinguishes her among the best in swimming history.
Sue began swimming at age seven under Jim Montrella at the Lakewood Aquatic Club in Long Beach, California, becoming one of the most consistent swimmers at the elite level. She is a six-time Bob Kiphuth High Point Award winner at the U.S. National Championships, second only to Tracy Caulkins who won a record 12 times. Sue set a total of 20 American records in the backstroke and individual medley as well as a relay team member.
At age fifteen, Atwood qualified as the top seed in the 200-meter backstroke at the 1968 Games in Mexico City but failed to make the finals. Sue’s disappointing Olympic debut fueled the fire for her road to the ’72 Games in Munich when she placed second to her teammate, Melissa Belote, in the 200-meter backstroke and took the bronze in the 100-meter backstroke. She held the American Record in the 400 I.M., but because of conflicts in the competition schedule, she did not swim the individual medley in Munich. Previous to that she had set the world record in the 200-meter backstroke. She had competed in the 1971 Pan American Games, winning five silver medals and a bronze. Beginning in 1969, she received the World Swimmer of the Year Award six times.
Susie’s contributions to swimming continued after she retired from competition. She went on to become an inspirational speaker and representative for Arena as well as swimming coach at Ohio State University.
One of the most famous swimmers of all time, Johnny “Tarzan” Weissmuller was born 119 years ago today!
Johnny Weissmuller (USA)
Honor Swimmer (1965)
Johnny and the Duke
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1924 gold (100m, 400m freestyle; 4x200m freestyle relay), bronze (water polo); 1928 gold (100m freestyle; 4x200m freestyle relay); WORLD RECORDS: 51; U.S. NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: 52; Played Tarzan in 16 movies.
Johnny Weissmuller holds no current world swimming records and by today’s Olympic standards, you might say he never swam very fast, but you can’t get anyone who ever saw him swim say that there ever was a greater swimmer. This was the verdict of 250 sportswriters at A.P.’s mid-century poll and it is still the verdict 15 years later.
He was the swim great of the 1920’s Golden Age of Sports, yet because of the movies and TV, he is as much a part of the scene in the 1960s as he was in the 1920s when his name was coupled with sports immortals such as Babe Ruth, Bill Tilden, Bobby Jones, Jack Dempsey and Red Grange. He is the only one of this group more famous today than in the “Golden Age.”
Duke, Betty Becker, Johnny, Clarence Pinkston
Weissmuller set many world records and won 5 gold medals in two Olympics (1924 and 1928). He never lost a race in 10 years of amateur swimming in distances from 50 yards to 1/2 mile. Johnny’s 51 seconds 100 yard freestyle record set June 5, 1927, in the University of Michigan Union Pool stood for 17 years until it was broken by Alan Ford at Yale in 1944. The 100 yd. distance is swum more often than any other, yet in 17 years, only one man ever swam it faster. That man was Johnny Weissmuller, who later, as a professional in the Billy Rose World’s Fair Aquacade swam 48.5 at the New York Athletic Club while training Walter Spence to win the nationals. For those who think swimmers must be teenage bobby-soxers, it might be of interest to note that Spence was 35 at the time and Weissmuller was 36.
His record of 52 national championship gold medals should stand forever. He is famous for his chest high crawl stroke seen by millions in Olympic swim stadiums, on movie screens and on TV, but he also held world records in the backstroke and never lost a race in that stroke. “I got bored,” says Johnny, “so I swam on my back where I could spend more time looking around.” Weissmuller set 51 world records in his ten years as an amateur but many more times he broke world records and never turned in the record applications. Every time he swam, the crowd expected a new record, so Johnny learned pace. He learned how to shave his records a tenth of a second at a time. If he missed, his 350 lb. coach Bill Bachrach would say “rest a few minutes, Johnny, and we’ll swim again.” Bachrach would promise his protégé a dinner if he broke the record and Johnny always seemed to be hungry. Many a world mark was set with only a couple of visiting coaches or a few guests of the Illinois Athletic Club to watch.
Every old-timer in swimming has a favorite Johnny Weissmuller story. To them all, he was the world’s greatest swimmer, yet ironically the producer who signed him to play Tarzan didn’t know Johnny could swim. “Many think I turned pro to go into the movies,” Johnny says, “but this is not true. I was working for a bathing suit company for $500 a week for five years, which was not bad money then (or now). I was in Los Angeles and they asked me if I would like to screen test for Tarzan. I told them ‘no thanks’ but they said I could go to the MGM lot and meet Greta Garbo and have lunch with Clark Gable. Any kid would want to do that so I said ‘okay’. I had to climb a tree and then run past the camera carrying a girl. There were 150 actors trying for the part, so after lunch, I took off for Oregon on my next stop for the swim suit outfit. Somebody called me on the phone and said ‘Johnny, you got it.’ ‘Got what?’ ‘You’re Tarzan.’ ‘What happened to those other 150 guys?’ ‘They picked you.’”
“So the producer asked me my name and he said it would never go. ‘We’ll have to shorten it,’ he said. ‘Weissmuller is to long. It will never go on a marquee.’ The director butted in. ‘Don’t you ever read the papers?’ he asked the producer. ‘This guy is the world’s greatest swimmer.’ The producer said he only read the trade papers, but okay, I could keep my name and he told the writers, ‘put a lot of swimming in the movie, because this guy can swim.’”
“So you see why I owe everything to swimming,” Weissmuller says. “It not only made my name, it saved my name. Without swimming, I’d be a nobody. Who ever heard of Jon Weis, marquee or no marquee.”
Besides swimming, Johnny Weissmuller played on two U.S. Olympic water polo teams. “Water polo’s a rough game,” Johnny says. “We never could beat those Yugoslavians. They never blow a whistle over there. Anyhow, that’s where I learned to duck. It came in handy when Cheetah started throwing coconuts.”
Happy Birthday Longtime Friend of ISHOF, Honor DiverGiorgio Cagnotto
Giorgio Cagnotto (ITA)
Honor Diver (1992)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1964, 1968 Olympic team member; 1972 silver (3m springboard), bronze (10m platform); 1976 silver (3m springboard); 1980 bronze (3m springboard); WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1978 bronze (3m springboard); FINA CUP: 1979 (3m springboard); EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1966 bronze (3m springboard); 1970 gold (3m springboard), bronze (10m platform); 1974 silver (3m springboard); 1977 silver (3m springboard); EUROPEAN DIVING CUPS: 1967 gold (3m springboard); 1969 gold (10m platform); 1975 gold (3m springboard); 1976 gold (3m springboard). on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards. He is the producer of the prize-winning documentary, “Hobie’s Heroes”. Hobie’s greatest pride is in the fact that there are more diving coaches in the high school and college ranks in the U.S. that have graduated from Indiana University under his tutelage than from any other university.
Italy’s Giorgio Cagnotto was one of the world’s most prolific divers during the 1960s and 1970s. At the age of eight, he began to train with this uncle, professional diver Lino Quattrrini. Just eight years later he found himself competing in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, kicking off an Olympic career of epic proportion.
Cagnotto’s Olympic appearances spanned three decades, competing in five consecutive Olympic Games. He was best off the springboard, but medaled in the platform as well. After Tokyo, he competed in Mexico City in 1968, but it was during his third Olympic effort in the ’72 Munich Games that he earned a silver medal for his performance on the springboard and a bronze in the platform competition. At the 1976 Montreal Games, he won his third Olympic medal– a silver in the springboard competition. He retired at the age of thirty-two after earning his fourth Olympic medal at the 1980 Moscow Games where Cagnotto again medaled in the springboard competition, taking the bronze.
Giorgio was competing at a time when diving competition was dominated by fellow countryman Klaus Dibiasi, the only diver to win gold medals in three consecutive Olympic Games. Giorgio was as far in advance of the rest of the sport as Klaus was of him. Between them, the red, white, and green Italian flag was raised many times in international competition. Holder of two gold, two silver, and two bronze European Cup Championships and a medal winner in every European championship from 1966 through 1977, Cagnotto won eight outdoor and twelve indoor Italian National Championships.
Both Cagnotto and Dibiasi were coached by Papa Dibiasi, a former Italian National Champion with a long career in the sport. Papa retired just in time so as not to be competing against his son and Cagnotto. The only medal winner to dive in five consecutive Olympic Games, Giorgio Cagnotto is presently the Italian National Team Coach and the Federal Technical Director of Diving, living in Bolzano, Italy, with his wife. Giorgio Cagnotto is a true legend representing excellence and longevity in a sport demanding commitment, style and grace.
ISHOF’s 2023 Buck Dawson Author’s Award Winner, Elaine K. Howley’s story: A Marathon Swimmer’s Extraordinary Journey and Literary Dive into History
Elaine Howley
shared from: WOWSA 05/30/2023 open water swimming
Elaine K. Howley, a remarkable marathon swimmer, recently sat down with Ned Denison, Chair of the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame, to share her incredible journey in the sport.
Elaine’s marathon swimming odyssey began in 2006 with the Boston Light Swim, an event she now directs. One of her notable achievements came in 2009 when she completed the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming, conquering the challenging English Channel, Catalina Channel, and swimming around Manhattan Island. Elaine also accomplished The Triple Crown of Lake Monster Swims in 2016, taking on the lengths of Lake Memphremagog, Loch Ness, and Lake Tahoe. Elaine admits her fascination with lake monsters was a driving force behind her decision to tackle these unique swims. She became the first person to swim the 32.3-mile length of Lake Pend Oreille in northern Idaho and completed multiple ice miles.
Beyond her personal triumphs, Elaine is deeply involved in promoting and organizing marathon swimming events. She holds a significant role in the Massachusetts Open Water Swimming Association (MOWSA), the governing body responsible for the Boston Light Swim and the Jim Doty Memorial Mile. Taking the helm as MOWSA’s president in 2021, Elaine succeeds Greg O’Connor and has exciting plans to expand the scope of solo swims. Additionally, she aims to reintroduce The Egg Rock Scramble, a group swim that harkens back to a historic event dormant since 1975, set to launch in the upcoming fall season.
Elaine’s speaks about her involvement with the Marathon Swimmers Federation (MSF), where she became a member in 2014. Collaborating with Evan Morrison and other passionate individuals, Elaine played a crucial role in shaping the official rules of marathon swimming. Recognizing the value of codifying these rules and defining the parameters of the sport, she actively participates in the MSF’s efforts, ensuring the recognition and promotion of swims while creating opportunities for fellow athletes. Elaine appreciates the collaborative nature of the MSF and its significant contribution to the marathon swimming community.
In addition to her remarkable swimming career, Ned Denison inquired about Elaine’s writing endeavors. Elaine has been a columnist for Outdoor Swimmer magazine since around 2009, sharing her insights on historical swimming topics through her column called “Splashback.” In 2017, she expanded her repertoire with more in-depth features. She recalls her initial proposal, which aimed to explore the rich history of open water and marathon swimming.
Elaine’s most recent article for Outdoor Swimmer delves into the life of the first Baron Lord Desborough, also known as William Henry Grenfell. Desborough served as the inaugural president of the Channel Swimming Association. Elaine’s interest in Desborough was piqued by Michael Loynd’s book, “The Watermen.” She was fortunate to interview Sandy Nairne and Peter Williams, authors of an upcoming biography on Desborough, who provided her with invaluable insights and details. Elaine finds Desborough’s involvement in marathon swimming and other water sports during the early 20th century particularly captivating, making for a compelling exploration in her article.
Check out the interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNfOaWUY1Ls
A Life Aloftby Thomas Gompf (Author), Elaine K. Howley (Author)
“Being airborne, aloft, free of the bonds of gravity—that, for Thomas Gompf, is the stuff of life.When he first learned to fly an airplane, he found himself applying terms from his beloved sport of diving to the maneuvers he was mastering. The line blurred between the two disciplines, and he realized that being a pilot and being a diver have an awful lot in common. As an Air Force officer in the Vietnam War, a commercial airline pilot for 30 years, and an Olympic medal-winning diver, Tom found ways for his body to soar. His work in support of Olympic divers and as the “father of synchronized diving” has left an enduring legacy that has inspired others to fly, too. In A Life Aloft, Tom reflects on what he’s learned from pushing himself and the sport of diving to ever greater heights.” ~ Amazon.com
Elaine K. Howley will be presented to 2023 Buck Dawson Author’s Award with co-author and subject of the book, A Life Aloft, Tom Gompf, in Fort Lauderdale, on September 29, at the site of the 68th annual International Swimming Hall of Fame Honoree Induction Ceremonies. The event will be held at the Marriott Harbor Beach Resort and Spa, 3030 Holiday Drive, Fort Lauderdale. Fort ticket information, please call, Meg Keller-Marvin at 570.594-4367
Happy Birthday to our new 2023 ISHOF Honoree, Trischa Zorn!
Trischa Zorn is the easily the most successful athlete in Paralympic Games history, having won 55 medals, 41 of which are gold, competing in seven Paralympic Games. To put it into perspective, Trischa has won more Paralympic medals than some countries.
She first began competing as a 16-year old, qualifying for her first Paralympic Games in 1980, in Arnham, Netherlands, where she came away with seven gold medals. Trischa was born with a genetic eye condition that left her blind. After her first Games in the Netherlands, it was on to New York in 1984, where she won six more gold medals. From then on, she never looked back for the next five Games.
Photo Credit: International Paralympic Committee
In 1982, Trischa was awarded an NCAA Division I scholarship, becoming the first visually impaired athlete to earn a full ride, which she then used to become a four-time All-American backstroker at the University of Nebraska.
Trischa became a teacher for special needs students in Indianapolis. After several years of teaching, she decided to make a career change and entered Law School. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the Indiana University Law School in 2005. Zorn now works for the Department of Veterans Affairs in Indianapolis where she works to ensure that veterans obtain the care they are entitled to receive.
USA Swimming created the Trischa L. Zorn Award to honor a swimmer or relay team with a disability for outstanding performance and excellence.
Trischa Zorn-Hudson was inducted into the International Paralympic Hall of Fame in 2012 and was inducted into the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame in 2022.
2023 will mark the first year that ISHOF will induct a paralympic athlete. It was suggested and unanimously voted on by the ISHOF Board of Directors to include Paralympians in the ISHOF family in 2021. With the Covid pandemic, it was agreed that 2023 would be the first year that an athlete would be chosen. A committee was selected and formed with Dave Denniston, as Chairman and his group of experts from around the world, and Trischa was a unanimous selection as the first ISHOF Paralympic Honoree. We are thrilled to welcome the Paralympic family to ISHOF and hope we can broaden the awareness of Paralympics, their sport and dedication.
Come join Zorn and this year’s class of 2023 in Ft. Lauderdale. If you cannot join us, consider making a donation.
To make a donation, click here: https://www.ishof.org/donate/
On the last day of May, when we celebrate Asian American Heritage Month, we honor two of our best: Dr. Sammy Lee and Victoria Manalo Draves
Diving and ISHOF had two very special friends in Dr. Sammy Lee and Victoria (Vicki) Manalo Draves. Sammy and Vicki were close friends who were both Californians, and who both went to the 1948 Olympics together, winning double gold medals in diving. Vicki won both hers in 1948, on the 3-meter springboard and the 10-meter tower and Sammy won his back to back in 1948 and in 1952. After the Olympic Games, both Lee and Manalo were married and had families but always stayed friends. They also stayed involved in the sport of diving. Once the new Hall of Fame opened in Fort Lauderdale in the late 1960’s they were both frequent visitors, wether if was for a diving meet, an induction ceremony, either their own or a fellow divers. We lost both Sammy and Vicki, but they will always be remembered as lifelong supporters of the sport of diving and wonderful friends of the Hall of Fame. Please read their bios below…..
Dr. Sammy Lee (USA)
Honor Diver (1968)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1948 gold (platform), bronze (springboard); 1952 gold (platform); 1964, 1968 (U.S. Olympic diving coach); NATIONAL AAU CHAMPIONSHIPS: springboard, platform; SULLIVAN AWARD: 1953.
Sammy Lee was born in Fresno, California, of Korean parents. At both Luther Burbank Jr. High and Benjamin Franklin High School in Los Angeles, he was the first non-Caucasian Student Body President, graduating No. 1 scholastically, and was chosen the school’s top athlete in 1939. While at Occidental College in 1942, he won his first Men’s Senior National AAU springboard and 10 meter tower diving championships. He retired in 1943 upon entering the School of Medicine at the University of Southern California.
In 1946, during his internship, Lee came out of retirement to win another outdoor tower championship. Two summers later in London, he won the Olympic platform diving title and was third in the springboard. Sammy was the first American born Oriental to win an Olympic gold medal for the USA.
As the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games came closer (he had expected to make the 1940 Games at Helsinki before they were cancelled by war), the now retired 28-year-old Dr. Lee again got the bug and came out of retirement at age 32. He made the team and again won the tower, the first man ever to accomplish this double.
In 1953, Sammy Lee won the heralded Sullivan Award as America’s outstanding amateur athlete. In 1960, Dr. Sammy Lee again took medical leave and came out of diving retirement, this time as U. S. Olympic diving coach in Rome. His diving protégé, Bob Webster, won the platform and repeated again in 1964 at Tokyo. Since Sammy Lee was the first man to double in successive platform wins, it seemed only natural to this born winner that his pupil should be the second to accomplish this double.
Sammy Lee is still coming out of retirement as he did in 1963 and 1968 to coach the Japanese and Korean divers. He’s married to a Chinese-American wife with two children, 12 and 7. In 1966, he was named outstanding American of Korean parentage by the American-Korean Society of Southern California.
Dr. Lee specializes in diseases of the ear, including, quite naturally, that occupational hazard known as “swimmer’s ear.” Don’t expect any phony sympathy, however, because, whatever the pain, Sammy Lee has probably had it before.
Victoria “Vicki” Manalo Draves (USA)
Honor Diver (1969)
The information on this page was written the year of their induction.
FOR THE RECORD: OLYMPIC GAMES: 1948 gold (springboard; platform); NATIONAL DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS: 1946, 1947, 1948 gold (platform); 1948 gold (springboard); First woman in Olympic to win both springboard and platform diving crowns in same games.
Victoria Manalo Draves was the first woman in Olympic history to win both springboard and platform diving crowns in the same games. She was the only swimmer or diver to gold medal in two individual events at the 1948 London Olympiad. Her rise to No. 1 in the world was meteoric but far from easy. Vickie was a twin born in San Francisco to an English mother and Filipino father. When Vickie was 16, she and her sisters would take the trolley car to Fleishhacker Pool to swim and admire the divers. Admiration was mutual as one of the boy divers introduced her to Phil Patterson, coach of then national champion Helen Crlenkovich. Vickie learned rapidly under Phil, but her biggest hurdle was not on the diving board. Her diving club on Nob Hill required that she drop her father’s Filipino name and take her mother’s maiden name, Taylor. Finances were another problem and a year later, she joined Charlie Sava’s famed Crystal Plunge team where she worked with Jimmy McHugh. McHugh left coaching and on Sava’s advice, Vickie crossed the bay to dive with Lyle Draves and his star pupil Zoe Ann Olsen at the Athens Club in Oakland.
With a third diver, Gloria Wooden, Draves took his girls to the 1945 Indoor Nationals in Chicago and they placed 1, 2, 3 in the 3 meter springboard.
Wartime duties, another Nob Hill meet argument over Vickie’s Filipino parentage, and Draves returning to Southern California left Vickie once more without a coach. There followed some commuting to Los Angeles, a second and a third at the Outdoor Nationals, and then, on the death of her father, Vicki retired and returned to San Francisco and to her old job as a secretary in the Army Port Surgeon’s office.
When the war ended, Vickie finally moved to Southern California for good. She married her coach and her winning ways began immediately with the national Tower Diving Championship (10 meter platform), in 1946, 1947 and 1948. In 1948, she won her first springboard national title. She made the team but was not first at the Olympic Trials in either springboard or platform. She was the first woman of oriental ancestry to win an Olympic gold medal in diving. The first man was Korean-American Sammy Lee, who, like Vickie, stands 5’1″ when he stretches. The incredible performances of these two Asian-Americans helped heal the scars of an Olympic-canceling World War, and personified the Olympic revival of individual competition regardless of race, creed or national origin.
Passages: Kathy McKee, ASCA Hall of Famer and SwimMAC Coach
Photo Credit SwimMAC Carolina
by MATTHEW DE GEORGE – SENIOR WRITER
31 May 2023, 11:35am
Passages: Kathy McKee, ASCA Hall of Famer and SwimMAC Coach
Kathy McKee, a long-time member of the SwimMAC coaching staff and an inductee to the American Swim Coaches Association Hall of Fame, has died.
The ASCA announced her death on Wednesday. She was 69 years old.
McKee coached at SwimMAC Carolina, Dynamo Swim Club in Georgia and North Carolina Aquatic Club. Most of her professional life was spent at SwimMAC, tracking the growth of one of the most influential clubs in the nation.
She was hired in 1994 as the manager of competitive team development, helping then head coach Pat Hogan develop the club’s original site at Davidson College. She was instrumental in working with swimmers from pre-competitive to senior team for a club whose numbers swelled through the years. Among her accolades was being a coach on the 2007 national junior team that competed in Australia.
McKee left SwimMAC in 2012 and returned in 2017, hired as an associate head coach. She was listed as a member of SwimMAC’s leadership team as of her passing.
McKee’s five-year hiatus from SwimMAC took her to North Carolina Aquatic Club in Chapel Hill. She helped one swimmer qualify for the national junior team there and was honored as North Carolina Swimming Age Group Coach of the Year in 2014.
Before SwimMAC, McKee helped develop national-level swimmers at Dynamo in Georgia, where she spent 17 years and rose to become the head age-group coach. Among her charges were Mary Ellen Blanchard, Carlton Bruner and Eric Wunderlich. She was three times voted the Georgia Age Group Coach of the Year and won the Phillips 66 Outstanding Service Award.
McKee was inducted to the ASCA Hall of Fame in 2019. She served for six years on the ASCA Board, among other committees within USA Swimming and the LSCs in North Carolina and Georgia. She had been scheduled to speak at this year’s ASCA World Clinic.
Every Child A Swimmer signs Legislation in Georgia and Arkansas
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., May 24, 2023 – Every Child A Swimmer (ECAS), an organization. aimed at promoting water safety and swim education to children, is proud to announce the successful passage of new legislation in Georgia, Arkansas, following the first state to pass the bill last year, Florida.
Championed by Casey McGovern, mother of Edna Mae McGovern, who was tragically lost in a drowning accident. Casey has dedicated her life to creating impactful change through early education and exposure to water safety resources. The legislation in Georgia was given the name of Edna Mae to honor her legacy and the impact this will have on students.
The new legislation created in tandem with local governments and Every Child A Swimmer emphasizes the importance of equipping students with the necessary skills to navigate water environments safely. Drowning is the number one cause of death of children ages 1-5 and the ECAS legislation looks to curb that by introducing early access to water safety information.
The passage of these bills in Georgia, Arkansas, and Florida is a monumental step forward in our mission to make every child a swimmer, said Casey McGovern, Program Director at ECAS. Water safety education is crucial, and we hope this legislation makes a tangible impact on the lives of children and families.
The legislation mandates that schools incorporate water safety resources, such as where to find free swim lessons, educational materials, and drowning prevention strategies, into their curriculum. By partnering with local swimming facilities, ECAS ensures that children receive proper training and access to supervised swim programs. This collaborative approach between schools, community organizations, and government agencies creates a comprehensive network of support for water safety education.
For more information about the Every Child A Swimmer organization and its initiatives, please visit https://everychildaswimmer.org/
About Every Child A Swimmer Organization: Every Child A Swimmer (ECAS) organization is dedicated to promoting water safety education and reducing drowning incidents among children. By working closely with schools, community organizations, and government agencies, ECAS provides access to swim lessons, educational resources, and drowning prevention strategies.
The organization strives to empower every child with life-saving swimming skills and create a culture of water safety awareness.
Bill, Mike and Casey McGovern traveled to Arkansas for the Every Child a Swimmer bill signing ceremony with Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Rep. Mary Bentley and Senator Jim Dotson.
We would like to promote the Every Child a Swimmer legislation is a law in three states, with more to come. We want to continue working to have it passed in every state throughout the country.
We would like a HUGE PUSH through all channels focusing on the positivity that this law (and our program) will do.
54% of adult Americans cannot swim well enough to save themselves in an emergency.
Learning to Swim reduces the risk of drowning by 88%.
This law will help to educate parents and caregivers on the need to make swim lessons a priority.
Swimming is the only sport that has the potential to save a life.
The numerous health benefits of swimming.
Having the ability to swim, opens up multiple career opportunities that require the ability to swim.
The connection to ISHOF
Learn to Swim Scholarships available to families from underserved communities.
We need everyone’s help to implement the ECAS legislation into their state.
Drowning is Preventable!
On May 4, Bill Kent, Casey McGovern and the Every Child a Swimmer Team traveled to Atlanta to see the Every Child A Swimmer bill be passed into legislation.
Thank you Senator Shawn Still, Scott Hilton, Representative Matt Dubnik, @Representative Chris Erwin and all of the representatives who helped to see this bill come to fruition. From the ECAS social media page: “Yesterday was a great day for water safety and saving lives.” ~ May 4, 2023
Together, WE will make Every Child a Swimmer.
Molly Carlson, Constantin Popovici Claim High Dive Titles at World Aquatics High Diving World Cup in Fort Lauderdale
by DAN D’ADDONA — SWIMMING WORLD MANAGING EDITOR
28 May 2023, 09:19am
The World Aquatics High Diving World Cup saw some tremendous diving Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center this week.
As a qualifier for the World Aquatics Championship in Fukuoka Japan this summer, divers from all over the world competed in the high dive events at the newly renovated Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center.
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Canada’s Molly Carlson and Romania’s Constantin Popovici claimed titles on Saturday as they gear up for the world championships after automatically qualifying with their performances.
“I’m so excited to go to Fukuoka,” Carlson told World Aquatics. “Not only to be with this incredible group of high divers changing the world and pushing the sport, but to be able to see other sports and cheer for Canada in swimming and water polo.”
Carlson finished with 374.00 points, earning 121 on her fourth dive (a half-twisting forward quad with a 4.4 degree of difficulty) to have enough for the title after two days of elite diving.
“It’s definitely surreal,“ she said. “I knew deep down: if you get the right take-off, you’re going to get the perfect entry. In the air, I was like: this is it. I came up and I knew; I knew I was on top of the podium.”
Rhiannan Iffland finished second just 10.15 points behind Carlson in another stellar finish in Fort Lauderdale.
“The last dive is my bread and butter,” Iffland told World Aquatics. “I was excited to see where it was at the start of the season. Now I know what I need to do. I need a stronger take-off and I could have stood up a little more at the end. In Fukuoka, I’ll be working to chase my two gold medals from 2017 and 2019. I’m not ready to give up the top spot just yet.”
Third place went to Carlson’s training partner Jessica Macaulay.
Photo Courtesy: Eric Espada/World Aquatics
In the men’s field, the top three from Friday maintained their positions on the podium, all within 17.15 points of each other. Popovici finished with 473.90 points to pull away from the field.
Spain’s Carlos Gimeno was second with 454.40 points, followed by France’s Gary Hunt (438.15).
Popovici will also be competing on the 10m platform in Japan in an effort to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics on 10m.
“I was injured last year so the results in 2022 were not what I had expected,” he said. He recently changed coaches and clubs. “I want to win everything this year, not just in Fukuoka.”