Category: Uncategorized

ISHOF Honoree and Board Member Dara Torres on the Rich Roll Podcast discussing her incredible career and more……

photo credit: Rich Roll

Watch podcast here: https://www.richroll.com/podcast/dara-torres-937

Swimming has a peculiar relationship with time. Races measured in hundredths of seconds. Careers measured in years, but only a handful of them. Peak performance arrives at 18, maybe 21, then the slow fade begins. This is how it worked. This is how it always worked.

Until one woman turned 41 in Beijing and broke American records.

The contradiction should have made headlines: Training five days while teenagers trained nine. Building swimming’s first multidisciplinary support team. Proving that efficiency beats volume, that recovery trumps grinding, that the body can improve with age if you ask different questions.

Yet almost nobody in swimming asked her how. The sport that should have been dissecting her methods collectively shrugged. Perhaps her success was too threatening to the infrastructure built on youth and disposability.

What if everything we believed about athletic peaks was wrong?

My guest today is Dara Torres, who didn’t just break that rule—she obliterated it with such force that we’re still recalibrating what’s possible. A five-time Olympian and 12-time Olympic medalist, Dara became the oldest swimmer to ever win an Olympic medal at 41, just two years after giving birth, breaking American records when she should have been, by all conventional wisdom, a decade past relevance.

Dara Torres was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2016. Read her bio below:

Dara Torres

Seoul Anniversary: The Night Duncan Armstrong Became the Dragon Slayer and Laurie Lawrence Embodied a Caged Animal

by John Lohn – Editor-in-Chief

19 September 2025

On Sept. 19, 1988: Ranked 46th in the world in the 200 freestyle entering the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Australia’s Duncan Armstrong was an afterthought in medal discussions. When the championship final was over, however, Armstrong was the gold medalist and his stunning triumph set off one of the great coaching celebrations the sport has seen.

Wherever Duncan Armstrong looked, he had reason to be in awe. From what he heard, he had reason to be in awe, too. It was the championship final of the 200 freestyle at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea and Armstrong was supposed to be an also-ran in a clash of titans.\

Next to Armstrong was the United States’ Matt Biondi, the world’s most dominant swimmer of the time and – prior to arriving in Seoul – tabbed as a threat to equal the seven gold medals won by Mark Spitz at the 1972 Games in Munich. As the meet announcer introduced Biondi, set to compete in Lane Five, it seemed like a dissertation was being read. Accolade followed accolade. If spectators somehow didn’t know Biondi before his introduction, they were well-versed on his accomplishments afterward.

Also behind a starting block was West Germany’s Michael Gross, nicknamed “The Albatross” for his seven-foot wingspan. Like Biondi, Gross was wildly decorated, an Olympic champion from four years earlier and a world titlist on multiple occasions. He headed into the final of the 200 freestyle as the world-record holder, a mark he set en route to the gold medal at the 1984 Games.

In another lane was Poland’s Artur Wojdat. Although not as esteemed as Biondi and Gross, Wojdat was quite accomplished. He was the world-record holder in the 400 freestyle and was viewed as a future star in the sport, a man who was just tapping into his potential.

Then there was Armstrong, a Commonwealth Games champion for Australia two years earlier, but hardly of the same status as his fellow competitors. He ranked just 46th in the world in the 200 freestyle at the time of the Olympic Games and when it was time for Armstrong’s introduction in Seoul, it was basically over as soon as it started. Little was said, prompting Armstrong to think, “Oh, come on!” More, Armstrong didn’t exactly possess an imposing physique. While Gross was a towering 6-foot-7 and armed (literally) with a propeller-like wingspan, Biondi looked like a sculptor’s dream creation, himself 6-foot-7 and rippling with muscles. Armstrong? He was built nothing like an Adonis. Rather, he was an unimposing 6-foot-2 and 160 pounds.

Photo Courtesy: Swimming World Magazine

If Armstrong was not a contender in many minds, Laurie Lawrence was unaware that his student was an underdog. One of the finest coaches in Australian history, Lawrence saw great potential in Armstrong. Physically, he drove Armstrong into the ground in training, providing a new definition of what was painful. Equally important, Lawrence influenced Armstrong on a mental level, convincing his charge that excellence was attainable. It was that mentality which allowed Armstrong to believe – if others did not – that guys like Biondi and Gross were beatable.

“He’s a wonderful and enthusiastic person,” Armstrong said of Lawrence. “He just sells it. He sells passion. He’s a wonderful man. In swimming, where you have to do hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of laps, passion and enthusiasm are very important. He really understood the Olympic equation that you only get one shot. The door of opportunity only opens once every four years. He gave you the tools of the trade to step on deck so the Olympic pressure would not crush you. You look down your lane and know you’ve done everything you possibly can and you’re prepared for this race. Someone has got to win it. Why not me? You go out against great opposition and perform your best and not let the pressure cooker crush you.”

The pressure cooker is what Biondi was under. In the 16 years since Spitz packaged the finest Olympic performance in history – seven gold medals and seven world records – the sport was waiting for someone to challenge that epic run. Biondi was that man. He was slated to race seven events – four individual and three relays – and the potential for a gold medal in each event certainly existed.

Of all the events, however, the 200 freestyle was going to be the toughest for Biondi, who was more of a sprinter extending his talent as far as it would go. In the case of the 200 freestyle, that was four grueling laps against athletes who were primarily middle-distance performers. While Biondi knew the situation and fans in tune with the sport understood the task at hand, the casual follower saw the 200 freestyle as nothing more than a fragment of a seven-piece puzzle.

“I’d like to say something,” Biondi wrote for Sports Illustrated. “I’m doing this diary because I want to voice the other side of the Olympics. Everyone will be counting the medals and the times and the world records, and making this big judgment: Is Matt a success or a failure? It seems there’s so much emphasis put on that stuff and so little on how a person grows as he works his way toward the Olympics. To me, it’s the path getting there that counts, not the cheese at the end of the maze. Having said that, I have to admit that I’ve got a case of prerace jitters right now. I want to win. After all, I’ve trained my whole career for this.”

Armstrong, too, wanted nothing more than to win, and he might have been in a more advantageous position to get the job done. While Biondi and Gross were under enormous pressure, Armstrong was in a nothing-to-lose position. It was a scenario which paid tremendous dividends.

As the 200 freestyle started, Armstrong immediately put himself in contention. While Biondi had the lead at the 50-meter mark and Sweden’s Anders Holmertz was in front at the midway point, Armstrong was lurking – and his coach knew it. A nervous wreck in the stands, Lawrence paced and fidgeted throughout the race. With a rolled-up program in his hands, Lawrence repeatedly pounded his hand with the paperwork, or waved it in the air. Armstrong was where Lawrence wanted him to be.

During the third lap, Armstrong remained near the front of the pack, not losing touch with the leaders. As the athletes hit the 150-meter mark, Biondi had regained the lead and was one lap from collecting what would be the most difficult gold medal. Armstrong, though, produced a sterling final turn, one he called a “cracker,” and he was suddenly even with Biondi. A few strokes later, Armstrong was ahead. As the swimmers charged through the final 15 meters, Armstrong was clearly in front and ended up securing the gold medal with a world record time of 1:47.25. Holmertz managed to clip Biondi for the silver medal, with Biondi fending off Wojdat and Gross for the bronze medal.

“I finished third in a great 200 (freestyle) behind Holmertz and Duncan Armstrong of Australia, who broke Gross’’ world record with a 1:47.25,” Biondi wrote in his Sports Illustrated diary. “I was happy. I swam the way I wanted to and beat the guys I thought I needed to, Gross and Wojdat. Duncan just had a hell of a swim. I had the lead and he stayed right on my shoulder, right by the lane line. I think he should buy me a beer or something because he probably got a pretty good draft from me.

“The press always throws stuff at you. Like tonight I heard Bob Costas say on TV, ‘Matt Biondi isn’t going to win his seven gold medals. Today he had to settle for bronze.’ But I feel good about the bronze. My most difficult event is over, and I still have a chance to walk away with seven medals. I think that would be a hell of a performance.”

A hell of a performance is the only way to describe what Armstrong pulled off. He celebrated the greatest triumph of his career with a few fist pumps and extended his arms over his head. Australian fans in the stands reveled in the moment. They had just witnessed an improbable triumph, a victory which required Armstrong to produce a perfect race – physically and tactically.

As excited as Armstrong was with his career-defining moment, his celebration did not compare to the jubilation expressed by Lawrence. At the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, Lawrence had mentored teenager Jon Sieben to the gold medal in the 200 butterfly, a victory which happened to come at the hands of Gross. Sieben charged down the last lap of that race and set a world record to grab the gold medal. Four years later, it was Armstrong who stormed down the final lap, defeated Gross, among others, and set a world record. Both men raced out of Lane Six in the championship final, a fact not lost on Lawrence, who repeatedly screamed, “Lucky Lane Six!”

The longtime coach acted more like a caged animal than human as he enjoyed Armstrong’s moment briefly with spectators before losing control. He walked up and down the steps of the stands, seemingly unsure what to do. He yelled. He shook a metal barrier along a walkway in the stands, prompting South Korean police to make their way to Lawrence, who assured them he was all right. As Armstrong made his way to the podium for the medals ceremony, Lawrence called down to his pupil a number of times, “Hey, Dunc. I know you.” That repeated calling got the attention of Biondi, who leaned toward Armstrong during the medal ceremony and asked for an explanation. Armstrong wryly informed Biondi, who ultimately totaled five gold medals, a silver and a bronze, that the crazy man was his coach. Simply, Lawrence could not contain his joy.

Still, nothing matched the first interview Lawrence gave immediately after Armstrong’s win. Approached by Australian television journalist Stephen Quartermain, Lawrence was asked one of the most common questions following an historic moment, the old “how do you feel” query.

“Mate, we just beat three world-record holders,” an elated Lawrence yelled at Quartermain. “How do you think I feel? What do you think we come for, mate? Silver? Stuff the silver. We come for the gold.”

During his answer, and without any malicious intent, Lawrence slapped Quartermain on the side of the face a few times. It was supposed to be a love tap, one of those caught-in-the-moment situations. But Lawrence was so excited and on such an adrenaline rush that his slaps were hard enough to break Quartermain’s jaw.

Armstrong’s victory and Lawrence’s celebratory antics are highlighted on Bud Greenspan’s documentary, “Favorite Stories of Olympic Glory.” In the documentary by Greenspan, considered one of the foremost Olympic experts in history, Armstrong and Lawrence both cherish and laugh about their moment of glory. Quartermain, too, recalls the impromptu interview which resulted in his facial trauma. It is a sensational package which sums up the meaning of the Olympic spirit, hard work and the meaningful partnership between athlete and coach.

Later in the week, Armstrong added a silver medal in the 400 freestyle, an achievement which only added to his Olympic legacy. In the years since, he has been a motivational speaker, telling others about the importance of focus, belief and dedication.

“It was (a feeling) of more relief than anything else because we had trained four or five years for that moment and the race takes less than two minutes,” Armstrong said. “You go two minutes on one day every four years. That’s the clock. You do an enormous amount of training and then you get there and we had the perfect race. We had the great strategy and some good competition in the water. We had a world record. All my dreams and hopes in swimming came true in one touch of the wall. It was just wonderful. It was the perfect moment for us. It was the pinnacle of my swimming career.”

When Inky Made Her Mark: The 25th Anniversary of ISHOF Honoree Inge de Bruijn and Her Sydney Star Turn

by John Lohn – Editor-in-Chief

17 September 2025

It has been 25 years since the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. The Games Down Under also served as a redemptive locale for the Netherlands’ Inge de Bruijn, who used the stage to define herself as one of the sport’s legends.

Usually, an invitation to the Olympic Games would generate greater passion for the sport and a more-intense focus on the work that awaits. But not all athletes are wired the same, and as the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta approached, something was missing for Inge de Bruijn. Her training sessions lacked dedication. Sometimes, she would arrive late to practice. On occasion, she didn’t show up at all.

In the early 1990s, de Bruijn was a promising talent for the Netherlands. At the 1991 European Championships, de Bruijn earned a silver medal (100 butterfly) and bronze medal (50 freestyle) in Athens, efforts that complemented a relay bronze medal from the World Championships. The next year, she was eighth in the 50 freestyle and ninth in the 100 butterfly at the Olympics in Barcelona.

Although de Bruijn did not reach the podium in her Olympic debut, she did enough to suggest that big days were ahead in the sprint and fly. And with another European medal in the 50 free in 1993, the Dutchwoman seemed on pace. But on the road to the Centennial Olympics, de Bruijn lost the fire that is necessary to compete at the highest level.

It might have been the best thing for her career.

A BENEFICIAL BREAK

De Bruijn managed to qualify for the Atlanta Games, but her waning desire led coach Jacco Verhaeren to dismiss her from the National Team roster. It wasn’t an easy decision for Verhaeren to make, as de Bruijn was also his girlfriend. But it was the right call, and one that – eventually – provided a major boost to de Bruijn’s career.

“My break in 1996 was good for me,” de Bruijn said. “I didn’t swim for a year. There was no point going to the Olympics because I wouldn’t have enjoyed myself. I wasn’t having fun. After that, I put in the hard work, and I used my talent totally. I just got faster and faster.”

In 1997, de Bruijn shifted her training base to the United States, where she started to work with Paul Bergen. In Bergen, de Bruijn found a mentor who had elite credentials, specifically as the former coach to Tracy Caulkins, and was able to bring out the best in the Dutch lady. In short time, the fire that once burned returned.

By the 1998 World Championships, de Bruijn was a finalist in the 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly, and she earned three medals at the 1999 European Championships – gold in the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly, and silver in the 100 freestyle. A year shy of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, de Bruijn had established herself as a major force.

“What has really made a big difference to my fitness is the dryland training (Bergen) has introduced into my program,” de Bruijn said. “I do a lot of running, biking, rope climbing, jump ropes, medicine balls and stretching. Those kinds of things have really made me feel in good shape.”

TOP OF THE WORLD

The 2000 campaign can only be described as sensational for de Bruijn, whose march to Sydney included world records in all three of her prime events. Overall, de Bruijn broke six global standards en route to her second Olympiad, efforts that enabled her to compete with booming confidence. More were produced in Sydney.

Inge De Bruin at Sydney 2000

During her week in Australia, de Bruijn put together one of the most impressive performances by a female in Olympic history. She swept all three of her individual events and set a world record in each discipline. Her world records in the freestyle events arrived in the semifinals, with her global mark in the 100 butterfly punctuating her gold-medal effort. She added a silver medal as a member of the Netherlands’ 400 freestyle relay.

De Bruijn’s triple-gold performance was staggering on the whole, but a closer look at each of her triumphs revealed an even more exceptional effort. None of the Dutchwoman’s races were close, as she prevailed by .19 in the 50 free and .50 in the 100 free. In the 100 butterfly, de Bruijn blasted the competition, her world-record time of 56.61 more than a second clear of silver medalist Martina Moravcova of Slovenia. That standard endured for nearly nine years.

In becoming one of the stars of Sydney, De Bruijn had to defeat some of the top names in the sport. In the sprint-freestyle events, Sweden’s Therese Alshammar was the silver medalist in both distances, with American Dara Torres winning bronze in the 50 freestyle and sharing bronze with countrywoman Jenny Thompson in the 100 freestyle.

ACCUSATIONS ABOUND

As much as the week was a fairytale, it also included a dark chapter, as de Bruijn’s rise from good to great was suggested to be the result of performance-enhancing drug use. Although he did not identify de Bruijn by name, American coach Richard Quick clearly questioned whether the Dutch star was clean.

The finger-pointing and second-guessing have become the norm in the sport, especially when an athlete emerges from the shadows, or puts together a career surge. In making his assertions, Quick spoke with assurance.

“I absolutely do not think that this is a drug-free Olympic Games,” Quick said. “The (International Olympic Committee) should make it the No. 1 priority to make sure the competition is fair. I think it’s very sad. It’s a sad state of affairs when great, great performances in this sport have clouds over them.”

Quick’s accusations did not sit well with the Dutch contingent, especially Verhaeren, who again was coaching de Bruijn in a split-time setup with Bergen. Verhaeren declared the suspicions to be fueled by jealousy, and vehemently denied any of his athletes took part in illicit practices.

In addition to mentoring de Bruijn, Verhaeren guided Pieter van den Hoogenband to a trio of medals in freestyle events. Van den Hoogenband captured double gold in the 100 freestyle and 200 freestyle, and added a bronze medal in the 50 freestyle. His victory in the 200 free was one of the great performances of the competition, as the Dutchman upended Thorpe.

In the media, several comparisons were made between de Bruijn and Ireland’s Michelle Smith, who won three gold medals at the 1996 Olympics. In addition to their gold-medal count, both women enjoyed significant improvement at later points in their careers.

To her credit, de Bruijn took the accusations in stride. Throughout the year, as she began toppling world records, she heard whispers concerning her times. But instead of becoming enraged by the allegations, de Bruijn simply defended her training.

“I can understand the questions,” she said. “My progress is significant, but I’m not the only one. People have to accept it. People should know that I train like an animal. I had a really rough time with the accusations. I’m a very emotional person and it got to me, but I’ve decided not to read any more newspapers because I know all I was doing was working very hard. If you set world records, they want to chop your head off. They want to take it away from you. Right now, I’m above all those accusations.”

ADDITIONAL ACCOLADES

Sydney hardly marked the end of de Bruijn’s excellence. At the 2001 World Championships, she tripled again, this time winning the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle, along with the 50 butterfly. Two years later, she was dominant again at the World Champs, where she repeated in the 50 freestyle and 50 butterfly. Just as the 1999 European Championships set the stage for the 2000 Olympics, the 2003 World Champs positioned de Bruijn for her Olympic hurrah at the 2004 Games in Athens.

In Athens, de Bruijn collected a silver medal in the 100 freestyle and added bronze medals in the 100 butterfly and as a member of the Dutch 400 freestyle relay. But her best performance was saved for last, as she capped the last day of the meet with defense of her title in the 50 freestyle. Once again, de Bruijn was untouchable in the one-lap sprint, as her winning time of 24.58 was comfortably quicker than the 24.89 of silver medalist Malia Metella of France.

Almost immediately, de Bruijn let out a sigh of relief. Upon finding a rekindled desire for the water and the necessary training to reach the pinnacle of her sport, de Bruijn was rewarded with results to her liking. Not surprising, her farewell was deeply satisfying.

“This is an amazing feeling,” she said of her repeat. “It is my eighth (Olympic) medal and on the last day of the program, what a climax. I can’t find words to express it. The smile on my face will stay there for a couple more weeks. There has been so much pressure on me given the other results. Finally, I got the gold. I’m just going to enjoy the medal ceremony.”

AT PEACE

Initially, de Bruijn thought there was a chance she would compete at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, but as a 31-year-old, she was already the oldest individual Olympic swimming champion, a record that has since been surpassed. Ultimately, she didn’t see herself racing in the Olympics at 35 and decided to hang up her cap and goggles.

In 2009, de Bruijn was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame, her election a slam-dunk choice. Undoubtedly, she ranks as one of the greatest sprinters of all-time.

“My career is finished, and I reached the top,” de Bruijn said in assessing her exploits. “I am 33 years old now and a granny in swimming, while my body isn’t recovering so well like it did in the past. I will miss the excitement of hearing the Dutch national anthem on the podium but achieving that is not something that comes easy. I’ve worked hard for my achievements.”

Sydney 25th Anniversary: ISHOF Honoree and IOC President Kirsty Coventry Remembers 2000 as a Spark

by John Lohn – Editor-in-Chief

18 September 2025

Before ascending to her current role as President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry was an awestruck teenager at her first Olympic Games. At the 2000 Games in Sydney, which are celebrating their 25th anniversary, a 16-year-old Coventry advanced to the semifinals of the 100-meter backstroke and finished 18th in the 200 individual medley.

While Coventry was crowned an Olympic champion later in her career, that first experience served as a critical boost toward future success. Coventry, the first female President of the IOC, commented on her Olympic debut in a statement that was released earlier in the week.

“Sydney was more than just my first Olympic Games. It was the spark,” Coventry said. “I celebrated my 17th birthday on race day, met Muhammad Ali in the Olympic Village, and fell in love with lamingtons (an Australian cake). But more than anything, I felt the power of the Olympic spirit.”

Coventry followed her Olympic debut by competing at the next four editions of the Games – 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016. She captured back-to-back gold medals in the 200 backstroke at the 2004 and 2008 Games and also captured four silver medals and a bronze medal between Athens and Beijing. But that first appearance is remembered by Coventry as a key launching point.

“For me, Sydney laid the foundation for everything that followed – Athens, Beijing, London, Rio,” Coventry said. “And now, for me as IOC President, it helps guide how I think about Brisbane 2032. I know what’s possible when a country embraces the Olympic Games with heart and purpose. I know the impact they can have on a young athlete, on a community, on a generation. Sydney was the beginning. Brisbane will be a new chapter. And somewhere out there, a young girl is watching, dreaming and preparing to write her own story.”

ISHOF Recognizes and Honors its Specialty Award Winners for 2025

The final set of outstanding contributors for the International Swimming Hall of Fame’s (ISHOF) Annual Awards evening on Saturday, September 13, 2025, was its group to recieve the Specialty Awards, and like all the others, its recipients did not disappoint.

The list of winners included six awards, including the Every Child A Swimmer Award, presented to Barry Goldwater, Jr. and the ISHOF Lifetime Achievement Award, present to longtime Philadelphia Area Coach Richard W. “Dick” Shoulberg, who was represented by his daughter, Roberta “Bert” and Shoulberg’s longtime friend, University of Georgia and Olympic Coach, Philadelphia native, Jack Bauerle. (Both awards and individuals have been presented in detail in separate articles).

The remaining four award winners were quite accomplished in their own right.

 2025 Virginia Hunt Newman Award  

Virginia Hunt Newman has been called “The Mother of Infant Swimming.” She pioneered and focused worldwide attention on the non-forceful, non-traumatic method of teaching infants and preschool-age children to swim, earning great respect as an innovator in the field.

Dr. Ludmilla Rosengren (Sweden)

In 1989, Dr. Ludmilla Rosengren entered the world of infant swimming purely by chance, when her eldest daughter was two years old and began her swimming lessons. From the very start, she became actively involved and saw opportunities to develop the program. Shortly thereafter, alongside her medical studies, she founded her infant swimming school: Linnéas Simskola.

After completing her medical degree, Rosengren realised that she needed to hire instructors for the school to grow and maintain its quality.  In 1997, she took another major step by launching a training program for infant swimming instructors and founded the Swedish Babyswim Association (Svenska Babysimförbundet). The aim was to increase knowledge among parents and instructors and to improve the quality of infant swimming activities. In the 1990s, infant swimming was still largely focused on “dives” and the diving reflex, but Rosengren instead advocated for a more structured and safety-oriented approach, where clear guidelines and goals provided a professional framework. She was also one of the first to promote the idea that children should not learn the breaststroke as their first stroke, but rather freestyle as it is easier to use earlier.

Rosengren conducted a university study on reflexes and infant swimming (Goksor, E.; Rosengren, L.; Wennergren, G. (2002). “Bradycardic response during submersion in infant swimming”. Acta Paediatr. 91(3): 307–312.), which showed that although various reflexes exist, they are not essential for the actual act of infant swimming. Based on these findings, she developed a new technique in which the child learns to hold their breath before submerging underwater for the first time.

She has also emphasised how crucial it is for parents to be properly prepared and informed, given that the child’s sense of security is entirely dependent on how secure the parents feel. For this reason, she wrote Babysimboken (The Baby Swim Book), which is not only included in beginner courses at her swimming school but is also used by many others and serves as course material for instructor training programs. The book is also available in English.

Over the years, Rosengren has trained baby swimming instructors around the world and has been a frequent speaker at international conferences. In 2008, she experienced a great personal tragedy when her 14-year-old daughter Linnéa took her own life. This event came to shape Ludmilla’s continued commitment as a physician and CBT therapist, and she also founded the organization Suicide Zero in Sweden to combat mental illness and suicide.

Since its inception in 1993, Linnéas Simskola has operated in six different cities and 18 different pools. In 2016, Ludmilla built her own swimming facility in Uppsala, where all instruction is now centralised.

In recent years, she has also managed to combine her two areas of expertise by researching postpartum depression and baby swimming as a therapeutic method (BIDAP – Babyswim as an Intervention for Depressive Symptoms and Deficient Bonding during the Postpartum Period).

In summary, Rosengren’s drive to combine mental security with quality and scientific development has significantly contributed to elevating the status of infant swimming in Sweden and internationally. Her efforts to organize, structure, and train new instructors have had a lasting impact on the entire field.

Alongside her professional endeavours, she is also the mother of five children and grandmother to three grandchildren.

2025 Al Schoenfield Media Award

Al Schoenfield was editor and publisher of Swimming World and Swimming Technique magazines (1960-1977) and served on various international committees for swimming including the FINA Technical Swimming Committee (1980-1984).

Cynthia Potter (USA)

A four-time member of the USA Olympic Diving Team (1968, 1972, 1976, 1980) with 20 gold medals in world competition and a 28-time National Champion making her (still) the winningest U.S. female diver in the sport (1968-1977), gave Cynthia Potter a leg up in her next career.

Potter began her broadcasting career at ABC in 1983, her first show was covering the US National Championships for the ABC Wide World of Sports with Frank Gifford, in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, along with 1964 Olympic gold medalist Ken Sitzberger, covering the men. Potter was under exclusive contract for ABC and when Sitzberger suddenly died on New Years Eve, 1983, and they were suddenly without Potter’s male counterpart.

After interviewing several replacements and with the LA Games just around the corner, they asked Potter, “Can you comment on the men too?” She assured them there was no difference aside from the bathing suits! Since she was under exclusive contract with ABC, she continued with them through the 1988 Diving Trials, but NBC now had the right to the Olympic Games, so Potter had to sit this one out.

By 1992, her contract was no longer exclusive,  and she was back covering the Olympic Games. The Barcelona Games was the year NBC aired two different broadcasts of diving. One was the primetime event, and the other was called the “Triple Cast”, where she and Steve McFarland, broadcast every dive, every diver, in every event. Potter said it was so much fun, “one of the best events I’ve ever done!” With the exclusion of the 1988 Games, Cynthia has covered every Olympic Games from 1984 in Los Angeles through this last Games in Paris, 2024 and most of them working with last year’s 2024 Al Schoenfield recipient, Peter Diamond.

Potter has worked for just about every broadcasting company there is, including, Turner, ESPN, ABC, CBS, and NBC. She also began covering the NCAA’s starting in the 1980s too, and she just finished covering the 2025 NCAA’s in Federal Way, Washington.

She has covered World Championships all over the world, as well as World Cups, Grand Prix’s, and many other events and she has worked with many different people. Early in her career, she was lucky enough to work with leaders in the industry, even people from other sports. In addition to Frank Gifford, she worked with Jack Whitaker – Main play by play people who already knew the television business, when she did not ~ she was just starting and out and learning it, and they gave her help.

Potter says “Back then, they had a professional producer help anyone who needed it or wanted it before the 1984 Games.  She took advantage of it, of any help she could get, and in return she helped others with her sport. Potter said, “they would have meetings and brainstorm ideas ~ to help the audience appreciate diving more. There were a lot of discussions on how to help the spectator understand diving, how to show off diving, how it works, what the divers are doing, what the judges are looking for…..”  “We had split screen tv to be able to pinpoint things in dives and stop the diver in the middle of a dive. It was all ways to help the viewer. We were proud to learn that diving got some the highest ratings during the Olympics, sometimes even second only to the opening ceremonies”. NBC was interested in hearing from what Cynthia had to say, her ideas on how to improve diving for the viewer. She always cared about making it better for the viewer.

Potter even took the international judges certification training, not just to become an international judge but to be able to learn how these judges would critique a dive so she could honestly and thoughtfully discuss it with her audience. She continues to take this certification course every time it became available.

Prior to covering events, like the Olympic Games, Potter would map out the field. She loves numbers. She would take the athletes, the dives and scores, what she thought they needed to win and map it all out for herself, so she had an idea of what was needed to win the Games or the event she was covering, so she could talk about it. And she loved doing it, she loves her sport, and most importantly her audience.

2025 Buck Dawson Author’s Award

The Award is presented to the author of an aquatics- related book for which the book’s content has had a profound educational or entertaining impact on the aquatic disciplines or population in general.

Anita Mitchell (USA)

We were proud to present this year’s Buck Dawson Author’s Award to a local author, someone who swims at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center.  The author, Anita Mitchell, who wrote the book, and the subject that she wrote about, Abbas Karimi, both swim right here in Fort Lauderdale, at our very own Swim Fort Lauderdale Masters.   The book: “God Took My Arms, But He Gave Me THIS GIFT” is a wonderfully moving story and we are especially proud that they are both from our community. 

Anita Mitchell met Abbas Karimi during swim practice… They are both members of Swim Fort Lauderdale Masters at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center. Mitchell has been a masters fitness swimmer that dabbles in competition since 2004 and Karimi is a world class athlete who competed in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games and won two silver medals in the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. 

They became fast friends while Mitchell wrote his story. For 26 years, Mitchell worked at WSVN-7 as a field producer/assignment editor/writer.  Abbas’  story became a blog piece in her retirement project, “Broward People,”  which then became the book, “God took my arms but he gave me THIS GIFT” and is now being produced into a documentary.  

Since 2017 Mitchell has served on the Board  of Directors of the Broward County Sports Hall of Fame and currently runs the writers group Write Brains for the city of Fort Lauderdale Club 55 members. Mitchell has a BA in Communications from Michigan State University and was part of the Journalism master’s program at Florida International University.   Recently she was awarded a grant by the South Florida Writers Association to complete her next project, “Broward People”.        

The Book: God Took My Arms but He Gave Me THIS GIFTby Anita Mitchell

Is the unlikely story of how an armless Afghan boy became a world champion swimmer.The road to the Olympics and Paralympics comes from unlikely places and often reveals the best of humanity.  Abbas’ journey from Kabul, Afghanistan to Turkish refugee camps to the Tokyo and Paris Paralympic Games has been profiled in the New York Times, CNN and News Nation. He has been interviewed by Angelina Jolie and Khaled Hosseini and has one of the most inspiring stories written.

2025 John K. Williams, Jr. International Adapted Aquatics Award 

Honors an individual who has made significant and substantial contributions to the field of adaptive aquatics (aquatics for persons with disabilities) as a participant, athlete, teacher, instructor, coach, organizer, administrator or media representative.

Terri Mitchell (USA)

Terri Mitchell is a Licensed Physical Therapist Assistant (partially retired) with over 30 years as an Aquatic Specialist. Terri specializes in therapy and rehabilitation for all disabilities including neurological and orthopedic injuries and provides techniques for improved functional outcomes to improve the quality of daily life.  She helped host training workshops for aquatic therapy professionals in the proper use of aquatic techniques to assist patients in correct use of the water for safe recovery. Terri created a Pain Management program and participated in a SCUBA program for persons with Spinal Cord Injuries. She finished her PTA career in the out-patient setting working in the pool with orthopedic and neurologically involved patients.   She has written and published articles and taught workshops focused on Bridging the Gap to manage the transition from rehabilitation to fitness and wellness. 

A major contribution for the proper use of aquatics was co-authoring the development of a program for the United States Marine Corp at their request.  The Marines faced the challenge of over 15,000 injuries in six months from combat injuries and overtraining injuries. Overtraining was identified as the primary cause of over 50% of the injured Marines. The solution was development of the Aquatic Maximum Program – Intensity Training (AMPIT). This program substituted a running session in the pool with the same intensity as on land and kept Marines eligible for deployment and everyday assignments. Terri was quick to identify the problem.  Her expertise in Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) provided the knowledge to promote the needed additional functional movement skills to assist in the reduction of injuries. The AMP IT program provided a curriculum of deep-water intervals, strengthening with drag resistance equipment, and a post stretching program.

A Training Specialist of 25 years for the Aquatic Exercise Association (AEA), Terri trained and “AEA Certified” hundreds of aquatic fitness professional, as well as provided specialized workshops that offered continuing education credits for attendees.  During this time, she was also a senior instructor for the Aquatic Therapy and Rehab Institute (ATRI), teaching various aquatic therapy techniques to specialists at major training events.

Terri has taught and demonstrated aquatic specialty skills to therapists and aquatic professionals across the US and internationally including Canada, Italy, Japan, England, Spain, South Korea, Mexico and Australia.

Terri is adept at specialty aquatic programs including Ai Chi, AquaStretch, PNF, PiYoChi, Orthopedic Aquatics, Unpredictable Command Technique, Intervals, Strength Training and more.  She co-authored a manual and video on bringing PNF (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation) to the Pool, a technique for treating patients with neurological deficits.

Terri was an Aquatic Specialist at the University of Texas at Austin for 15 years, where she taught Water Exercise, Triathlon Training and Swim Conditioning to college students.

She continues to teach aquatic fitness classes locally and share her ideas and experience with adults of all ages and abilities including Arthritis, Parkinson’s, Knee and Hip Replacements, Back pain and more.   

Terri has served her clients and class participants by sharing her knowledge, enthusiasm and energy to positively impact countless lives.  She loves the water and in her free time, she can be found at the pool, on a trail, at the pickleball court, on her bicycle, or enjoying her family and friends

About ISHOF

The International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) museum opened its doors to the public in December of 1968 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. That same year, the Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA) – the governing body for Olympic aquatic sports – designated the ISHOF museum as the “Official Repository for Aquatic History”.   Today, ISHOF’s vision is to be the global focal point for recording and sharing the history of aquatics, promoting swimming as an essential life-skill, developing educational programs and working toward the dream of making every child a swimmer..   

#ISHOF #SpecialAwards #AquaCal #EveryChildASwimmer #WorldAquatics #USASwimming #CityofFortLauderdale #BuckDawsonAuthorsAward #AlSchoenfieldMediaAward #VirginiaHuntNewmanAward #BabySwimming #Paralympics #Babysimboken #GodTookMyArmsButHeGaveMeThisGift #ISHOFAquaticAwards #Sweden #AdaptiveAquatics #Books #USADiving

The ISHOF Aquatic Awards presented by AquaCal show the very best our sports have to offer

On Saturday evening, September 13, 2025, the International Swimming Hall of Fame, along with its wonderful title sponsor, AquaCal, celebrated its annual Aquatic Awards representing six disciplines, with seven remarkable individuals from four different countries around the globe, The USA, Brazil, Great Britain and Canada.

The ISHOF Aquatic Awards are a annual event that celebrate the unsung heroes who make competitive and recreational aquatics possible.  These are the people who save lives, promote water safety and further aquatic education around the world.  Their devotion to our little corner of the world, their tireless dedication and hours of volunteerism, are done for nothing other than the good of our sports and making our world a little better and safer place. We were proud to welcome and recognize these important individuals at the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

Craig Hunter (Great Britain) – Competitive Swimming

Craig Hunter was taught to swim by his two elder brothers during a family holiday in the mid-1960s.  His maternal grandmother was a keen swimmer and swam with ISHOF Inductee Jack Hatfield in Middlesbrough, England.

Hunter soon joined the local swimming club where he started his competitive career but only in the summer months.  His first medal was won in the boys under 14 years 220yds butterfly at the local championships, when he was just 10 years old. 

Some years later when competing in an inter-club competition Hunter was placed second in a race, he and others felt he had clearly won.  Complaining to the referee, she told him he was not important in the decision-making process, something he was not happy about!  He was encouraged by his father to “get involved”.  In 1981 he qualified as a judge, starter and timekeeper, and by 1984 was the youngest nationally qualified referee in Great Britain.

Having gained committee experience in his swimming club, he joined the executive committee of his local county association where he soon became the swimming secretary and team manager.

A diagnosis of testicular cancer in 1986 made Hunter more determined to get involved and make a difference in swimming, sports management and leadership.

In 1989 he undertook his first international team management role (as GB team manager) at the FINA Swimming World Cup, the team featured Olympic medallists and swimmers older than he was!  This was the start of his British team management career which spanned 18 years becoming the first professional manager taking teams to Olympic Games in 2000 and 2004 as well as numerous World and European Championships.   During this time, he was also the secretary of the technical swimming committee for Great Britain.

In 2007 he joined the Board of British Swimming as an independent director, a role he held until 2017.  He was responsible for leading the review of the British swimming team’s disappointing performance at the London 2012 Olympic Games, working with Hall of Fame coach Bob Bowman.

Recognising his organisational and leadership skills, the British Olympic Association appointed Hunter as the programme director of Britain’s Olympic Ambition 2012 preparing athletes and coaches from all sports for the London 2012 Olympic Games.  Following the successful roll-out of the programme in Beijing 2008, he was asked to take on the role of Chef de Mission of the England team for the 2010 Commonwealth Games with a team of 500 athletes and support staff.  This proved to be one of the most challenging sporting events ever held and at the same time, truly memorable.

Hunter was appointed the Chef de Mission of the British Paralympic team for London 2012.  Leading Britain’s largest-ever Paralympic team, he introduced Olympic ideals and standards into Paralympic sport with the team winning 120 medals, finishing third in the medal table.

During this time, he had joined the European Aquatics (formerly LEN) technical swimming committee as well as re-joining the FINA swimming referees list which saw him regularly refereeing championships in Europe and officiating on the world stage. He became the Vice Chairman in 2016 and became Chairperson in 2020, a role he continues to hold.

Following his role as an international technical official at the Rio 2016 Games, Hunter was appointed to the World Aquatics (formerly FINA) technical swimming committee as a member in 2017.  He was a referee at the Tokyo 2020 Games, following which he became Vice Chair of the TSC.  In 2022, following the retirement of Carol Zaleski, he became the TSC chairperson, a role he currently holds.   

He is passionate about fairness for athletes, encouraging the wider use of video judging at elite swimming competitions, as well as encouraging and mentoring swimming officials to be the very best.

Hunter has been with his supportive and understanding partner Nick for over 35 years enjoying life in both London and skiing in the French Alps. 

Ana Maria Lobo (BRA) – Artistic Swimming

The dream of becoming an artist and dancer began in Ana Maria Lobo’s childhood, as music and dance had always been a part of her life. During vacations at her grandmother’s house in the countryside of Minas Gerais, Brazil, she had the freedom to explore her artistic talents and express herself through dance and singing.  

Lobo’s sporting journey began in swimming, at Fluminense Football Club, in Rio de Janeiro, as a treatment for asthma. At the age of 15, she witnessed an event that would change her destiny: a pianist played while an athlete performed graceful movements in the pool. In that moment, Ana Maria discovered her vocation for what is now known as Artistic Swimming.

As an athlete, Lobo won a bronze medal at the 1963 Pan American Games, marking the first international participation of a Brazilian team in synchronized swimming. More than a personal achievement, this journey allowed her to introduce the sport to Brazil, coaching top-level teams at Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, Clube Paineiras do Morumby.  She would eventually serve as the first coach of the Brazilian national team. Her knowledge and dedication to the sport was so prolific, she was invited by the Brazilian Aquatic Federation to restructure Artistic Swimming in her country.  Her coaching credentials extend back to 1964 and even today Lobo is coaching a Masters Artistic Swimming team at Clube de Regatas do Flamengo.

Later, Lobo became a judge for the International Swimming Federation, officiating at the Pan American Games (1989-2005), CONSANAT- Confederación Sudamericana de Natación (1983-2005), FINA/World Aquatics (1991-2005), five editions of the Olympic Games, as well as numerous world and South American championships.

Lobo was a member of the Artistic Swimming Technical Committee at CONSANAT(1991-1998) and was also a member of the World Aquatics Artistic Swimming Technical Committee (1992-1996).

This passion for the sport also influenced her family, with Lobo’s daughter and granddaughter, Cristiana and Maria Clara Lobo, becoming Olympic athletes.

Throughout Ana Maria Lobo’s career as a coach and judge, she has consistently pursued innovation and excellence, and has come to understand the processes, protocols, and hierarchies that govern the sport both in Brazil and internationally, hoping to contribute to the growth and development of Artistic Swimming in the country and around the world.

Bret Beecher Bernard (USA) – Water Polo

Bret B. Bernard and his twin sister, learned to swim via the American Red Cross in Newport Beach, California, where they grew up.  More interested in surfing, sailing and just having fun, Bret did not compete in swimming until his freshman high school year, when something called water polo caught his attention.

As a player Bernard was a multi-time USA Water Polo, AAU, NCAA and High-School All-American, on a Championship team at all levels.  As captain of Corona del Mar high school, it was the only team to ever to win three aquatics (water polo, swimming relays and swimming) championships in the same academic year, his senior year.  In college, while at the University of California at Irvine, his water polo team won one NCAA Championship and placed second three times. Bernard played for the Men’s USA National Team for nearly a decade and was an alternate to the 1972 Olympic Games, retiring in 1980 with the boycott of the Moscow Games.  

Bernard has been called upon to whistle every major water polo championship in existence, from three editions of the Olympic Games to World Championships, World Cups, to Junior Worlds, and everything in between.  Domestically, Bernard has worn the whites for every conceivable USA Water Polo Championship, including Junior Olympics and National Championships.  He also officiated numerous collegiate men’s and women’s championships, including an incredible 14 straight Men’s NCAA Championship (final) games and 10 straight for the women. 

He has also made great contributions to the organizational advancements of USWP serving and chairing a variety of committees, including finance, law and legislation, and national referees amongst others.  Bernard served on USA Water Polo’s Executive Committee for 15 years,  served as its Treasurer from 1988-90, Vice-President from 1990-96 and President from 1996-2001.  He continues to serve USWP as a long-standing member of its Hall of Fame Committee and special advisor.  He has served on the USOC Board of Directors for 14 years, its Finance Committee for six years, and its restructuring committee. 

Internationally Bernard was the first and only non-European President of the International Water Polo Referees Association  and served for six years as its Vice-President and on its Executive Board for ten years.  He also served on the FINA Technical Water Polo Committee for five years.

Bernard was the first director of water polo officials for the NCAA, formulating and serving in that position for five years. Since he has continued to serve water polo as a member of the USWP Technical Committee as well as assisting every men’s and women’s collegiate water polo conference as a TC member and referee’s evaluator for over the last 18 years.

Bernard has been inducted into numerous Halls of Fame, including USA Water Polo, as well as his high school and college, and was honored many years ago with the Bill Smith Award. In recognition of his many contributions to Water Polo officiating, USWP’s highest award (for outstanding refereeing at elite competition levels) was named in honor of him.

Bernard had spent the last two decades in service to non-aquatic endeavors focusing on his two sons, Tanner and Hunter, who he calls “his greatest achievements” and what they have accomplished, the memories they have created and who they have become ~ it’s what he is most proud of.

Mick and Sue Nelson (USA)– Recreational Swimming

In 1972, Sue and her husband, Mick Nelson, embarked on a remarkable journey by founding their own swim club and constructing an indoor facility in Danville, Illinois. Their vision expanded in 1974 with the creation of Nelson’s Swim Supply, a thriving retail and wholesale business specializing in pool, spa, and aquatic equipment.

By 1982, they took another bold step by establishing NSS Inc., which provided design, construction, and consulting services to the aquatic industry.  In 1994, they achieved a groundbreaking milestone by launching WaterWay Therapy Inc., one of the nation’s first privately owned and Medicare-approved outpatient aquatic physical therapy centers. Theircommitment to wellness continued in 2001, with the Poolside Health & Wellness Center. This vibrant hub housed the USA Swim Club, WaterWay Therapy, and the Swim America learn-to-swim program, serving as a vital community health and wellness center.

In 2004, USA Swimming hired the Nelsons to create a facilities department to assist their membership with building new aquatic centers, renovating existing pools, and program facilities to become financially sustainable. They moved to Colorado Springs in June 2004, and Sue began working as a Programming Specialist providing resources and information for members, and Mick, became the Club Facilities Development Director,  There, they created the concept of “The 4 Pillars of a Sustainable Aquatic Facility.  In 2005, they created the Build A Pool Conference to help others figure out “what they needed to know” about building and operating an aquatic facility.

In 2020, Mick and Sue retired from USA Swimming and formed Total Aquatic Programming LLC. Recognized in Aquatics International’s “Top Professionals Issue “ 2022 and they both are CMAHC Ambassadors.  

An important role Mick Nelson has also worked on to benefit all of us in aquatics, is collecting drowning data from across the country, as part of a longstanding partnership with the National Drowning Prevention Alliance.  Mick realized, while attending the NDPA conventions, just how important drowning statistics were, and that the only place that had the statistics was the CDC. But unfortunately, at the time of release, the data was already two years old. The process of updating this date involves approximately 1,100 man-hours per year plus the cost for programs and support. New drowning statistics are posted at the beginning of every month, and all data is housed online and is accessible 24/7. Sue says  “It’s also a tool for aquatic programming that we use to show the value of providing adult swim lessons,” who noted that adults account for at least 63% of drowning victims. “We can take these statistics to the community to show them that it’s worth spending tax dollars and bonds on supporting aquatics facilities.”

Mick and Sue Nelson have not only influenced the sustainable development of hundreds of pool projects, but their “Save-A-Pool” efforts have kept aquatic facilities in danger of closing viable – increasing the opportunity for recreation swimming across the United States.  They provide expert advice to anyone from individuals to working with municipalities, private businesses and even major public-private projects. The scope of projects they have been involved in are unmatched by anyone in the industry.

The Nelsons have mentored so many in the industry, have held volunteer leadership positions on numerous boards and advisory councils, presented at dozens of aquatic industry conferences and consistently nominated others for awards.  Their knowledge, wisdom and guidance are immeasurable.  They have continually given back to the aquatics community, and now we thank them.

Lisa Zarda (USA) –Aquatic Safety

Lisa Zarda is a passionate advocate for water safety and a transformative leader in the learn-to-swim industry.  Since 2017, Zarda has served as Executive Director of the United States Swim School Association (USSSA)  and during that time, she has made significant progress in promoting drowning prevention, raising awareness, and advancing the profession of swim education across the country.

Under Zarda’s leadership, USSSA has experienced remarkable growth, but her impact goes far beyond numbers. She has been at the forefront of building national partnerships that elevate the visibility and credibility of swim schools as essential community resources. Her efforts led to the USSSA member directory being featured on high-profile platforms such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and WebMD—amplifying the reach of vital water safety information to families nationwide.

A champion advocate, Zarda implemented a government relations strategy that united volunteers and lobbyists to support legislative efforts in water safety education. One of her most meaningful accomplishments was working with members of the New York Water Safety Coalition to successfully pass a first-of-its-kind bill to educate new parents on water safety, marking a critical step toward reducing childhood drowning rates.

Zarda, together with numerous volunteers, led the development and launch of a pioneering swim instructor certification program, raising the bar for teaching standards and ensuring instructors are equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to create safer learning environments. She has overseen the delivery of impactful conferences, workshops, and virtual training programs to support continued education and professional development for swim school owners and instructors alike.

She built a professional, transparent, and accountable organizational culture to optimize operations and better serve members. Along with a strong team of board members, this has enabled the Association to remain agile, member-focused, and highly effective—even while operating virtually.

Zarda’s dedication to water safety extends beyond her role at USSSA. She has contributed to national coalitions such as the Aquatics Coalition and Water Safety USA, collaborating with peer organizations to come together on drowning prevention and aquatic education issues. In 2021, she was honored with the Guiding Light Award from USSSA, recognizing her exceptional leadership and lasting contributions to the industry.

She holds a Certified Association Executive (CAE) designation and is a Certified Nonprofit Accounting Professional (CNAP). She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Exercise & Sports Science from Carthage College with an emphasis in Recreation Management and a minor in Business Administration.

Zarda has served in volunteer leadership roles with the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) and the Arizona Society of Association Executives (AzSAE), and completed a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace certificate from the University of South Florida.

Lisa lives with her husband and two children in Cave Creek, Arizona. A dive mom herself, she is deeply committed to the life-saving importance of swim education— professionally and personally.

Mitch Geller (CAN) – Competitive Diving 

Mitch Geller has been a transformative figure in the world of diving, both in Canada and on the global stage, for over four decades. Renowned for his visionary leadership, coaching excellence, and innovative contributions to the sport, Mitch’s career has shaped the trajectory of Canadian diving and left a legacy internationally.

From 1998 to December 2024, Mitch served as the Chief Technical Officer for Diving Canada, overseeing the design and execution of high-performance programs that elevated Canadian divers to elite global status. Under his guidance, Canada achieved an unprecedented run of podium finishes at seven consecutive Olympic Games, cementing the nation’s reputation as a diving powerhouse.

Mitch’s influence extends beyond borders. Since 2017, he has served on World Aquatics’ Technical High Diving Committee and chaired the High Diving Development Subcommittee, playing a key role in shaping the evolution and global standards of high diving. He was also instrumental in creating an international judging analysis system, later adopted by FINA, now World Aquatics, that remains a cornerstone for performance feedback and judge development today.

In 2024, Mitch transitioned into a new leadership role as Director of Special Projects at Duraflex International. Here, he continues to drive innovation in diving technology, focusing on expanding product lines and developing state-of-the-art training equipment to support the next generation of athletes.

Geller’s roots in the sport trace back to his time as a competitive diver. He was a member of the Canadian National Team from 1978 to 1983 and held the title of Canadian National 3-meter Champion. His career included professional high diving performances around the world, and he set a Canadian high diving record with a reverse double somersault from a height of 38 meters.

As a coach from 1986 to 1997, Mitch produced numerous national champions and international medalists. From 1986 to 1993, he led the Thunder Bay Diving Club, transforming it into the top program in Canada and developing half the national team from a remote Ontario town. In 1993, he was recruited to Victoria, British Columbia, to manage the diving events for the 1994 Commonwealth Games and to establish the Pacific Coast Diving Club, Canada’s first privately operated diving club, which quickly rose to national prominence.

Geller also brought diving to the public as a color commentator for CBC, covering international competitions including the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. As competition manager for the 2005 FINA World Championships in Montreal, he introduced groundbreaking presentation styles that continue to shape the sport’s public appeal.

With a career defined by excellence, innovation, and impact, Mitch Geller remains a driving force in diving, continually pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the sport.

AquaCal® has been the leading swimming pool heat pump manufacturer since 1981, offering a full range of units to meet any heating need. AquaCal® can maintain anything from small above ground pools up to very large commercial facilities. (Currently heating and chilling the City of Fort Lauderdale’s Aquatic Center pools) The chillers, as well as the heat and cool units, can be used to create cold plunge pools for therapy too. Whatever your pool heating/cooling needs, AquaCal® can help!

#ISHOF #AquaCal #EveryChildASwimmer #ISHOFAquaticAwards #WorldAquatics #GreatBritainSwimming #Brazil #ArtisticSwimming #USAWaterPolo #USSSA #DivingCanada #Duraflex #SaveAPool #NDPA #TotalProgramming #USASwimming

ISHOF Hosts the Masters International Honoree Induction Ceremony in Fort Lauderdale

This past Saturday evening, September 13th, 2025, the International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) hosted the Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame Honoree Induction Ceremony at the Sonesta Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort, overlooking our beautiful stretch of beaches.

MISHOF’s Class of Honorees included a Class of eight Masters Honorees from around the globe, but only three were able to be present, they included: swimmers, Charlotte Davis (USA) and Diann Uustal (USA), and water polo player, Gary Payne (AUS) . We have posted their Honoree videos below.

Charlotte Davis 2024 Masters Swimmer

Charlotte Davis was inducted into ISHOF in 2014 as an Honor Coach for her beloved synchronized swimming.  With older sisters in the sport, she began learning moves and at eight joined a synchronized swimming team, with great success. She performed with the 1970 Santa Clara Aquamaids, who won the highest level of competition that synchro offered. She then formed her own synchro team, growing as a coach, and in 1984 was named the first USA Olympic synchronized swimming coach. Her athletes, Tracy Ruiz and Candy Costie,  won solo and duet gold at the 1984 Olympics. Charlotte was named the National Team Coach and served until 2000, coaching and managing at four more Olympic Games.  

With her proximity to the pool, she began competitive swimming in 1987. With a first place in her first local competition, she was hooked. Her first National Championships in 1994 and in 2000 became the first Masters swimmer over 50 to break a minute in the 100 free.Despite her successes, Charlotte cites her diagnoses of breast cancer in April, 2015 as her greatest challenge.  After two surgeries she resumed training during her five weeks of radiation therapy.  She was able to compete two months later at Long Course Nationals in August where she set four USMS national records and one FINA/World Aquatic record.

Charlotte reflects. I can’t really say that swimming saved my life, but my life has been full because of swimming.  After all, I met my husband, a Masters swimmer, in the pool!!   

Charlotte Davis Video:https://vimeo.com/1116870784/5a5fcd34bf

Diann Uustal (USA) 2024 Masters Swimmer

From the time her grandmother introduced Diann to swimming as a child with the admonition, ‘When you get tired you gotta keep kicking,” ’she’s been a lifelong swimmer. As evidenced by her 43 FINA/World Masters records, that’s exactly what she’s done.A late comer to Masters, beginning with the point system, Diann began her career in the 60+ age group. (She actually swam at the US Masters Nationals in 1979 in Fort Lauderdale in her 30’s). Through four age groups she has consistently been a top performer. She swims five hard days a week and one easy day for joy and for stroke perfection. She’s always thinking in the water, focused her plan while enjoying the execution.

She has been selected as Swimming World Magazine, “World Masters Swimmers of the Year” multiple times and has set 140 USMS national records.  She’s competed in Canadian Masters Swimming Championships, USMS Nationals, YMCA Nationals and The FINA/World Masters Swimming Championships.

Watch her video for her encouraging story of this overcomer!

Diann Uustal Video:https://vimeo.com/1116871884/b2eda37397

Gary Payne (AUS) 2024 Master Water Polo Player

Gary has been the driving force of Masters water polo in Australia for many years, from the first Australian Masters in Perth in 2003 right through to the current day where health concerns have seen him slow down. He has toured the world following his favorite sport and it was refereeing where he excelled, gaining FINA international standard and participating as both an athlete and a referee at numerous FINA Masters.

His involvement playing and refereeing at every level within Australia and mentorship and assessing abilities have seen a host of new officials flow through his hands. He was instrumental in nurturing Masters tournaments in Asia before Covid curtailed those events. His leadership and drive have seen numerous Masters teams from Western Australia become involved in FINA events and the Perth competition is the paramount Masters competition in the country. He has been awarded two Life Memberships in Western Australian among his many accolades and he has been heavily involved in promoting water polo in regional Australia with numerous country national championships. He was involved in the early Australian Masters championships in the 1980 & 90s, winning medals, as well as gold in 2015. His administration skills encompass club, state and national appointments, including the multi-sport Arafura Games (Darwin) between 1997-2005. He was on the organizing committee of the Thai Pacific Masters 2014-18 and the organizing committee of the Princess Chulabhorn Cup in Bangkok, 2016-18. A top-level referee for 36 years, Gary was a vital cog in National League, National Championships, State and club events around Australia. Gary’s immense value to Masters water polo in Australia and Asia is incalculable.

Gary Payne Video:https://vimeo.com/1116872279/40032da93b

Tony Goodwin (AUS) 2024 Masters Swimmer

Unfortunately, the other Masters Honorees could not be with us. We met up with Tony Goodwin, Masters Swimmer (AUS) in Singapore and presented him with his award, read about it here: https://ishof.org/2024-mishof-masters-swimmer-tony-goodwin-swims-at-masters-worlds-and-receives-his-honoree-induction-award-in-singapore/

Other Honorees inducted included:

Hiroshi Matsumoto (JPN) 2024 Masters Swimmer

Hiroshi Matsumoto, is a Masters swimmer from the Minami Alps, in Japan, about 100 miles from Tokyo.  He began swimming as a child in a local lake, swimming through his school years and recreationally as an adult until he joined a Masters program, at age 59. Early in his 60’s, he began setting records. In 2002, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer which required his prostate gland removed.  A week after surgery he was swimming.  “I feel alive when I swim!” Matsumoto has broken 28 FINA Masters World Records and has accumulated 933 World Points.  He has competed in six Masters age groups beginning with the 60-64 and is currently in the 85-89 age group, He has been in the Top Ten 27 years and swims the freestyle and fly.

Joyce Corner* (CAN) Masters Artistic/Synchronized Swimmer:

In 1969, Joyce Corner responded to an ad looking for coaches for a new synchronized swimming program that was beginning in Mississauga. After she was hired, she was given just one lane for the program while also sharing the pool with a Red Cross Leader’s Course. Over the years, enthusiasm for the group grew. She found another pool with more space and started a new club, the New Wave Synchro Masters where she was both coach and swimmer.

Joyce has been involved in synchronized swimming in many different areas. She has been on the Canadian synchro committee for countless years and represented Canada in Masters FINA meets when present. She was the Canadian representative to the FINA Masters committee which helped develop the requirements when FINA transitioned from a figure competition to a technical program.

She was a FINA rated “A” international judge and she has judged Pan Am Games 1983; 1987, World Aquatics Championships 1982; 1986, Seoul Olympic Games 1988 as well as many other events in Canada and around the world. She has been honored with many awards: Civic Sports Award 1977, ‘84, ‘89; Peterborough Sports Woman of the Year 1981, Ontario Special Achievement Award, CASSA Board of Directors Honor Award, Ontario ASSA Recognition for Outstanding Volunteer Service Award, and Masters Delegate to the World Championships in Australia in 1981. JOyce Corner passed away in 2022.

Both Matsumoto and the family of Joyce Corner have expressed interested in attending next year’s Masters Induction Ceremony.

We also inducted Masters Contributor,  Barbara McNamee (USA) for her decades of contributions in Artistic Swimming,

Barbara Mcnamee (USA) – Masters Artistic Swimming Contributor

Barbara McNamee has been involved with Masters artistic (synchronized) swimming since its inception in the United States. She competed in all the early U.S. Masters National Championships, beginning with the first test meet in 1975 and continuing until 1982, when she retired as a Masters swimmer after winning all three events she entered. In 1984, Barbara won the May McEwan Award, a U.S. award is given annually to someone who has made outstanding contributions to and best exemplifies the spirit of Masters synchro.  To this day, Barbara has continued to attend almost all U.S. Masters meets, as a judge, official or coach and sometimes all three at once. She has been one of the most tireless supporters of the Masters synchro program in the U.S. and served for many years on the Masters committee. She has served as an official at every FINA World Masters since 2004, including three times as Chief Referee and once as Chief Recorder. She has served as the rules liaison for many years.  

She has now served for over 40 years with synchro in administrative duties for national and local associations. She has served as a board member for United States Synchronized Swimming, the AAU, and the USOC.  She is a national and internationally rated judge and was the U.S. judge for the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. As a coach for over twenty years, she developed athletes from novice to national team levels.  In 1988, she was elected as president of USSS and served until 1992, followed by vice president Olympic/International from 1992-1997. In 1996, she was the assistant competition manager for synchro at the Olympic Games in Atlanta.  

Rolf Sperling (GER) 2024 Masters Diver

Born in 1940, Dr. Rolf Sperling was a member of three Olympic Teams for Germany. He competed in the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome (5th on Platform), 1964 in Tokyo, (7th on Platform, 14th on 3M), and in Mexico City, in the 1968 Games.

He has competed in nine Fina Masters World Championships, and has won 22 medals, 14 gold, seven silver, and one bronze. Rolf has set eight World Records. His crowning Masters achievements came 14 years apart in the FINA World Masters in 1990 in Brazil and 2004 in Italy, where he won all three events and recorded World Records in each.

86, Seoul Olympic Games 1988 as well as many other events in Canada and around the world. She has been honored with many awards: Civic Sports Award 1977, ‘84, ‘89; Peterborough Sports Woman of the Year 1981, Ontario Special Achievement Award, CASSA Board of Directors Honor Award, Ontario ASSA Recognition for Outstanding Volunteer Service Award, and Masters Delegate to the World Championships in Australia in 1981.

#ISHOF #MISHOF #AquaCal #WorldAquatics #Swimming #Diving #Waterpolo #ArtisticSwimming #MastersSwimming #CityofFortLauderdale #EveryChildASwimmer #Australia #Japan #Germany #USMS #AustraliaWaterpolo #Masters #USASwimming

ISHOF is Calling for nominations for the Class of 2026, Athletes, Coaches, Contributors, and Pioneers

It is that time of year again, when we ask for nominations from all disciplines and all countries.  Each individual should have achieved tremendous success in the aquatic discipline(s) and/or made a significant impact on the sport of aquatics through their lifelong efforts.  Nominations must be submitted along with supporting materials by December 1, 2025 to be considered for the Class of 2026. Once a nomination is submitted and accepted by ISHOF, it remains on the ballot for ten years.

You may submit your nomination online by visiting: 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdbWjNJq9cc0r3Jj5RePDhMmc8ToA1HX9fyjqFnNupU2FIAjQ/viewform

Generally, athletes shall not be chosen unless retired from international competition at least four years or at least one Olympic quadrennial.  “Athletes” refers to swimmers, open water swimmers (World Aquatics), divers, water polo players, artistic (synchronized) swimmers and paralympians.

A coach must have a significant international record and have been coaching at least 25 years.

A contributor must have been in aquatics at least 20 years and have had a significant international impact. Athletic achievement should NOT be considered, contributions are to the overall improvement or development of “international” sport through leadership, journalism, invention or other area of great, outstanding impact

Remember the key word – “international”. Emphasis should be placed on the international impact made by the nominee, not just within his or her own country.
Voting for athletes should be based on the items in the following order of importance:
 • Olympic gold medals
 • World Records
 • Number of Olympic medals won, Olympic Games attended & Olympic finals achieved.
 • World Championship gold medals, Numbers of total World Championship medals won
 • World Cup, Grand Prix gold medals
 • Regional Championships won (European Championships, Commonwealth Games, Pan American Games, Asian Games, Pan Pacific, South American Games, etc.)

Any questions, please contact, Meg Keller at 570.594.4367 or meg@ishof.org

Barry Goldwater, Jr. Accepts the Every Child A Swimmer Award from ISHOF in Fort Lauderdale

Last night in Fort Lauderdale, American Politician, and former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from California, Barry Goldwater, Jr. entertained the crowd with his speech, more of a talk, as he accepted his award for the Every Child A Swimmer Award. (see ISHOF Facebook for full speech). At 87 years old, he was sharp as a tack and “entertaining as hell” to quote one of the guests.

Bruce Wigo, Barry Goldwater, Jr. and ISHOF Chairman Bill Kent

Goldwater’s father, Presidential Candidate, Barry Goldwater Sr. was also an award recipient at ISHOF, the very first winner of ISHOF’s Gold Medallion, back in 1983; pictured below when he visited and was presented his award by then ISHOF Chairman, Jack B. Kelly.

Barry Goldwater, Sr. and ISHOF Chairman Jack Kelly

Barry Goldwater, Jr. was instrumental to ISHOF’s Every Child A Swimmer Program, and current Chairman, Bill Kent, and Casey McGovern in getting the ECAS Legislation passed in Arizona.

Barry Goldwater Biography

Barry M. Goldwater, Jr. is a distinguished American leader whose influence spans public service, business, and civic advocacy. The son of legendary Arizona Senator and 1964 Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater, Barry Jr. has carved out his own legacy over decades of service and leadership.

He represented California in the U.S. House of Representatives for seven terms (1969–1983), where he championed conservative values, limited government, privacy rights, and innovative policies in aviation, space, energy, and telecommunications. A licensed pilot with over 3,000 hours of flight time, he played a key role on the House, Space and Aviation Committee, helping authorize programs such as Apollo 11. He also co-authored the landmark Privacy Act of 1974, guiding federal data privacy protections.

A passionate environmentalist, Goldwater served on the Energy Research and Development Committee, advocating for renewable energy and promoting rooftop solar access in both state and federal forums. His work helped jumpstart clean energy conversations following the 1974 oil embargo.

In the private sector, Goldwater excelled as a stockbroker and institutional partner at Wedbush Noble, moving large blocks of stock for major financial clients and co-managing syndicates valued at three-quarters of a billion dollars. As a founding partner in NTG Consultants, he has spent the past two decades guiding insurance industry clients—including Guggenheim and Nationwide—on governance and compliance, working closely with state regulators and governors.

As a respected business consultant and advisor, Barry also served as Government and Public Affairs officer for Eagle Picher, initiating direct dialogue between employees and political leaders. At Hormel Enterprises, he advised on financial strategy for dozens of corporate investments.

Goldwater is also a New York Times bestselling author, having co-authored Pure Goldwater with John Dean, offering a personal portrait of his father’s ideals and influence.

Among his most recent and impactful civic achievements, Barry Goldwater, Jr. played a key advisory role in the passage of Arizona’s “Every Child a Swimmer” legislation—a critical child safety law that ensures swimming instruction is accessible to all young students across the state. This initiative aligns with Barry’s lifelong dedication to protecting families and promoting public well-being.

Known for his charisma, tenacity, and deep understanding of both business and government, Barry remains an influential figure across the U.S., continuing to shape policy, advise leaders, and inspire community impact.

#ISHOF #EveryChildASwimmer #CityofFortLauderdale #WorldAquatics #Swimming #Masters #Diving #WaterPolo #ArtisticSwimming #HighDiving #Coach #LifetimeAchievementAward #ASCA #FortLauderdaleAquaticCenter #27meterTower

Dick Shoulberg Honored with ISHOF Lifetime Achivement Award in 2025

by John Lohn – Editor-in-Chief

14 September 2025, 06:48am

Dick Shoulberg Honored with ISHOF Lifetime Achievement Award

A multi-time Olympic coach and the man behind the powerhouse Foxcatcher/Germantown Academy program, Richard “Dick” Shoulberg was honored on Saturday night by the International Swimming Hall of Fame. At ISHOF’s annual awards ceremony, Shoulberg was recognized with the organization’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Shoulberg is recognized globally as one of the sport’s greatest coachs, having sent his athletes to the Olympic Games, World Championships, Pan Pacific Championships and other international competitions. Additionally, he has been a longtime promoter of water safety, as he ensured thousands of students at Germantown Academy developed sound aquatic skills and would be comfortable and safe in the water during their lives.

Known for designing grinding workouts, which prepared his athletes both physically and mentally, Shoulberg has twice been named coach of the Year by the American Swimming Coaches Association and served as an Olympic coach for Team USA at the Olympic Games. During his career, Shoulberg mentored the likes of Dave Wharton, David Berkoff, Trina Radke, Erika Hansen, Dan Jorgenson and Sean Killion. He also mentored the Crippen family – Maddy, Fran, Claire and Teresa.

His athletes routinely speak about Shoulberg’s impact, many calling him a father figure. The veteran coach also sent many of his swimmers into the coaching profession. Under Shoulberg, these coaches not only recognized the ability to correct technique and push their swimmers, but become a key figure in their lives and growth as a person. Among those benefiting from Shoulberg in this area are Jack Bauerle, the legendary coach at the University of Georgia who was a multi-time Olympic coach, and Tyler Fenwick, the Senior Associate Head Coach at the University of Virginia who has helped the Cavaliers to five straight NCAA titles.

As the head coach at Germantown Academy, Shoulberg built the program into a national power that won several Swimming World national championships and was the standard in the scholastic ranks.

ISHOF’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Richard Shoulberg

Shoulberghttps://vimeo.com/1116872688/667548b5ee