ISHOF Inducts its Class of 2023 Masters Honorees into MISHOF

On Friday, October 4, during the ISHOF Honoree weekend, the International Swimming Hall of Fame inducted its (Masters) MISHOF Class of 2023. It was a wonderful evening for the Masters community and they showed up in force as did the rest of the aquatics world. The evening was hosted by ISHOF Historian, Bruce Wigo. Most Masters Honorees from the Class of 2023 were able to attend but two were not, and they were certainly missed.

SWIMMERS:

TOM WOLF (USA)

Tom Wolf began swimming at the age of four. He had quite a career through his high school and college years, graduating high school as a two-time state champ in the 100 back, adding the 200 IM as a Senior and was a three-time All-American his Senior year. He went on to Harvard to swim for some of the greatest coaches in our sport his Freshman year, Don Gambril and Skip Kenney. As a Freshman, he established school records in the 100 and 200 yd. backstroke, and captured the 200 yd. back title in the conference championships, during his last three years at Harvard.

After a six year hiatus, he began swimming Masters in the 25-29 age group when he moved to Washington and discovered DC Masters.  He has set 28 FINA Masters World Records competing in the backstroke and the I.M. events and has been in the world rankings since 1983.

Wolf has been plagued with injuries between 2005 and 2021, but he is slowly making his way back. In 2023, he added one new world record. But this year, 2024 was a new year, and a new age group, 70-74, his TENTH age group, and he has already added five new individual and seven relays records to his count. There may be no stopping Tom now!

GLEN CHRISTIANSEN (SWE)

Glen Christiansen is a former Swedish Olympic swimmer who competed in the 1980 Summer Olympics, where he finished 11th in the 200-meter breaststroke.

Since then, he has had continued success as a Masters swimmer and has pursued an international career as a swimming coach. He broke 24 world records between 1986 and 2009 and has competed in eight Masters World Championships , winning a total of 26 medals.

Glen’s excellence in the pool extends to a myriad of contributions to the sport. He founded “Swimming Without Borders” which organizes swim camps for children, youths and adults of different nationalities, ages and abilities. He also started “Schwimm Schule Schweden,” a swim school for children teaching curriculum he developed and teaches throughout the world.

In 2013, Glen’s Master career was interrupted by a stroke, he experienced while conducting a Master’s swim camp in Tenerife. The stroke caused a him to fall down a flight of stairs, only to wake up three weeks later in the hospital. He was paralyzed on his left side and unable to speak, eat or drink properly, but he promised his eight-year-old son that he would one day be fit again. Of course, swimming became the measure of his recovery and just six months later he won a 2.5 km open water race.

In 2022, Glen won his first international title, the 200m butterfly at the European Championships in in Rome, Italy. New world records are coming slowly, but Glen is thankful to be alive and back into swimming.

WATER  POLO PLAYER:

JOSE LUIS MARTIN GOMEZ (ESP)

In 1998, Jose Luis Martin Gomez joined the Real Canoe Masters team, but the club’s philosophy was different from his. He envisioned water polo as a catalyst for shared experiences, a platform for family and friends to bond. Gradually, he transformed this vision into reality.

Inspired by a tournament in Germany, Jose Luis conceived the Copa de España de Waterpolo Masters. The inaugural event in 2004 brought together teams from Spain, Germany, and Italy. The tournament grew exponentially, fueled by the unwavering dedication of the players and the supportive atmosphere created by their families and friends.

Their commitment extended beyond the pool. They organized extravagant events, from pirate ship adventures to Spanish country fiestas. The tournament became a celebration of life, as much as a sporting competition. His teams have been champions, runners-up “and have even finished in last place. But, always, they have had their families and friends by their side supporting them.

For the record, Jose Luis has attended 11 FINA/World Aquatics World Masters Championships for one gold, one silver and three bronzes; eight European Masters for one gold, one silver and four bronze; one World Masters Games for a gold medal; and he played in 13 German Masters competitions for seven gold, four silvers and two bronzes.

Jose Luis has been the president of the Organizing Committee of the Spain Cup from 2003 until 2018 and has been awarded special prizes of the community of Madrid — 2011 Master Athlete of the Year and 2015 Extraordinary Medal of Sports Merit.

Jose Luis exemplifies what it means to be a masters athlete, both as an athlete and as an official who promotes the sport and shows what fun, competition and travel can do for us. For his home competition, the motto is: “Family, party and water polo.”

ARTISTIC SWIMMER:

LIZZI JAKOBSEN (USA)*

Lizzi Jakobsen was one of the five original members of the team that became the Southern California Unsyncables. She convinced the others that they too could compete in Masters. Events were added for Masters in local competitions. They gave exhibitions whenever and wherever asked, generally at other local pools, backyards and cities, even one offshore at the Catalina Island beach. 

Lizzi Jakobsen and the “Unsyncables” were inspired by the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, so, they decided to enter the Masters National Championships that year, where they placed 6th in the team. Adding a few members each year, the self-taught group watched local competitions and tried to emulate what they saw. They competed in nationals again in 1986, ‘88, ‘90, and ‘91. With the FINA World Masters being held in Indianapolis in 1992, they planned to enter and asked Dawn Bean, recently retired youth coach, to help them and were elated to come home with medals in four events including gold medals in the 50-59 age group team.

Lizzi was the team leader who did all the organization and paperwork to be part of U.S. Synchro along with preparing entries for competitions and determining routines. As the group grew, Lizzie continued the Board of Directors and served as treasurer for many, many years.  In her age group, she became a top swimmer in all events winning solo, duet or trio and team in national championships and in many of the international meets. She won the May McEwan award in 2008. The U.S. award is given annually to someone who has made outstanding contributions to and best exemplifies the spirit of Masters synchro. 

Her first international event was a competition in her old hometown of Arbus, Denmark in 1989. Then when the World Masters meet was being held in Indianapolis, they began competing in the FINA Masters World Championships. Lizzi swam events in Indianapolis (1992), Montreal (1994), Sheffield, England (1996), Munich (2000), Christchurch, New Zealand (2002), Riccione, Italy (2004), Stanford, California (2006), and Goteborg, Sweden (2010). 

Lizzi passed away on April 22, 2022. Lizzi’s daughter, Ingrid and her granddaughter, came to Fort Lauderdale to receive Lizzi’s award in person.

CONTRIBUTOR:

NADINE DAY (USA) – Masters Swimming Contributor

Born in Hawaii, Nadine’s introduction to swimming was natural. Her participation in the Amateur Athletic Union program at the age of seven was the beginning of a lifetime commitment to the sport. Her success in age group swimming led to a full scholarship to Northwestern University where she earned All-American honors and competed in the 1988 Olympic Trials. A back injury her freshman year curtailed her collegiate competitive career, but the injury and healing process inspired her to become a physical therapist.

In 2001, she discovered Masters Swimming. Masters was the chance to resurrect her competitive career. Nadine has earned USMS All-Star Honors in long distance and in the pool, achieved All-American honors in all four strokes and the Individual Medley, has set Masters World Records and is a multi- time world and national champion in both the pool and open water.

But Nadine’s competitive resume pales next to her volunteer achievements within the swimming world. After attending her first United States Masters Swimming convention in 2003, Nadine put her toe in the ‘volunteer’ water by joining several committees. Since that initiation, Nadine has been a working member of the Recognition and Awards, Governance, Convention, Policy, Coaches, Compensation and Benefits, and Sports Medicine and Science Committees. She also participated in the creation of the Swimming Saves Lives Foundation. Concurrently she served her LMSC as Vice Chair, and ultimately Chair. Nadine’s progression through USMS includes election to the Board of Directors in 2005, where she served for 17 years. Her deep immersion in all things Masters Swimming led to her election in 2011 as the youngest President in the history of the organization. Upon completion of her eight-year term, Nadine expanded her focus to FINA, initially as a World Championship Deck Coach, then as a USAS/FINA Delegate to the World Congress in Barcelona and beginning in 2021, as Chairperson of the World Aquatics Masters Committee.  Nadine is also involved with Pan Am Aquatics (formerly UANA) volunteering in many capacities, from Deck Coach, to conducting Masters Swim Clinics, as an Open Water and Masters Member, and as an Open Water Masters Representative.

As part of her term on the United States Aquatic Sports Board of Trustees, Nadine took over planning and running the USAS 2019 annual convention in St. Louis, Missouri. Her team’s execution of the convention’s weeklong meetings for over 1,000 delegates was flawless.

Through her tireless devotion to all things Masters Swimming, Nadine has been recognized with numerous awards including the Dorothy Donnelly Service Award, Ted Haartz Staff Appreciation Award, United States Aquatic Sports Women in Swimming Award, the Illinois Masters Swimming Association Coach of the Year Award, and USMS’s most prestigious honor, the Capt. Ransom J. Arthur M.D. Award. With her selection to the Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame, Nadine has secured a place as one of swimming’s most valuable contributors.

CLARY MUNNS (AUS)

This 80-year-old grandmother competes for the Blacktown City Masters Swimming Club in New South Wales, Australia. She has set eight long course and 25 short course Masters World Records in the backstroke, butterfly and I.M since 1988 with 13 world records in 2019 alone, yet she has only competed in one FINA Masters World Championships, back in 1988, when the championships came to Australia.

Clary Munns accumulated all her 1297 world points by breaking world records and achieving world rankings.  Since 1986, Clary has been in the Top Ten, 25 times and is currently competing in the 80-84 age-group, having just turned 80.

Clary started swimming at eight years old in her homeland of Denmark, where she was self-taught in Copenhagen harbor in the summer months. Breaststroke was something that she picked up quickly, due to the need to stay afloat with the harbor not having a bottom within reach to stand on. Those first few years of swimming weren’t about competition but about enjoying the water and swimming.

At around 12, Clary moved to Svendborg and when swimming at the local pool, some older girls from the swimming club spotted her and asked her to join. She would compete occasionally and when she was about 15, swam at the Scandinavian Junior Championships in Norway. Shortly after however, Clary gave up swimming.  

It wasn’t until many years later, after she had moved to Australia, that she started  swimming again with Blacktown Masters as a 44-year-old in 1988. While Clary is a remarkable backstroker, she has demonstrated her versatility and skill as a state and national record holder across all strokes.

One of Clary’s first major meets with the club was at the FINA Masters World Championships in Brisbane in 1988. At the World Championships, Clary placed in the top 16 in the back and breast events (50m-200m) in the women’s 40-44 age group.

Clary’s results continued to blossom from there as she set countless records. Clary currently holds 50 long course and 53 Australian records across different age groups and 65 long course and 64 short course New South Wales State Records. Clary is also part of many long-standing State and National relay records.

Clary has been named Sport NSW’s Masters Athlete of the Year on three separate occasions, in 2009, 2015 and 2016.  In 2016 and 2019, she was awarded Masters Australia’s Swimmer of the Year. In addition, Clary has been awarded the Swimmer of the Meet trophy at the Australian National Championships, in 2015, 2016 and 2017. In 2016, Clary won Blacktown City Council’s Sportsperson of the Year award.

Clary does not swim for accolades – she swims because of the relaxation and stress release the sport brings to her. She is always a positive presence on pool deck and is always encouraging Blacktown’s members to swim their best and to have fun.

DIVER:

TARJA LILJESTROM (FIN) 

Tarja Liljeström was born in 1946 in Helsinki, Finland. Her love of diving began at a young age when she was watching clown divers in a water show jumping from springboards and platforms playfully into the pool. She began diving at the age of 11 years old and 11 years later, she represented her homeland of Finland in the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, on both the 3-meter springboard and the 10-meter platform in the diving competition. In the 1980 Moscow and the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, she acted as a judge in the diving competitions.

She became interested in Masters Diving in 1989, when a small group of divers from the USA and Germany participated in the First Open Finn-Masters diving competition in Helsinki. Tarja tells a great story about the event which epitomizes the World and the beauty of Masters.  “To the surprise of the organizers, and everyone in attendance, the USA had an 88-year-old diver, named Viola Krahn, competing on the 1-meter springboard. Tarja said, “the younger divers at the event stood by ready on the poolside to jump into the water to save her, if something went wrong in her dive, but the amazing lady dived magnificently.”  

It was then that Tarja decided that joining the Masters group after your competitive diving career ended, was a great idea. It helps maintain your health, your muscle strength, and it is great exercise for all all age-groups. As a bonus, Masters diving makes you feel younger than your physical age. Tarja also finds it inspiring, when traveling to different international Masters events, meeting up with her many old diving friends from her early competitive days.

Tarja’s international Masters career includes competing in nine FINA Masters World Championships during 1992 – 2008, where she accumulated 25 medals (9 gold, 15 silver and 1 bronze) in the 1m and 3m springboards and the platform. During this period, she participated in four age-groups: 45-49 through  60-64.

In addition, she was a member of the FINA Masters Committee (1997 – 2009) and member of the LEN Masters Committee (1994 – 2008).  Tarja is a researcher for the University of Helsinki.

About MISHOF

The purpose of the MISHOF is to promote a healthy lifestyle, lifelong fitness, and participation in adult aquatic programs. MISHOF recognizes the achievements of individuals who have participated in Masters programs through at least four different Masters age groups.  Most must pre-qualify by an objective point system based on world records performances, world Top Ten rankings and World Championship performances.  The MISHOF is a division of the International Swimming Hall of Fame, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. For more information, please visit:  www.ishof.org