Mark Spitz: The American swimming superstar
Mark Spitz is a retired American swimmer, whose swimming accomplishments on the world stage have been undisputed for almost thirty-six years. With the help of his extraordinary talent, Spitz set a world record by winning seven gold medals in a single Olympic
Games edition. His feat has made him an American legend and a role model for all swimmers that came after him.
He made the world record of winning seven gold medals at the 1972 Munich Olympics Games, which was later broken by American swimmer, Michael Phelps, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The 61-year-old Spitz has an international swimming career in which he has participated at the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and the Maccabiah Games.
Before the age of 10, Spitz held 17 national age group records. At the age of 16, Spitz won the 100m butterfly at the National AAU Championships and in the following year, he set his first world record at a small meet in California, where he conquered the
gold medal of the 400m freestyle in a time of 4 minutes and 10.60 seconds.
His international swimming career started when he participated at the 1965 Maccabiah Games in Israel. He stunned the arena by winning four gold medals in his first international meet.
The following year, Spitz competed at the 1967 Pan American Games in Winnipeg and won five gold medals. His enhanced performance at the event earned him title of the best athlete.
With his commendable performance, Spitz set the mark of winning the most number gold medals in a single Pan American Games. His record was ruled out after 40 years by a Brazilian swimmer, Thiago Pereira, at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro.
In 1968, Spitz took part in the Mexico Olympic Games and secured two gold medals in the 4*100m freestyle relay and 4*200m freestyle relay, representing the American swimming team. He also won two individual medals, including a silver medal in the 100m butterfly
and a bronze medal in the 100m freestyle.
The American swimmer was not satisfied with his performance, as he wished to provide more to his fans. He adopted an extensive swimming schedule after the Olympics Games, to improve his performance considerably at the upcoming meets.
He once again returned to Israel to participate in the 1969 Maccabiah Games. This time, he clinched six gold medals and also sustained his best athlete award at these Games. Spitz then disappeared from competitive swimming and opted for a gruelling swimming
programme to compete at the upcoming Olympics.
In 1972, he qualified for the Munich Olympic Games by dominating his swims at the US Olympic Trials. Spitz set a world record by winning seven record medals in a single Olympics edition. Spitz claimed the title of the 100m freestyle and 200m freestyle in
51.22 seconds and 1:52.78 minutes, respectively. He secured the gold medal of the 100m butterfly and 200m butterfly, with timings of 54.27 and 2:00.70 minutes, respectively. The American legend also won three gold medals in two freestyle relays and the medley
relay.
The Olympics champion claimed that he expected to gather six gold medals, as he doubted to win the 100m freestyle at the event.
Following the Munich Olympics, Spitz retired from competitive swimming at the age of 22. After some years of retirement, he made a comeback to aggressive swimming, seeking his qualification in the USA swimming team to the 1992 Olympic Games, but failed to
qualify for the event.
After his retirement, Spitz has been rendering his services as a coach to USA Swimming. Today, he is regarded as one of the most reputable swimming coaches of USA.
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