Very few athletes ‘walk the talk’. In boxing, there was Muhammad Ali, who called himself ‘The Greatest’, and he was! In aquatics, someone who came pretty close to Ali was the dashing Californian Mark Spitz, swimmer extraordinaire, who matched his brash words with his deeds. “There is nothing better in the world than telling you are the best, when you are actually the world record holder,” he reasoned.
Born in February 1950, he learnt the basics from his dad, Arnold Spitz, who imbibed in him the spirit of winning. Arnold was determined to make his young son a winner all the way and took him to the noted coach Sherman Chavoor, who shaped Spitz’s early career and made him the best under-10 swimmer in the world. When he was 14, Spitz’s family moved to Santa Clara and coach George Haines took over his training. Within two years, Spitz was making waves at the NCAA meets, smashing every record in sight.
As an 18-year-old sensation, who had been on a record breaking spree at home, Spitz promised to win six gold medals at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. Spitz won just two gold medals, that too in relays (4x100m and 4x200m freestyle), apart from a silver (100m butterfly) and a bronze (100m freestyle). A determined Spitz then re-doubled his efforts, working with the legendary coach, Doc Counsilman at Indiana University to keep his promise. That came at the historic Munich Games in 1972. He did not win just six gold medals but seven — all in world record times. It’s a feat that remains a distant dream for other swimmers. Michael Phelps sure won eight medals at Athens (2004), but not all were gold and not many were world records.
Spitz set four individual world records at Munich — in 100m freestyle (51.22s), 200m freestyle (1:52.78s), 100m butterfly (54.27s) and 200m butterfly (2:00.70s). His other three gold medals and world records came in the relays — 4x200m freestyle (7:35.38s), 4x100m freestyle (3:26.42s) and 4x100m medley relay (3:48.16s).
It was a mind blowing effort by any yardstick, but Spitz’s hour of glory was dimmed by the ‘Munich Massacre’. A group of Palestine terrorists struck at the Games, killing Israeli athletes in a macabre hostage drama. Spitz, who was of Jewish descent, was whisked away the same night to London with a huge security threat hanging over him.
Munich turned out to be the last Games for Spitz. In his career between 1965 and 1972, he had won nine Olympic gold, a silver and a bronze medal. He had also won five Pan American gold medals, held 31 US Amateur records and five NCAA collegiate world titles. He was named the ‘swimmer of the year’ in 1967, 1971 and 1972 and was listed among the top 100 athletes of the 20th Century.
Post Munich, his new-found fame and good looks got Spitz a lot of endorsement offers and he also nursed a Hollywood dream which, however, floundered. He went into the real estate business and made a mark and later doubled up as a celebrity public speaker. Spitz, after a two-decade sabbatical, attempted to qualify for the 1992 Barcelona Olympics in the 100m butterfly as a 42-year-old, but couldn’t make it.
Spitz’s records have been bettered by swimmers wearing ‘Speedo’ suits, but the American would always be remembered as the swimmer who ushered in an era that saw many, including Matt Biondi, Gary Hall, Janet Evans and later, Michael Phelps and Ian Thorpe, attempting to win a clutch of gold medals and set world records at the Olympics. These swimmers, no doubt, found glory, but Spitz remains the King.
Kalyan Ashok
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