FORT
LAUDERDALE - The International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF),
recognized by FINA, the international governing body for the Olympic aquatic
sports, today announced the dates for ISHOF’s 52nd Annual Honors Weekend, October 28-30, 2016, in Santa
Clara, California.
The event had originally been scheduled for June 3-5, but
was postponed due to the subsequent awarding of the Copa America Cup the City
of Santa Clara by CONCACAF, the continental governing body for association football
(soccer) in North America, Central America and the Caribbean. Local officials
felt that he impact of these games, security issues and crowds would have been
too disruptive for our attendees and upon their advise ISHOF made the decision
to postpone the event.
“Coming as it will
after the Rio Olympic Games,” says ISHOF CEO
Bruce Wigo, “we believe that it will provide a great opportunity to
promote swimming and the new Santa Clara Community and Recreation Center, which
will be our new home.”
More details about the weekend’s schedule of
events will be forthcoming over the next few weeks.
The ISHOF Class of 2016 includes
Swimmers Larisa Ilchenko
(RUS),
Aaron
Peirsol (USA), Camille Muffat (FRA) and Dara Torres (USA); Divers
Dmitry Sautin (RUS) and Guo Jingjing
(CHN); Synchronized Swimmer Yelena Azarova (RUS); Water Polo Players: Seven
members of the 2000-2008 Hungarian Olympic water polo team (HUN);
Marathon Swimmers Desmond Robert “Des” Renford (AUS) and Monique
Wildschut (NED); Swimming Coach Bob Bowman (USA); Contributor Sir Peter Heatly (GBR); Pioneers Simeon Boychenko
(RUS), Horst Gorlitz
(GRD/ITA/FRG), Frank Gorman
(USA), Hilda James
(GBR)
and Leonid Meshkov (RUS).
About
the ISHOF
The International Swimming Hall of Fame & Museum was
established in 1965 as a not-for-profit educational organization in the City of
Fort Lauderdale, Florida and was recognized by FINA in 1968. The mission of
ISHOF is to PRESERVE and CELEBRATE aquatic history, to EDUCATE
the general public about the importance of swimming as the key to water safety,
drowning prevention, better health, a better quality of life, and to INSPIRE
everyone to swim. ISHOF’s collection of swimming memorabilia,
art, photos and films, along with archival documents and rare books in the
Henning Library, make ISHOF the premier repository and academic research
resource for swimming and aquatic history in the world.
The International Swimming Hall of
Fame’s
Class of 2016
Swimmers:
LARISA ILCHENKO (RUS)
Russian long distance swimmer, Larisa
Ilchenko has won eight World Championships and gold at the 2008 Olympic Games
at age 19. She has dominated long distance swimming since her first World
Championship in Dubai in 2004, where, aged just 16, she won by over 30 seconds.
She won the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in the 10 km, using
her trademark closing kick after being behind the leaders for 9,900 of the
10,000 swim.
Aaron PEIRSOL (USA)
Aaron Peirsol is one of the greatest backstrokers
in swimming and Olympic history. He
participated in three Olympic Games (2000, 2004 and 2008), winning five gold
and two silver medals and still holds three long course world records - as part
of the USA’s 4 x 100 meter medley relay, and in the 100 and 200 meter
backstroke events. During his career, he
won a total of 36 medals in major international competitions, 29 gold, six
silver and one bronze. He retired in 2011 saying, “I ended up doing everything I set out
to do.”
CAMILLE MUFFAT (FRA)
Camille Muffat was a three time
Olympic medalist from the Olympic Nice Natation Club. She specialized in the IM
and freestyle events and her career expanded from 2005 to 2014. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, she
won gold in the 400 meter freestyle, silver in the 200 meter freestyle and
bronze in the 4x200 meter freestyle relay.
In doing so, she became only the fourth French swimmer to win three
Olympic medals at a single edition of the Olympic Games. Camille Muffat’s brilliant career was tragically cut
short on March 9, 2015 when she was killed in a helicopter crash during the
filming of a French TV Reality show, and will be enshrined posthumously.
DARA
TORRES (USA)
Dara Torres won her first US National
title at the age of 14 and her last at the age of 42, proving Age is Just a
Number (which also happens to be the title of one of her best selling
books). She is the first and only swimmer to ever represent the United
States in five Olympic Games (1984, 1988, 1992, 2000, 2008), during an Olympic
career that spanned an incredible 24 years. She won a medal in each of her
Olympic appearances and has twelve Olympic medals overall (four gold, four
silver and four bronze).
Divers
DMITRY SAUTIN (RUS)
Competing in five Olympic Games,
Dmitry Sautin has won medals in all four men’s diving events and more medals than
any other diver in history (two gold, two silver and four bronze). He started
diving at age seven, but his diving career almost ended in 1991 when he was
stabbed multiple times in an attack. After spending two months in the hospital
he represented Russia in the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, where he won a
bronze medal in the three meter springboard event. In 1996, he won gold in the
men’s
10 meter platform and in 2000, gold and silver medals in both synchronized
events.
GUO JINGJING (CHN)
Guo Jingjing,
known in China as the “Princess of Diving,” began
diving for the Chinese national team in 1992 and competed at her first Olympic
Games in 1996. At the 2000 Olympic Games
she won two silver medals, the individual and synchronized events in the three
meter springboard. In 2004 and 2008 she was perfect, winning two individual
titles and teaming with partner Wu Minxia to win gold in the synchronized
event, all in the springboard. Her six medals made her the most decorated
female Olympic diver in history.
Synchronized Swimmer:
YELENA AZAROVA (RUS)
Yelena Azarova, at the tender age of
14, was the first Russian synchronized swimmer to win solo and duet titles at
the European Juniors. Always strong technically, she was one of the original
members of the Russian team that won its first gold medal at the World Cup in
1997, its first Championship in 1998 and its first two Olympic team titles in
2000 and 2004. She eventually established her own synchronized swimming club in
Moscow.
Water Polo Players:
TEAM HUNGARY 2000-2008
During a ten year period, from 1998 to
2008 the Hungarian men’s water polo team built a dynasty
unmatched in modern FINA history. Of the twenty players who won gold medals at
the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Olympics, this team will be represented by Tamas
Molnar, Tamas Kasas, Tibor Benedeck, Gergely Kiss, Peter Biros, Zoltan Szecsi
and coach Denes Kemeny (already a member of the Hall of Fame). Team Hungary
will be honored as three-time Olympic Champions and the greatest team in water
polo history.
Marathon
Swimmers:
Monique
Wildschut (NED)
Monique
Wildschut, a tall and powerful swimmer from the Netherlands, was the six-time
World Professional Marathon Swimming Federation champion from 1983 to 1988. In
1983 she was the overall winner of the Atlantic City Marathon and was second
overall in the 64 km Traversée Internationale du Lac St-Jean in Canada. As
a solo swimmer, she crossed the English Channel twice and had the fastest swim
of the year in 1984.
Desmond Robert Renford
(AUS)
Desmond Robert “Des” Renford,
M.B.E., was born in Australia on the 52nd anniversary of the very first Channel
swim, achieved in 1875 by Matthew Webb.
He took up marathon swimming only at the age of 39 and from 1975 to part
of 1980, he crossed the English Channel 19 times
in 19 attempts and wore the title King of the Channel, which is accorded the
swimmer with the most crossings. For his
exploits in the Channel, he was awarded the MBE, Order of the British
Empire. Australians remember their
Channel swimming sporting legend, who died in 1999, through the Des Renford
Aquatic and Leisure Center in Marouba, a suburb of Sydney. He will
be enshrined posthumously.
Coach:
BOB BOWMAN
Bob Bowman is probably best known as
the long-time coach of Michael Phelps, however, he has done much more than
that. He has been the assistant coach of
the USA swim team for three Olympic Games (2004, 2008, 2012) and has just been
named the Head Men’s Coach for the 2016 USA Olympic Team.
He has been a three-time World Championship Head Coach (2007, 2009, 2013) and
four time Assistant World Championship Coach (2001, 2003, 2005, 2011). Bob is
an ASCA Hall of Fame Inductee, a five-time ASCA Coach of the Year, and the most
honored Coach in the 40+ years of the award.
He is a six-time USA Swimming Coach of the Year, four-time USA Swimming
Foundation’s
Golden Google Award Recipient and the 2002 USA Swimming Developmental Coach of
the Year.
Contributor:
SIR PETER
HEATLY (GBR)
Throughout a period of 27 years, Sir
Peter Heatly has contributed to the sport of swimming and diving at the local,
national and international levels as competitor, team manager, official and
administrator. He was a member of both
the FINA and LEN Diving committees from 1966 to 1988, Honorary Secretary of the
FINA Committee from 1972 to 1984 and Chairman from 1984 to 1988. He was
Chairman of Great Britain’s Swimming Federation in 1981 and
again in 1992. In 1990, he was installed
as a Knight of the Realm by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. Sir Peter Heatly will
be enshrined posthumously.
Pioneers:
SIMEON BOYCHENKO (RUS)
A legendary figure in early Soviet era
swimming, Simeon Boychenko was the fastest breaststroke-butterfly swimmer in
the world, but because the USSR was not a member of FINA, Boychenko did not get
to compete in the Olympic Games.
However, at the third International Worker’s Olympics in Antwerp (Belguim) in
1937, he considerably outstripped the winners times from the 1936 Olympic Games
in Berlin in the 200 meter breaststroke, earning the first victory of Soviet
swimming on the international level. His
lifetime best of 1:05.4 and 2:29.8 in the 100 and 200 meter breast-butterfly
would not be touched until after the rules changed permitting butterfly in the
mid 1950’s. Boychenko will be honored posthumously.
HORST GORLITZ (GDR, ITA, FRG)
Horst Gorlitz began coaching in the
German Democratic Republic and after he could no longer agree with the policies
of sport in his country, he escaped the GDR in 1955. He became the National Team Coach of Italy in
the sport of diving in 1957. In 1964, he coached Hall of Famer Klaus Dibiasi to
Olympic gold on the platform and during the next three Olympic Games, Mexico
City, Montreal and Moscow, Dibiasi and Giorgio Cagnotto won two gold, four
silver and two bronze medals between them.
In 1969, Gorlitz went back to the Federal Republic of Germany to once
again coach back in his homeland. He also coached divers in Austria,
Switzerland, Norway, Finland and South Africa, and is credited with creating
the foam rubber mattress used to create a soft, dry landing for a sitting,
standing or back position. Gorlitz will be honored posthumously.
FRANK GORMAN (USA)
Frank competed in an era when there
was only one chance in four years to be seen internationally and when male
divers from the United States dominated the sport. Diving for Hall of Fame
Coach, Dick Smith, Frank just missed the 1960 Olympic Team for the United
States, but returned four years later to win the United States Olympic Trials
and then the silver medal in the 3 meter springboard at the Tokyo
Olympics. While at the Tokyo Games, he
outscored everyone on nine out of ten dives, but missed one badly to take
second place. Competing at Harvard University, he never lost a dual meet and
was an All-American Diver for all four years, 1957-1960.
HILDA JAMES (GBR)
Hilda James is credited with
introducing the six beat crawl stroke to England, a measure which made swimmers
much faster. Nicknamed the “English Comet” she held every British freestyle
record, 100 yards to the mile. She
became a darling of the press and was expected to win three gold medals, all in
the freestyle at the 1924 Olympic Games. Unfortunately, living in the Victorian era, Hilda’s parents controversially prevented her from
competing in the Games. After her swimming career, Hilda spent much of her time
coaching and giving demonstrations. James will be honored posthumously.
LEONID MESHKOV (RUS)
Like Simeon Boychenko, Leonid Meshkov
is a legendary figure in Russian swimming history who also broke the recognized
world record in the 100 meter butterfly-breaststroke, and European records in
the 200 and 400 meters freestyle, prior to the outbreak of WWII. And like Boychenko, his accomplishments were
not recognized. During the defense of
Stalingrad, he earned hero status, but also sustained severe injuries to his
shoulder and arm that were thought to end all hopes of resuming swimming. However, after demanding rehabilitation that
lasted many years, he became the first Soviet swimmer to claim a FINA
recognized world record, when he swam the 100 meter butterfly-breaststroke in
1:07.2, in 1949. He later broke his record five more times and held it until
February 1952. Well past his peak,
Meshkov participated in the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki, Finland, at the age
of 36. Meshkov will be honored posthumously.
For
more information contact Bruce Wigo at 954-462-6536 ext. 201, or by email bwigo@ishof.org
