Swimmer Mark Spitz going for gold in Munich - Faster, Higher, Stronger - BBC

[@The22on]

There's only one word to describe watching the Olympic swimming events as a kid way back then: EXCITING.

[@btl12202]

The fact that Mark Spitz broke the world record in each of his seven olympic gold events makes it that much more amazing.

[@RicardoCorralArmas]

The best of the best! Mark Spitz #1 forever!

[@redteamla]

I love hearing that old-school classic California accent.

[@bengarbacz9350]

+redteamla Which accent?

[@redteamla]

+Ben Garbacz Mark Spitz's accent! Steve Jobs had a version of it, Stacy Peralta has it.

[@bengarbacz9350]

+redteamla I don't think thats that old-school! We all still talk like that haha

[@redteamla]

+Ben Garbacz I just hear less and less of this particular accent. I hear it a lot from people born in the 50's.

[@sometimesbutrarely]

Not only did he win all seven, he broke world record in all seven, which is far, FAR more impressive.

[@somegalfromcan]

LOL @ the aerodynamic mustache!

[@Parker528]

LMAO! but that is true, as far what they did the next year! Soviet free sprinter Vladimir Bure, swimming in the 100 free race in lane 2 in this video & wins bronze, was wearing a stache by the next year at the 1st Worlds in Belgrade (two of his sons became pro ice hockey players here in the states - one is married to Candace Cameron).

[@fortunenow1]

Mark was my idol!

[@N1120A]

Met Mark at a restaurant in 2008 or 2009. Super nice guy. Was asking if I'd ordered the ahi salad, cause it looked really good. I mustered the courage to walk over and tell him I'd grown up a swimmer, with him and Matt Biondi as my heroes. He said that very few people recognize him without the mustache.

[@jgunther3398]

It's great to see him looking so comfortable on camera. After the Olympics they tried to put him in TV variety shows they had at the time and he would deliver his lines like he was reading and in a monotone. I guess he's had a few decades of public speaking since then.

[@The22on]

Yes. He was sooo disappointing when he was interviewed.

[@tze-weilim1632]

j gunther When Spitz came over to Singapore in 1983, and at my secondary school gave the school team technique analysis, he spoke tremendously well.

[@brianmcd9492]

Great insight into a Great Mind, Great Athlete of the Pool and A Great Legend.🙂👍

[@indramani8888]

my 7 year old son swam in the same pool last month. what a moment

[@brendanECS]

Gold

[@antoshachehonte5632]

Seven wins and seven world records! Like the Counting Omer between Pesach and Schvues...

[@Kaboomboo]

He's pretty hot for an old guy.

[@sherryjean3591]

I heard the exact same story about Spitz wanting to scratch the 100M free because he was afraid of his teammate, Jerry Heidenreich (not Wenden). In fact Heidenreich was a very close 2nd in the event. Why the change of narrative? Even the video is doctored, they show Wenden supposedly on the blocks in a white swim cap but the actual footage doesn't show the swim cap. The true narrative about Heidenreich is well-documented. Again WHY?!

[@tadficuscactus]

They didnt wear goggles or caps! I wonder how much his mop of hair slowed him down? Would it be around 0.5%?

[@Parker528]

Yes, for the most part the men weren't yet wearing them. But in this video, scroll up to 4 minutes, and you'll see that the guy in the top lane (lane 1) of the 100 free is wearing a white swim cap). But in video footage I have seen here on KZbin, you can see the women wearing caps as far back as Tokyo. Also, there are photos of competitive Olympic levels ladies in swimming caps as far back as 1920 (or at least from my limited resources online). Googles became available in either late 72 or early 73. More often than not, in their infancy, they were seen more as a practice "tool" to allow for longer distance workouts. Most, if not any of the GDR women, for whatever reason, wore goggles at the Olympics in '76. Oddly enough, is that in 76 Roland Mathes of the GDR wore a cap to get bronze in 100 back.

[@erinbenderoff]

people didn't wear goggles in 1972? had they not been invented yet?

[@rickamira4292]

They wore goggles in practice for sure, but as you see , also no caps, and nowadays the dive is different AND the best swimmers are more muscular!

[@davidbalnaves2458]

I met Mark back in the fall of 1971. He was swimming for Indiana and it was the start of the swimming season. I watched him swim a negative split 21.7 50 free. 11.0 at the feet, 10.7 comming home. Usable goggles didn't come into being until 1974 - 1975, 3 years after Spitz won his 7 golds. EVERYBODY LOVES THE "RED EYE"! Only swimmers from the time will understand.

[@ewadiakonowpoosi4758]

@@davidbalnaves2458 i understand too :) good comment , thank you ! :)

[@nuclearprotocol]

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