Where are they now?

Swimming World and Junior Swimmer, Mar 1999 by Johnson, Stephen

Did You Know?

As America's top sprinter in the late '70s and early '80s, Rowdy won three Olympic golds, five World Championship golds and three silvers, seven Pan-Am golds and one bronze as well as 13 individual national titles. He was the world record holder in the 100 meter free from 1981 through 1985 and in the 200 free from 1980 through 1983.

Growing up in Winter Haven, Fla., Ambrose "Rowdy" Gaines was around water all the time. But he didn't swim competitively until his junior year of high school. "I only started swimming after I tried out for other things like tennis and baseball and got cut," he remembers.

In his first high school meet, the coach threw him in the 500 yard free, where he went a 6:19 while doing open turns. Later in the meet, Rowdy found his niche as a sprinter, swimming the 50 free on an "E" relay and posting the fastest split on the team. By the next year, Rowdy had improved and attracted the attention of a single coach, Eddie Reese of Auburn University. As a freshman, he led Auburn to a second-place finish at NCAAs.

Rowdy bolted into 1980 as America's top sprinter, but the U.S. boycotted the Olympic Games that year. He briefly retired in 1981, but by 1982, he was back in full force, breaking his own world record in the 200 free and taking home three golds and two silvers at the World Championships. At the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, Rowdy won three gold medals.

Today, swimming continues to play a big role in Rowdy's life. He is a top Masters swimmer with world records for men 35-39 at every freestyle distance from 50 to 1500 meters. As part of a company called, "Think like a Champion," he now gives motivational speeches and swim clinics across the country. He also serves as a TV color commentator for major swim meets and works for the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.

In 1991, Rowdy contracted Guillan-Barre Syndrome, a virus that attacks the nervous system. He was completely paralyzed for two weeks and spent many months recovering, but he drew strength from the experience: "Not only did I learn how important my family and my friends were, I also realized how important the world of swimming was to me."

Now fully recovered, Rowdy lives in Birmingham, Ala., with his wife of ten years, Judy, and their three daughters, Emily, Madison and Savanna.