40 Years of swimming world: June

Swimming World and Junior Swimmer, Jun 1999 by Whitten, Phillip

Each month during 1999-our 40th year of publication--Swimming Worldlooks back at some of the personalities and issues being news in the past.

June 1960 The sixth issue of Junior Swimmer featured an interview with famed Yale coach Bob Kiphuth and an in-depth look at the coaching techniques of Indiana's Jim "Doc" Counsilman, "the scholarly Hoosier who makes champs." The article reported that 14 of Counsilman's Olympic hopefuls began training twice a day in late April after enduring two weeks of distance training. Another article offered advice on stopwatches: how to choose and use them.

Susie Doerr, Vesper Boat Club, and Ronnie Wirth, Malvern Prep, were our "Junior Swimmers of the Month." NAG records were set by 11year-old Gina Ambrose, Santa Clara, in the 11-12 girls 200 yard IM (2:31.8) and by 12-year-old George Horton, Unat., in the same event for boys (2:24.7). Sydnee Arth, Sammy Lee SS, tied the 10-and-under mark in the 50 fly (32.1).

35 Years Ago: June 1964

Don Schollander Santa Clara H.S., closed out his high school career in a blaze of glory, setting high school marks in the 200(1:43.6) and 400 yard free (3:42.2). Menlo Atherton junior Dick Roth became the first high school student under two minutes in the 200 IM, when he lowered his own national mark to 1:59.9.

Swimming World continued to champion the quaint notion of equality of opportunity for both boys and girls. One article noted that Mary Middleton, coach of Marymount H.S. in Los Angeles, hosted an invitational meet attended by 50 girls. "Competition at this level is desired by the girls and had the support of every physical education teacher who attended....A program of short distance events, encouraged by school administrators, is all that is needed to start a minimum girls' high school competitive swim program in Southern California."

Across the country, an open letter from John Koerner, coach of the Platinum Coast S.C. in Satellite, Fla., asked: "What happens after high school, girls?" He offered the example of his own daughter, a better-thanaverage swimmer: "She feels...her training has been wasted because no college...offers a scholarship for a girl for her swimming ability. Boys, yes, but not girls!" Today, it is boys who are discriminated against...in the name of equality.

With the upcoming Olympics to be held in Tokyo, an article predicted that Japan would be a big threat to U.S. dominance at the Games. It was wrong. Another article looked at how a variety of countries were preparing for the Tokyo Games. Meanwhile, the USSR's Georgi Prokopenko tied Chet Jastremski's WR in the 200 meter breast, 2:29.6.

"You have to see it to believe it. 59.5 for the 100 yard freestyle!" That breathless story was about Sacramento's Sue Pedersen, who became the first 10-year-old to crack a minute in the 100 free. Another age group phenom was Mark Chun of Town SC in Hawaii, who smashed the NAG mark in the 11-12 boys 100 yard breast with his 1:10.2. My, how times have changed!

Bucknell College won the firstever college division NCAA championship. At the YMCA Champs, Ross Wales of Youngstown set a national Y mark in the 100 yard fly (52.8) and tied fellow Ohioan Rick Schneider, Cleveland N.E., for another, as both clocked 2:03.8 in the 200 fly.

30 Years Ago , June 1969

Our "Swimming Hall of Fame" issue featured the spanking new Hall in Fort Lauderdale on the cover. Buck Dawson wrote an

article describing the highlights of the shrine, including "alcoves for nearly 100 honorees."

Three national records fell at the Southern California high school championship. Gary Hall, described as "the outstanding all-around male swimmer in the world," closed out his high school career with national high school marks in the 200 IM (1:53.9) and 100 back (52.9). In the medley, Hall's time erased Mark Spitz's standard of 1:54.4; however, in a bureaucratic snafu, the time was never submitted for recognition, and Spitz's record remained on the books. Sophomore Mark Chatfield sliced 1tenth off Allen Richardson's national prep school mark in the 100 breast, clocking 1:00.4

In northern California, Brian Job's 57.7 destroyed the previous national high school mark in the 100 breast.

Foothill College, coached by Nort Thornton, captured its eighth straight Cal JC title.

In Australia, Vic Arnell, coach of Olympic 100 meter free champ Michael Wenden, claimed his swimmer would swim 50.0 for the 100,1:50 for the 200 and 4:00 for the 400unimagined times!-in the next two years. He didn't.

In Los Angeles, Kiki Vandeweghe set 10-and-under boys NAGs in the 100 yard (58.8) and 100 meter (sc) free (1:04.7). Vandeweghe went on to an outstanding career in the NBA.

25 Years Ago, June 1974

Santa Clara High coach George Haines closed out his high school coaching career with his 14th consecutive sectional title and 212 straight wins. At the California Central Coast meet, Mike Bottom set a national high school mark in the 100 back (51.8). In Southern California, Bruce Furniss broke Mark Spitz's (really, Gary Hall's) national high school mark in the 200 IM with his 1:53.2.