Matt Biondi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article or section is missing citations or needs footnotes. Using inline citations helps guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (March 2008) |
| Medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Matt Biondi |
|||
Competitor for the  United States |
|||
| Men’s Swimming | |||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Gold | 1984 Los Angeles | 4x100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1988 Seoul | 50 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1988 Seoul | 100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1988 Seoul | 4x100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1988 Seoul | 4x200 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1988 Seoul | 4x100 m Medley | |
| Silver | 1988 Seoul | 100 m Butterfly | |
| Bronze | 1988 Seoul | 200 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1992 Barcelona | 4x100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1992 Barcelona | 4x100 m Medley | |
| Silver | 1992 Barcelona | 50 m Freestyle | |
| World Championships - Long Course | |||
| Gold | 1986 Madrid | 100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1986 Madrid | 4x100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1986 Madrid | 4x100 m Medley | |
| Silver | 1986 Madrid | 100 m Butterfly | |
| Bronze | 1986 Madrid | 50 m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1986 Madrid | 200 m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1986 Madrid | 4x200 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1991 Perth | 100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1991 Perth | 4x100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1991 Perth | 4x100 m Medley | |
| Silver | 1991 Perth | 50 m Freestyle | |
| Pan Pacific Games | |||
| Gold | 1985 Tokyo | 50 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1985 Tokyo | 100 m Freestyle | |
| Silver | 1985 Tokyo | 200 m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1985 Tokyo | 100 m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1987 Brisbane | 100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1987 Brisbane | 4x100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1987 Brisbane | 4x100 m Medley | |
| Silver | 1987 Brisbane | 50 m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1987 Brisbane | 100 m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1991 Brisbane | 100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1991 Brisbane | 4x100 m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1991 Brisbane | 4x100 m Medley | |
| Gold | 1991 Brisbane | 100 m Butterfly | |
| Silver | 1991 Brisbane | 50 m Freestyle | |
Matthew ("Matt") Nicholas Biondi (born October 8, 1965 in Palo Alto, California) is a three-time U.S. Olympic swimmer in the 1984, 1988, and 1992 Summer Olympics, winning a total of 11 medals. In the 1988 Summer Olympics, Biondi equalled Mark Spitz as the second swimmer to win seven medals in one Games. Michael Phelps would later break this record by winning eight medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Biondi left Seoul with five golds, setting world records in four of those events.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Biondi started his aquatics career as a swimmer and water polo player in his hometown of Moraga, California. As he moved into his teens, his incredible abilities as a swimmer -- specifically a sprinter -- began to emerge. Though he did not start swimming year-round until he started at Campolindo High School, by his senior year Biondi was the top schoolboy sprinter in America with a National High School record of 20.40 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle. He accepted a scholarship to the University of California, Berkeley to swim and play water polo, and enrolled in 1983. In his freshman year he played on Berkeley's NCAA Championship water polo team and made the consolation finals at the 1984 NCAA Swimming Championships.
That summer, Biondi surprised the swimming community by qualifying for a spot on the U.S. 4x100 meter freestyle relay at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. The team won the gold medal in a world record time. Returning to Berkeley, Biondi once again played on an NCAA Champion water polo team in the fall and in the winter of 1985 won the first of his 8 individual swimming titles at NCAAs. He would be named NCAA Swimmer of the Year in 1985, 1986, and 1987, and would set several American and NCAA records.
Biondi set the first of his twelve individual swimming world records in 1985. He was the first man to swim the 100-meter freestyle faster than 49 seconds, and by 1988 he owned the ten fastest times swum in that event. He won a total 24 U.S. Championships in the 50, 100, and 200-meter freestyle events, as well as the 100-butterfly. In two World Championships (1986 and 1991), Biondi won 11 medals including six gold. During his career, he was a James E. Sullivan Award Finalist, the UPI Sportsman of the Year, the USOC Sportsman of the Year, and twice the Swimming World magazine Male Swimmer of the World (1986 and 1988). He is a member of the United States Olympic Hall of Fame and the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
He graduated from Berkeley in 1988 with a BA degree in Political Economy of Industrialized Societies (PEIS). He lives in Kamuela, Hawaii, where he teaches math, U.S. History, personal excellence, and swimming at Parker School, a small private prep school.
Biondi married his wife Kirsten in 1995, and their son Nathaniel (Nate) was born in 1998.
[edit] Training
Matt Biondi made a point of being the slowest person in the pool during warm up, no matter the skill level of the other swimmers surrounding him.[citation needed]
[edit] References
[edit] See also
- World record progression 50 metres freestyle
- World record progression 100 metres freestyle
- Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
[edit] External links
- Matt Biondi's U.S. Olympic Team bio
- Matt Biondi's Entry on the International Swimming Hall of Fame website
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Tom Jager |
Men's 50 metre freestyle world record holder (long course) June 26, 1986 – August 13, 1987 |
Succeeded by Tom Jager |
| Preceded by Tom Jager |
Men's 50 metre freestyle world record holder (long course) September 24, 1988 – August 20, 1989 |
Succeeded by Tom Jager |
| Preceded by Rowdy Gaines |
Men's 100 metre freestyle world record holder (long course) 6 August 1985 – 18 June 1994 |
Succeeded by Alexander Popov |
| Awards | ||
Preceded by Michael Gross |
World Swimmer of the Year 1986 |
Succeeded by Tamás Darnyi |
| Preceded by Tamás Darnyi |
World Swimmer of the Year 1988 |
Succeeded by Mike Barrowman |
Preceded by Ben Johnson |
United Press International Athlete of the Year 1988 |
Succeeded by Boris Becker |
|
|||||
|
|||||
|
|||||
|
|||||
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Biondi, Matthew Nicholas |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Biondi, Matt |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | American swimmer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 8, 1965 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Palo Alto, California, United States |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
