Portal:Olympics/Selected athlete/9
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Robert "Bob" George Windle (born November 7, 1944 in Sydney) was an Australian sprint and long distance freestyle swimmer of the 1960s, who won the gold medal in the 1500 m freestyle and the bronze medal in relay at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, and the silver and bronze medals in relay at the following olympic games. Known for his versatility, he represented Australia at all freestyle distances at the Olympics from 100 m to 1500 m; the only Australian male to do so, winning medals in both the shortest and longest distances at Olympic level. Windle set six world records over his career, won six Commonwealth Games golds and 19 Australian Championships in all distances from 220 yd up to 1650 yd.Windle's first major athletic competition appearance was at 15 years of age at the 1960 Australian Championships. His second place finish there in the 1650 yd freestyle earned him a spot on the Australian swimming team at the 1960 Summer Olympics held in Rome. However, he was only taken along to gain experience and did not compete. He won his first national title in 1961 and won the 220–440–1650–yd treble in 1962. Windle made his international debut at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, winning gold in the 4 × 220 yd freestyle and silver and bronze in the 440 and 880 yd freestyle events respectively.
