There have been many Olympic gold medal winners but few spectators at the events stop to see beyond the gold or silver medal win. The fact is that many hours of practice and heart-felt dedication went into the training and the building of the Olympic athlete.
Mark Spitz was one such athlete. He was born in 1950 in Modesto, California. Destined to be a swimmer, Mark began swimming at the age of two. By the time he was nine years old, he was dedicated and he began training under a coach determined to be one of the best all-time swimmers from an early age.
Mark Spitz was a winner. When he was in the water, he expected to win. He holds the most gold medal-wins for a single Olympic Games competition. The record was set in 1972 at the Munich, Germany Summer Olympics. He took home seven Olympic gold medals.
Between 1965 and 1972, Mark Spitz worked hard. He was dedicated to winning more and more medals and he did. He took home nine Olympic gold medals, one silver and one bronze during that time frame. Additionally, during those years, he set an unbelievable thirty-three world records.
Mark’s wins weren’t all restricted to the Olympic wins. However, they likely held a lot of gratification. He also captured five Pan American gold medals while he was in the height of his career between the years of 1965 and 1972.
In 1971, Spitz won the James E Sullivan Award for top amateur athlete in the United States. Additionally, he was named World Swimmer of the Year in 1969, 1971, and 1972.
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