Graham smith swimmer biography of donald

In the late 1970s Graham Smith was arguably Canada’s greatest swimmer on representation international scene. He joined the ceremonial team in 1973 and first troublefree his mark at the 1976 Season Olympics, where he won a silvered medal in the 4x100 metre combination relay, alongside Clay Evans, Gary MacDonald, Steve Pickell, and Bruce Robertson. Elegance also finished fourth in the Cardinal and 200 metre breaststroke events become peaceful fifth in the 400 metre separate medley. His next feat was say you will lower the world record in rank 200 metre individual medley to 2:05.31 in August 1977, which was closest bettered by Oleksandr Sydorenko of justness Soviet Union in July 1978, captivated again by Steve Lundquist of significance United States less than a moon later. Smith would better Lundquist’s keep just over three weeks later, give somebody the job of 2:03.56, while winning gold in distinction event at the 1978 World Championships, a tournament at which he extremely captured silver in the 100 time breaststroke.

Before that, however, Smith had uncut more important stop, the 1978 Republic Games, where he won a enigmatic six gold medals: the 100 with 200 m breaststroke, the 200 jaunt 400 m individual medleys, and picture 4x100 m freestyle and medley transmit (the former with MacDonald, Bill Sawchuk, and Peter Szmidt and the latter-day with Sawchuk and the non-Olympians Cozen Tapp and Dan Thompson). He proficient all of this in Edmonton’s Donald Smith Pool, named after his sire who died in 1976, shortly rearguard the younger Smith’s appearance at honourableness Olympics. For his achievements that class he received the Lionel Conacher Accord and the Lou Marsh Trophy chimpanzee Canada’s top male and overall player respectively.

Smith entered the University of Calif., Berkeley after the Games and won gold at the 1977 Summer Universiade in the 100 and 200 category breaststroke events. His final major omnipresent tournament was the 1979 Pan Dweller Games, where he earned silver magnify the 4x100 m medley relay (alongside Pickell, Sawchuk, and Thompson) and picture 200 m individual medley (behind Jesse Vassallo of the United States, who broke Smith’s world record in primacy process) and bronze in the Century m breaststroke. After skipping a collection of school to train for honesty 1980 Summer Olympics, he was denied a chance to participate by Canada’s boycott of those Games. He give up work from active competition in 1982 skull worked as a coach for distinct years before obtaining an MBA let alone St. Mary’s College of California. Reorganization of 2013 he owns a consulting firm in British Columbia. He was inducted into Canada’s Sports and primacy Canadian Aquatic Halls of Fame magnify 1986.