Don Schollander facts for kids
Schollander at the 1964 Olympics
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nickname(s) | "Don" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | April 30, 1946 Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. |
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| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 174 lb (79 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Freestyle | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Santa Clara Swim Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | Yale College | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coach | George Haines (Santa Clara) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Donald Arthur Schollander, born on April 30, 1946, is a famous American swimmer. He was an amazing athlete who won many awards. Don became an Olympic champion five times! He also held world records in four different swimming events. At the 1964 Summer Olympics and 1968 Summer Olympics, he earned a total of five gold medals and one silver medal. In 1964, he was the most successful athlete at the Olympics, winning four gold medals.
Contents
Early Swimming Days
Don Schollander was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. He learned how to swim competitively from his uncle, Newt Perry. His uncle ran a swimming school in Florida. When Don was a boy, his family moved to Lake Oswego, Oregon.
Don first loved football. But he was too small to play high school football. So, he joined the swim team at Lake Oswego High School. In 1960, as a freshman, he helped his team win an Oregon state swimming championship.
Olympic Achievements
In 1962, when Don was a teenager, he moved to Santa Clara, California. He wanted to train with the famous swim coach George Haines at the Santa Clara Swim Club. Just two years later, at 18, Don won three freestyle events at the national championships. He then made the U.S. Olympic team for two individual races and two relay races.
A few months later, at the 1964 Summer Olympics, Don won four gold medals! He also set three new world records. At that time, no American had won so many medals since Jesse Owens in 1936. Because of his success, Don won the James E. Sullivan Award. This award goes to the best amateur athlete in the United States. He was also named AP Athlete of the Year.
After the 1964 Olympics, Don took some time off from training. He had been sick, and his workouts at Yale were shorter than before. He also didn't have as many top swimmers to compete against. But with help from coach George Haines in 1965, Don got his speed and endurance back.
College and More Olympics
Don Schollander went to Yale College. He was the captain of Yale's swim team. While there, he won three individual national college championships.
At the 1968 Summer Olympics, Don won another gold medal. This was in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. He also finished second in the 200-meter freestyle race. Don thought the 200-meter freestyle was his best event. The 1968 Olympics were the first time 200-meter swimming events were included.
After the 1968 Olympics, Don Schollander stopped competing in swimming.
Life After Swimming
Don Schollander was honored for his amazing career. In 1965, at just 19 years old, he was added to the International Swimming Hall of Fame. In 1983, he was one of the first people to be inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame.
In 1971, Don wrote his first book called Deep Water. It was about his swimming career, his teammates, coaches, and what it was like behind the scenes at international swimming events like the Olympics. He wrote another book in 1974 called Inside Swimming.
Today, Don Schollander lives in Lake Oswego, Oregon, with his wife, Cheryl. He runs a company that develops real estate. You can see his gold medals on display at a Bank of America branch in downtown Lake Oswego. Don has three children named Jeb, Kyle, and Katie.
See also
In Spanish: Don Schollander para niños
- List of multiple Olympic gold medalists
- List of multiple Olympic gold medalists at a single Games
- List of Olympic medalists in swimming (men)
- List of Yale University people
