Mark Spitz facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Mark Spitz

Mark Spitz in December 2012
Personal information
Nickname(s)	"Mark the Shark"
Born	(1950-02-10) February 10, 1950 (age 75) Modesto, California, U.S.
Height	6 ft 0 in
Weight	161 lb 73Kg
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Butterfly, freestyle
Club	Arden Hills Swim Club Santa Clara Swim Club
College team	Indiana University
Coach	Doc Counsilman
Medal record Representing the  United States Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 9 1 1 Pan American Games 5 0 0 Maccabiah Games 10 0 0 Total 24 1 1 Olympic Games Gold 1968 Mexico City 4×100 m freestyle Gold 1968 Mexico City 4×200 m freestyle Gold 1972 Munich 100 m butterfly Gold 1972 Munich 100 m freestyle Gold 1972 Munich 200 m butterfly Gold 1972 Munich 200 m freestyle Gold 1972 Munich 4×100 m freestyle Gold 1972 Munich 4×100 m medley Gold 1972 Munich 4×200 m freestyle Silver 1968 Mexico City 100 m butterfly Bronze 1968 Mexico City 100 m freestyle Pan American Games Gold 1967 Winnipeg 100 m butterfly Gold 1967 Winnipeg 200 m butterfly Gold 1967 Winnipeg 4×100 m freestyle Gold 1967 Winnipeg 4×200 m freestyle Gold 1967 Winnipeg 4×100 m medley Maccabiah Games Gold 1965 Israel Swimming Gold 1965 Israel Swimming Gold 1965 Israel Swimming Gold 1965 Israel Swimming Gold 1969 Israel Swimming Gold 1969 Israel Swimming Gold 1969 Israel Swimming Gold 1969 Israel Swimming Gold 1969 Israel Swimming Gold 1969 Israel Swimming

Mark Andrew Spitz (born February 10, 1950) is a famous American swimmer. He was a nine-time Olympic champion. He became the most successful athlete at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. There, he won seven gold medals. Each of these wins set a new world record.

This amazing achievement was a record for 36 years. Another American swimmer, Michael Phelps, broke it in 2008. Phelps won eight gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Like Spitz, Phelps also set seven world records. Between 1968 and 1972, Spitz earned nine Olympic golds, one silver, and one bronze medal. He also won five Pan American golds. He set 35 world records during these years. Swimming World Magazine named him World Swimmer of the Year three times.

Mark Spitz's Early Life and Training

Mark Spitz was born on February 10, 1950. His birthplace was Modesto, California. He was the first of three children. His family was Jewish. When Mark was two, his family moved to Honolulu, Hawaii. He swam at Waikiki beach every day. His mother said he would "dash into the ocean."

At age six, his family moved back to Sacramento, California. He started competing at his local swim club. By age nine, he trained with coach Sherm Chavoor. Chavoor also coached six other Olympic medal winners. At 10 years old, Spitz held one world age-group record. He also held 17 national records.

When Spitz was 14, his family moved to Santa Clara. He joined the Santa Clara Swim Club. There, he trained with coach George F. Haines. From 1964 to 1968, Mark trained with Haines. He attended Santa Clara High School. During these years, Mark held national high school records. He excelled in every swimming stroke and distance.

In 1966, at age 16, he won the 100-meter butterfly. This was at the AAU national championships. It was the first of his 24 AAU titles. The next year, Spitz set his first world record. He swam the 400-meter freestyle in 4:10.60. This happened at a small meet in California.

Mark Spitz's Swimming Career Highlights

Competing in the Maccabiah Games

Spitz first competed internationally in 1965. This was at the 1965 Maccabiah Games in Israel. He was 15 years old and weighed 130 pounds. He won four gold medals in Tel Aviv. He won the 400 m freestyle and 1500 m freestyle. He also won the 400 m individual medley and 800 m freestyle relay. He was named the best athlete of the Games.

He returned to Israel in 1969. This was after the Mexico Olympics. He competed again at the 1969 Maccabiah Games. He won six gold medals there. He was again named the outstanding athlete. In 1985, Spitz lit the torch to open the 1985 Maccabiah Games. In 2005, he was part of the U.S. team. He spoke at the JCC Maccabiah Games.

Winning at the Pan American Games

Mark Spitz won five gold medals. This was at the 1967 Pan American Games. He set a record that lasted until 2007. Brazilian swimmer Thiago Pereira then won six golds. This happened at the XV Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Mark Spitz at the 1968 Olympics

Spitz c. 1968
Medal record
1968 Mexico City
Representing the USA
Gold	4×100 m freestyle relay	3:31.7
Gold	4×200 m freestyle relay	7:52.3
Silver	100 m butterfly	56.40
Bronze	100 m freestyle	53.00

Spitz held ten world records before the 1968 Summer Olympics. He boldly said he would win six gold medals. This was in Mexico City. However, he won only two team golds. These were the 4×100-meter freestyle relay and the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.

He also finished second in the 100-meter butterfly. He lost to fellow American Doug Russell. Spitz had held the world record. He had also beaten Russell ten times that year. Because of this loss, Spitz did not swim in the 4×100-meter medley relay. This race gave Russell his second gold medal.

College Training and Nickname

Spitz was not happy with his 1968 Olympic results. In January 1969, he decided to attend Indiana University. He wanted to train with coach Doc Counsilman. Counsilman was also his Olympic coach in Mexico City. Spitz called this choice "the biggest decision of my life." He also said it was "the best."

While at Indiana, Spitz won eight individual NCAA titles. In 1971, he won the James E. Sullivan Award. This award is for the top amateur athlete in the United States. Spitz also set many world records. This happened during the U.S. Olympic Swim Trials in Chicago in 1972. His teammates nicknamed him "Mark the Shark."

Mark Spitz's Historic 1972 Olympics

Spitz at the 1972 Olympics
Medal record
1972 Munich
Representing the USA
Gold	200 m butterfly	2:00.70 (WR)
Gold	4×100 m freestyle relay	3:26.42 (WR)
Gold	200 m freestyle	1:52.78 (WR)
Gold	100 m butterfly	54.27 (WR)
Gold	4×200 m freestyle relay	7:35.78 (WR)
Gold	100 m freestyle	51.22 (WR)
Gold	4×100 m medley relay	3:48.16 (WR)

At the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Spitz aimed for six gold medals again. He did even better. He won seven Olympic gold medals. Plus, Spitz set a new world record in every single event. These included the 100-meter freestyle and 200-meter freestyle. He also won the 100-meter butterfly and 200-meter butterfly. He won three relay races too.

Spitz was worried about the 100-meter freestyle race. He feared he might not win gold. Before the race, he told ABC's Donna de Varona, "If I swim six and win six, I'll be a hero. If I swim seven and win six, I'll be a failure." Spitz won the race by half a stroke. He set a world record of 51.22 seconds.

Jacket worn by Mark Spitz during the 1972 Summer Olympics.

Spitz is one of only five Olympians to win nine or more career gold medals. Only Michael Phelps has won more, with 23. Spitz's record of seven gold medals in one Olympics stood for 36 years. Phelps broke it at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

After his events, Spitz left Munich early. This was due to the Munich Massacre. Eleven Israeli athletes were taken hostage and killed. Because Spitz was Jewish, officials worried he might be a target. He was taken to London for his safety.

Retirement from Swimming

After the Munich Olympics, Spitz retired from swimming. He was only 22 years old. At age 41, Spitz tried to make a comeback. He aimed for the 1992 Summer Olympics. Filmmaker Bud Greenspan offered him a million dollars if he qualified. Spitz's comeback attempt was on the cover of Parade magazine. It was also in Sports Illustrated.

Greenspan's cameras filmed him. Spitz was two seconds slower than the Olympic standard. He did not qualify. In 1999, ESPN SportsCentury ranked Spitz No. 33. He was the only swimmer on their list of 50 Greatest Athletes.

Mark Spitz's Life After Swimming

Hall of Fame Honors

Mark Spitz has been honored in many Halls of Fame:

• International Swimming Hall of Fame, inducted 1977.
• International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, inducted 1979.
• United States Olympic Hall of Fame, inducted 1983.
• Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, inducted 1990.
• San Jose Sports Hall of Fame, inducted 2007.
• National Jewish Museum Sports Hall of Fame, inducted 2007.
• Long Beach City College Hall of Fame, inducted 2007.
• Indiana University Athletics Hall of Fame.

Film and Television Career

After retiring from swimming at 22, Spitz was managed by the William Morris Agency. They tried to get him into show business. He was still very famous from his Olympic success. Spitz first appeared on TV in a skit. He played a dentist on a Bob Hope special in 1972.

In 1973–74, Spitz was on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. He also appeared on The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour. On the TV drama Emergency!, he played Pete Barlow. His wife, Suzy, played Pete's wife. He also appeared on The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast.

Spitz started working for ABC Sports in 1976. He worked on many sports broadcasts. This included coverage of the 1976 Summer Olympics and 1984 Summer Olympics. In 1985, he was a TV announcer in Challenge of a Lifetime. He continued broadcasting for a while. But after a few years, he was not seen much in public. He focused on his real estate company in Beverly Hills. He also enjoyed hobbies like sailing.

Narration and Commercials

Spitz narrated Freedom's Fury in 2006. This was a documentary about the Hungarian water polo team. It covered their famous match against the Soviet Union in 1956. The film was produced by Quentin Tarantino and Lucy Liu.

He appeared in an advertisement for the California Milk Advisory Board. He also appeared in commercials for Schick razors in 1974. In 1998, he was with Evel Knievel in a PlayStation TV commercial. In 2004, he was in a Sprint PCS commercial. In 2007, Spitz made a cameo appearance in Amanda Beard's TV commercial for GoDaddy. He also appeared in an infomercial for a fitness machine. In 2012, Spitz was in a commercial for Ageless Male. In 2019, he promoted a personal EKG device. In 2022, Spitz endorsed the health supplement Relief Factor.

Mark Spitz's Personal Life

Family and Education

Mark Spitz and Suzy Weiner on their wedding day in May 1973

Spitz (far right) and his wife (far left) with President Gerald Ford and First Lady Betty Ford in 1976

After the Olympics, Spitz started dating Suzy Weiner. She was a UCLA theater student and model. They married on May 6, 1973. This was a traditional Jewish service. They have two sons, Matthew and Justin. Justin was on the Stanford swim team. Spitz and his wife live in Los Angeles, California.

At Indiana University, Spitz studied to become a dentist. He was part of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. He was accepted into dental school in 1972. But after the Olympics, he had other chances. He did TV work and speaking events instead. Spitz graduated from Indiana University in 1972.

Post-Swimming Career and Hobbies

After the 1972 Olympics, Spitz got many good endorsement deals. He earned about $7 million in two years. He said this was like earning over $10 million today. Spitz felt he was a "pioneer." He was one of the first Olympians to make a lot of money from his fame. He later started a real estate company.

Today, Spitz works as a corporate spokesperson. He is also a motivational speaker. He travels the world, giving about 25 lectures a year. His biography, The Extraordinary Life of An Olympic Champion, came out in 2008. In 2012, he supported Istanbul's bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics. However, Tokyo won the bid. His hobbies include sailing, skiing, and collecting art.

His Famous Moustache

Mark Spitz was known for his moustache. This was unusual because other swimmers shaved all their body hair. He grew it because a college coach said he couldn't. He saw it as a way to rebel. He said it took four months to grow. Spitz was proud of it and thought it was good luck.

He planned to shave it for the Olympics. But so many people talked about it, he kept it. He joked with a Russian coach. He said his moustache helped him swim faster. He claimed it "deflects water away from my mouth." He also said it made him "bullet-shaped in the water."

In 1988, he finally shaved it off. His wife, Suzy, said he looked handsome without it. When asked why, he said he wasn't swimming anymore. Also, it started to turn gray. And his family had never seen him without it. He said he was happy without it.

Health and Well-being

After retiring, Spitz was diagnosed with acid reflux disease. His doctor thinks he had it during his career. Spitz thought his symptoms were from chlorine or eating too soon. He realized it was more serious when it affected his broadcasting career.

He has also had high cholesterol. He takes medication for it daily. He is a paid spokesperson for Medco.

Images for kids

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  Olympic rings

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  Spitz in 1968

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  Spitz at the 1972 Olympics

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  Jacket worn by Mark Spitz during the 1972 Summer Olympics.

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  Mark Spitz and Suzy Weiner on their wedding day in May 1973

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  Spitz (far right) and his wife (far left) with President Gerald Ford and First Lady Betty Ford in 1976

See also

• List of Indiana University (Bloomington) people
• List of multiple Olympic gold medalists
• List of multiple Olympic gold medalists at a single Games
• List of multiple Summer Olympic medalists
• List of select Jewish swimmers
• List of top Olympic gold medalists in swimming
• World record progression 100 metres butterfly
• World record progression 100 metres freestyle
• World record progression 200 metres butterfly
• World record progression 200 metres freestyle
• World record progression 400 metres freestyle
• World record progression 4 × 100 metres medley relay
• World record progression 4 × 200 metres freestyle relay