If swim is your preferred Olympic issue , you should be conversant with the representative of Rowdy Gaines . He has served as NBC ’s Olympic swimming analyst for over 20 years , and before that he made a name for himself by leading the U.S. swim squad to triumph in 1984 . Here are some facts you may not have have it off about the mutation picture .
1. HIS NICKNAME COMES FROM A TV WESTERN.
St. Ambrose " Rowdy " Gaines IV was birth in Winter Haven , Florida on February 17 , 1959 . Hisboisterous nickname , given to him by his father , was take from Clint Eastwood ’s character in the TV seriesRawhide , which premieredthe same class Gaines was born .
2. HE (UNSUCCESSFULLY) TRIED OTHER SPORTS BEFORE SWIMMING.
It took Gaines a while to discover his bent for swim . Before find his ingredient in the pool , he try his hand at a few land - establish sports but was too slow , short , or clumsy to excel at any of them . Football made Gainesfeelespecially " restrain " as a kidskin . When he finally got into swim at age 17 , he found that the lone athletics was a stark fit for his reserved personality .
3. HE WAS TRAINED BY A COACHING LEGEND.
Before Gaines rose to Olympic stardom , he was trained by the magnificently - namedRichard Quick . Quick go as Auburn University ’s swim coach while Gaines attend the schooling on a swimming erudition . Quick would afterwards go on to coach the U.S. swim teams in three Olympic games and claim more major college swimming title than any other Division I train .
4. HE PEAKED AT THE WORST TIME.
By 1980 , while just emerge from his teens , Gaines was already place world records and winning medal at international competitions . The hype surrounding him was so acute thatSwimming World Magazinenamed him World Swimmer of the Year [ PDF ] . He was favored to secure five Au palm at that twelvemonth ’s summer Olympics in Moscow , but the U.S. boycott kept him out of the contest .
5. HE LED THE 1984 TEAM TO VICTORY.
Even though he was reportedly past his " acme " by the time the Los Angeles games rolled around in 1984 , Gaines still managed to blow the other athletes out of the weewee . He earned his squad three gold medals and pull ahead more races than any swimmer in the challenger . He help the squad set new records in the 4x100 meter medley electrical relay and 4x100 m freestyle relay events , and broke his own record in 100 time freestyle .
6. HE WAS TEMPORARILY PARALYZED.
In 1991 Gaines ’s acrobatic by-line came to a halt . The swim champion was diagnose withGuillain - Barré syndrome , a rare circumstance in which a someone ’s immune system attacks part of their peripheral nervous system . The disease can lead to permanent palsy , but in Gaines ’s case this symptom was irregular . He made a full recovery after two months of treatment , eventually integrate swim into his physical therapy routine . " When I started swimming for therapy , I would drown in the same lanes as the 60- and 70 - yr - old swimmers , " Gainessaid . " Slowly I work my way down the consortium . I ’d drop a couple of weeks float in a lane with the 50 - year olds , then the 40 - class olds , and so on . ”
That period proved to be a pocket-sized blip in Gaines ’s career . Just a few years later he was make waves again as theoldest natator to qualifyfor the 1996 Summer Olympic Trials at the long time of 35 .
7. HE’S BECOME AN ICONIC VOICE OF THE OLYMPICS.
Despite qualifying to compete in the 1996 summertime games , Gaines rather select to bestow his talents as a observer . Hiscareer as an announcerfor NBC ’s Olympic reporting began in 1992 with theBarcelona Olympics . He has since playact as the " Voice of Swimming " for seven Olympic games , admit this twelvemonth ’s events in Rio de Janeiro .
8. HE’S STILL SETTING RECORDS.
Gaines ’s retreat from the Olympics did n’t mark his retreat from float . In 2009 , he broke the 50 meter and 100 meter freestyle times for the gentleman ’s 50 to 54 years mathematical group at theRowdy Gaines Masters Classic . He break-dance the disc for the 100 metre freestyle for his geezerhood group again two twelvemonth after at acompetition in Japan .
