Matt Biondi was the star of the 1988 Olympics, setting a world record of 48.42 in the 100 freestyle and setting himself up to chase Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals in one Olympics. (He would win five gold, a silver and a bronze.)
The International Swimming Hall of Fame has preserved a portion of a video feature with Biondi that was produced just before the 1988 Trials. In it, Biondi talks about “the grind” of workouts at the University of California-Berkeley and dealing with the balance between doing the difficult work and enjoying the fun aspect of the sport. He also said younger swimmers should be taught to have fun with the sport, and not necessarily focus them on swimming endless distances in the pool.
Matt Biondi on training for 1988 Olympic Trials
The International Swimming Hall of Fame will be leaving Fort Lauderdale at the end of this year. Swimming World obtained photos of the proposed Santa Clara Swim Center, future home of the International Swimming Hall of Fame. The city of Santa Clara hopes to build a new 3-acre International Swim Center on the other side of Central Park from its current aquatics facility that would eventually house the 7,500-square-foot Hall of Fame.
The first big event at the new ISHOF location will be the induction ceremony for the Class of 2015. Click here to learn more about the event and to order tickets (before June 1).
According to Bruce Wigo, Executive Director for the International Hall of Fame, the overarching factors that would make a successful marriage between Santa Clara and ISHOF are definitely in place. The new mecca of swimming would be Santa Clara.
Centerpiece of the complex would be an Aquatic Theater, where fans would be on top of the action in the pool. Think more of courtside seats at a basketball game, less of the current standard pool setup of the fans being pushed well away from the pool.
- Photo Courtesy: ISHOF
- Photo Courtesy: ISHOF
- Photo Courtesy: ISHOF
- Photo Courtesy: ISHOF
Hmm. Wasn’t Matt Biondo’s name on the Balco list at one point?