On This Date: Anthony Ervin – 16 Years After First Title – Grabs Olympic Gold in 50 Freestyle
On August 12, 2016, Anthony Ervin claimed gold in the 50-meter freestyle at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. The victory arrived 16 years after Ervin first stood on the top step of an Olympic podium, at the 2000 Games in Sydney.
Here is the article from the night Ervin was golden again.
He flexed. He splashed. He bellowed. The momentum of his celebration accidently carried him into the next lane. The reaction of American Anthony Ervin when he realized he had captured a second gold medal in the 50-meter freestyle was priceless, and provided all the evidence needed to understand just how much the triumph meant to the – wait for it – 35-year-old.
Getting off to a solid start, something that is a routine struggle, Ervin blazed over the water at the Rio Aquatics Centre and touched the wall in 21.40 to dethrone defending champion Florent Manaudou of France, who clocked in at 21.41. The victory handed Ervin his second gold medal in the event, the first coming way back in 2000, when he tied countryman Gary Hall Jr. for the title in Sydney. Ervin’s former training partner, Nathan Adrian, grabbed another sprint bronze, going 21.49.
The one-lap sprint has been on the program only since 1988, when it debuted in Seoul. Only Russia’s Alexander Popov and Hall have repeated, and while that statistic is partially connected to the relative infancy of the event, it also hinges on the fickle nature of the discipline. In a race that is over in barely more than 21 seconds, every mistake is magnified. Poor start? Damning. Bad finish? Dooming? Extra breath? Crushing.
Ervin was flawless.
There have been plenty of comeback stories in the sport over the years, the return of Dara Torres among the best known. She came back twice, after all, winning five medals at the 2000 Games after an eight-year layoff, and winning three in 2008 at the age of 41, again after eight years away. But Ervin’s comeback now includes a gold medal in an individual event, a spectacular achievement in itself, and even more so given his age. Ervin is now the oldest gold medalist in the sport’s history. We’ll get to some more records in a bit, too.
The fastest man in textile at 21.19 from last year’s World Championships, Manaudou made himself the man to beat in the previous night’s semifinals, a 21.32 effort handing him the No. 1 seed. But Ervin was confident in his preparation, and hungry for his opportunity. Much of whether he could pull off the upset hinged on his start. Make it a good one, and he was in the mix.
Bingo.
Ervin didn’t bolt to the front of the pack, as Manaudou did with his trademark entry. But he didn’t leave himself with a sizable gap to narrow, either. Once he got on top the water, he simply let his vast skill take over. At 6-foot-3, Ervin isn’t a small man. But he’s leaner than most of his muscled rivals, and standing next to Manaudou and Adrian, there is a noticeable difference. None of it matters. The speed is there, and that is what counts.
“There were no guarantees, but I was feeling good coming into the meet,” Ervin said. “I felt really good in the prelims, then I changed things for the (semifinals), and felt even better. Then I had a game plan for finals. If anything, I was a little bit slower than I thought I was going to be. But it’s a tough race. It’s the 50 final in the Olympics.”
The 2000 Olympic Trials in Indianapolis marked Ervin’s coming-out party, a second-place finish to Hall in the 50 freestyle landing him a spot on the American squad bound for the Sydney Games. Down Under, as a 19-year-old coming off his freshman year at Cal-Berkeley, Ervin elevated his stature even further, the tie with Hall an epic moment for the youngster.
The future of sprinting was in Ervin’s hands, his raw talent and speed said to be as good as the sport has seen. He followed his Olympic gold by capturing the sprint double at the 2001 World Championships in Fukuoka and he was the silver medalist in the 50 free at the next year’s Pan Pacific Champs. But after failing to advance out of the prelims of his prime event at the 2003 World Championships, he disappeared from the sport for seven years, bouncing around to various places. He spent some time teaching swimming lessons, but from a competitive standpoint? Nothing.
In 2011, though, Ervin was back on the pool deck, a comeback materializing. He gradually watched his times come down, the possibility of high-level success opening eyes. Ultimately, his comeback resulted in a trip to London for a second Olympiad, where Ervin finished fifth in the 50 freestyle. Since that time, he qualified for the World Championships in 2013 and 2015 and established himself – once again – as a staple in global sprinting. At 35, Ervin has followed the path set by Torres, and has turned his back on the notion that age should slow him down.
Originally at Cal-Berkeley for his comeback work, Ervin did a stint with the Trojan Swim Club before shifting to SwimMac Carolina to work with coach David Marsh.
“It’s surreal, kind of absurd,” Ervin said. “When I touched, turned around and saw the one next to my name, I kind of smiled and laughed. Then I wanted to show a little bit of emotion for the effort I’d put in – for my friends, for my family, for those watching at home and in the stands.
“It’s been an incredible journey to think that after 16 years I’m back on the podium at the Olympic Games. But all the credit is to the love and support of my people, my family, my friends, my teammates, my coaches, my country.”
By ascending to the top of the sprint world again, Ervin tied Torres (1984-2000) for the most years between gold medals, but set a record for most years between individual crowns, Michael Phelps the next best at 12 years. He also equaled Australian Frank Beaurepaire (1908-1924) for the largest gap between Olympic medals (any color) by a male swimmer. The overall record stands to Torres at 24 years, spanning 1984-2008.
Conventional thought wonders: What could Ervin have done if he hadn’t vanished for the better part of a decade? Would his name be mentioned in the same breath as Popov? Could he have given Hall a push in Athens? Obviously, those questions will never be answered, but solace can be taken in the fact that Ervin came back at all, and treated the sport to his unique talents.
“I’m going to try and make the Tokyo team, of course,” Ervin said. “Obviously, I like being in an environment where I can keep trying to swim to the best of my potential and I don’t think my age should limit me to that, and I don’t think fear of defeat should limit that either because I don’t think about winning or losing. It’s just about being the best I can be for me and those that supported me.”