50 greatest Summer Olympians in history
By John Buhler
32. Gary Hall, Jr., Swimming.
American Gary Hall, Jr. came from a long lineage of U.S. swimmers. His father, Gary Hall, Sr., competed in three Summer Olympics from 1968 to 1976, while both his uncle and his grandfather on his mother’s side were high-level competitors in the pool as well.
Despite coming from a family with deep swimming tradition, Hall didn’t start swimming competitively until the age of 16. By the time he was 21, however, Hall was arguably the best male swimmer on the Team USA roster.
Hall was a 10-time medal recipient (five gold, three silver, two bronze) over the course of three Summer Games (in ’96, 2000, and ’04), with freestyle being his stroke of choice.
Over the course of his career, Hall forged intesne rivalries with Russia’s Alexander Popov and Australia’s Ian Thorpe, employing his trademark swagger to back up his often dominant performances.
Next: 31. Agnes Keleti.