University of Florida Olympic History

Few schools in the country can match the rich Olympic tradition the University of Florida boasts. As the Beijing Games approach, since 1968, 118 Gators and 11 Florida coaches have represented 27 countries in 10 Olympiads and laid claim to 76 medals, including 39 golds.

As of August 8, 2008, a total of 36 athletes and coaches with ties to the University of Florida (33 athletes, 3 coaches) are representing 20 different countries and prepared to travel to Beijing for the 2008 Olympic Games.

2004 was another banner outing for athletes and coaches with University of Florida ties, as 26 athletes and two coaches combined for seven medals - four gold, two silver and a bronze. Abby Wambach scored the game-winning goal in overtime of the gold medal match to lead the United States to victory, while Ryan Lochte led the United States to a victory in the 4x200-meter freestyle. Darian Townsend helped the South African squad set a world record in the 4x100-meter freestyle, while Lochte added a silver in the 200-meter individual medley, while on the track Bernard Williams took home silver in the 200-meter dash. 

The Olympic tradition for UF began in 1972 when track and field standout Ron Jourdan and swimmer Tim McKee exchanged the Orange and Blue of UF for the red, white and blue of the United States. Jourdan com­peted in the high jump, while McKee collected two silvers in Munich.

In 1976, McKee and nine other UF athletes traveled to Montreal and again McKee came away with another silver medal. Despite the Olympic boycott by several countries, a number of Gators still found their way to Moscow for the 1980 Olympics. David Zubero captured the lone Gator medal in the '80 Olympics as he swam his way to a bronze for Spain in the 100‑meter butterfly.

In terms of medals, no Olympiad can compare to the success enjoyed by Florida swimmers at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. Florida swimmers appeared on the award stand 20 times, picking up the gold on 13 occasions. Twenty-one Gators represented eight different nations, compiling such an impressive total that if the University of Florida were a nation it would have finished second as a country to the USA in the swimming competition and 14th overall among the 140 competing countries. One gymnast, one tennis player and three track stars also competed in Los Angeles. The 1984 Olympics was indeed the year of the Gator gold.

Golden success continued in 1988. Twenty Gators represented six countries and brought home 13 medals, including five golds

The 1992 Barcelona Summer Games became the second most successful Olympics in Florida history. Twenty‑five athletes competed for six countries in five sports. The 25 Gators won 15 medals, including nine golds. Florida swimmer Nicole Haislett took home three medals, all gold. She won the 200‑meter freestyle and participated in the 400‑meter freestyle relay and the 400‑meter medley relay. Haislett finished the 1992 Games with the most gold medals of any U.S. competitor and tied for the most gold medals of any female Olympic competitor with Krizstina Egerszegi, a swimmer from Hungary. Former Gator Martin Zubero was the hero of the Games as he became the first Spanish swimming gold medalist, when he won the 200‑meter backstroke. The Olympic record time was performed in front of the home crowd, which included the king and queen of Spain. If Florida would have been a country, the Gators would have finished tied for 19th in the medal standings. Three Gators finished the 1992 Games with a piece of a world record. Track star Dennis Mitchell ran the third leg of the 4x100 relay that set a world record. Haislett and Dara Torres each swam on the 400‑meter freestyle relay that also set a world record.

Coming back to the United States in 1996, the Centennial Olympiad in Atlanta again provided an opportunity for current and former Gators to represent their countries in the Olympics. UF swimmer and Gainesville resident Allison Wagner finished second in the 400-meter individual medley to join Dennis Mitchell (4x100m relay) as UF's top medal winners. Former women's track and field standout Michelle Freeman took home a bronze in the 4x100m relay for Jamaica. In all, the contingent of 26 Gators won six medals in Atlanta, including one gold, four silvers and a bronze.

Twenty-three Florida athletes and coaches represented 12 different countries in the 2000 Games in Sydney. Six former UF athletes accounted for 10 medals including six Golds. Brad Wilkerson helped the United States win its first ever baseball Gold Medal while DeLisha Milton won gold with the US women's basketball team. Dara Torres, who became the female athlete to compete in four Olympic Games, won two gold and three bronze medals in various swimming events. Carlos Jayme registered a bronze medal for his native Brazil. Bernard Williams and Ashley Tappin both struck gold in different 4x100-meter relays. Williams won his in track, Tappin hers in swimming. If the University of Florida were a country, the Gators would have tied for 24th, ahead of 56 other countries. Their six Gold Medals tied them for 14th place.

Equally represented in the Olympic coaching ranks has been former Gator mentor Randy Reese, who served on three USA Olympic coaching staffs (1980, 1984, 1988).  Former UF women's swimming coach Mitch Ivey, who won a silver medal in 1968 and a bronze medal in 1972, served as an assistant coach on the 1988 team.  Ivey is the only U.S. swimming medallist to coach on the USA staff. Chris Martin, a former head coach for the UF men's and women's team, was an assistant on the 1992 team.  Also Eddie Reese, an 11‑time SEC Champion as a Gator swimmer and now the head coach at Texas, was an assistant swimming coach during the 1988 Games and was the head swimming coach for the United States in 1992.  Former UF Men's Track and Field coach Doug Brown, himself a veteran of three U.S. Olympic squads, joined the U.S. Track and Field staff in 1996 and current swim coach Gregg Troy has been a three-time Olympic coach and will be making his fourth trip to the Olympics in 2008.