I’m sensing a theme here. I keep running into swimmers I’ve featured before. Today we run into Alison Terry again.

She was the first Black Swimmer to make a US National team. That was 1999, for the Pan American Games. Unfortunately, she fell just short of making the US Olympic team the following year.

Alison struggled with many things in her young life, but she was able to overcome them to have success in the sport. I am glad that her place is secure in the top 20 Black History Swimming Firsts.

Tonight we feature a very decorated swim hero.

Sabir Muhammad was the first black swimmer to set an American record. He did this in 1997, swimming the short course 100 M fly.

Muhammad was a very decorated swimmer with several other ‘firsts’ under his belt: 1. In 1994, he became first Black swimmer to compete on the Varsity men’s swim team at Stanford University
2. In 1995, he was the first black swimmer to qualify for the Pan-Pacific Games.
3. While on the resident swim team at the Olympic training center, he was the first recipient of the William E. Simon Olympic Endowment award, and voted US Olympic Center’s Athlete of the Month.
4. In 1999, he competed in the Pan-Pacific Games, becoming the first Black co-captain of a US International Swim Team.
5. In 2000, he competed in the World Short Course Championships where he became the first black swimmer to win a medal at a major International swimming competition.

The 6 foot 7 inch swimmer was something of a media darling, featured in a 1999 episode of Baywatch, the 2001 Sports Illustrated Swim Suit Edition, as well as various magazines and television news programs.

Muhammad takes swim literacy so seriously that he started ‘Swim for Life!’ to teach Atlanta youths to swim.

It’s like deja vous all over again. I found Anthony Nesty, the first swimmer of African descent to win an Olympic gold medal back when I started this blog. I got his last name wrong at the time, but I had the right swimmer. Originally from Suriname, Nesty trained in the US, at the University of Florida. There must be something about those Dutch South American nations! First Enith Brigitha, and now Anthony Nesty. He won gold in the 1988 Seoul Olympics in the 100 fly. Nesty was also the first black swimmer to win an individual world championship.

He actually competed in three Olympic games: 1984, where he placed 21st in the 100 fly, 1988, where he won gold, and in 1992, where he won a bronze medal in the 100 fly. Nesty’s World Championship gold medal was in 1991, along with a gold from the Goodwill games. Nesty coaches at University of Florida.

We’re halfway there! Tonight I present Sybil Smith, the first black female swimmer to score in an NCAA final.

Sybil Smith swam for Boston University in 1988 when she placed 6th in backstroke in the NCAA finals. From the Boston University hall of fame:

‘She placed sixth in the 100-yard backstroke with a school-record time of 56:02. By finishing among the top eight in the event, Stephens (Smith’s married name) was recognized as a First Team Division I All-American. She was the first black woman in the nation to accomplish that feat, and she remains Boston University’s only All-American in women’s swimming.’

Sybil is recognized as the finest swimmer in Boston University history. She was the first Junior recipient of the University’s Mildred Barnes award, for being an outstanding female athlete. She won it again during her senior year, the first person to win the award twice.

Smith qualified for the Olympic trials in 3 events, later becoming assistant swim coach at Harvard. She is married to John Stephens, of the NFL Green Bay Packers.

I am surprised this is the first I’ve written about this great swimmer. I have seen that picture before, and I’ve googled her name before. Now we know some of her story. May many more follow.

Charles Chapman was recently featured on The Morning Swim Show. It’s at the end of the clip; bear with the long interview before the clip of Charles the Tuna.

He is a good example of never giving up. We could all learn a thing or two from The Tuna.

This is one I’ve discussed before on imswimming. The first black swimmer to win an Olympic medal. Notice I didn’t say American swimmer. That would be Enith Brigitha. The International Swimming Hall of Fame is talking about her bronze medal in 100 free. It mentions that Brigitha finished behind two East Germans that have since disclosed that they were doped at the time. I don’t know whether that has any bearing on Brigitha’s medal.

For my other post on this great swimmer, I found that Brigitha had won a bronze medal in the 1972 Olympics for relay, and another bronze in 1976 for 200 M free. The Curacao native could really swim.

I wish I’d stumbled upon this list from the International Swimming Hall of Fame earlier! I could have been all sweet and relevant and had a new entry for most of the days of Black History Month. But, alas, I didn’t. Here we are at the last day of the month, and I’m only on #6. That won’t stop me, though. I’ll keep talking about our history into March. Then I’ll look for more history into April, and so on. . . We can’t be contained in one month!

Tonight I bring you Fred Evans. His distinction as ‘first’ is as the first black swimmer to win a national collegiate championship. From his LinkedIn page, I give you his swimming achievements in a nutshell:

Mr. Evans was the NAIA National Champion in Swimming thus being recognized as the First African American National Collegiate Champion. He was also a three time NCAA Division II National Champion in the 100 yard Breaststroke and National Record Holder from 1975, 76, 77 and also held the record in 1978. Mr. Evans continued his career as an influential Swim Coach throughout the Chicago area for more than 25 years.

In 1983 Mr. Evans was honored by the International Swimming Hall of Fame and has been honored with Resolutions from the State of Illinois, Washington, D.C. He was inducted into the Washington DC Hall of Fame for his achievements in swimming and the community.

Fred Evans furthers the idea that swimming success equips you for greatness. I look forward to our next ‘first!’

In 1960, Clark was the first black swimmer to receive a full scholarship in swimming to a major college (Ohio State). Clark made All American at Ohio State in 1961, 1962 and 1963 in the 100 and 200 meter butterfly. At the time that Clark received his scholarship to Ohio State University, Ohio State was the top swimming school in the country. In high school, Clark broke the National Scholastic Record in the 100 meter Butterfly.

Read more about this great athlete here.