I'll join Beth McGee and Allan Stark in voting for Tracy Caulkins. :bow:
I had the great pleasure of coaching in VA when she was swimming for Nashville Aquatic Club and attended at least one a meet a year at which she swam. When she was there I would give my swimmers warmup instructions and sit by the lane in which she was warming up to just watch her. Picked her coach, Paul Bergen's brain often too, learning something priceless each time. That was a fortuitous combination of a special swimmer with exactly the right coach.
Tracy was the most lyrically beautiful 4-stroke swimmer I've ever seen and the only person in history to set World and/or American records in all five disciplines, each stroke plus the IM.
I still have the Aquaforums videos produced around 1980, featuring her on all four strokes. The other featured swimmers were on one video only.
Terry:
Agreement with Tracy Caukins. However there has never been anybody that has had a FINA World Record in all 5 disciplines. Tracy had American Records in all 5 disciplines but had World Records in the Fly and IM events just like Michael Phelps has. FINA did not start giving credit for World Records for Short Course Meters until the early 1990's and I think the date was in 1993 at the first FINA World Short Course Championships in Spain. Up to that point they were called World Bests and Tracy had World Bests in both breastroke and IM events. This is always a trick question in swimming trivia because people think that Tracy or one of the Spence brothers have had all available records in all of the disciplines. I know the Spences had all of the available records in all of the disciplines but they were different brothers and that is where the confusion is.
I'll join Beth McGee and Allan Stark in voting for Tracy Caulkins. :bow:
I had the great pleasure of coaching in VA when she was swimming for Nashville Aquatic Club and attended at least one a meet a year at which she swam. When she was there I would give my swimmers warmup instructions and sit by the lane in which she was warming up to just watch her. Picked her coach, Paul Bergen's brain often too, learning something priceless each time. That was a fortuitous combination of a special swimmer with exactly the right coach.
Tracy was the most lyrically beautiful 4-stroke swimmer I've ever seen and the only person in history to set World and/or American records in all five disciplines, each stroke plus the IM.
I still have the Aquaforums videos produced around 1980, featuring her on all four strokes. The other featured swimmers were on one video only.
Terry:
Agreement with Tracy Caukins. However there has never been anybody that has had a FINA World Record in all 5 disciplines. Tracy had American Records in all 5 disciplines but had World Records in the Fly and IM events just like Michael Phelps has. FINA did not start giving credit for World Records for Short Course Meters until the early 1990's and I think the date was in 1993 at the first FINA World Short Course Championships in Spain. Up to that point they were called World Bests and Tracy had World Bests in both breastroke and IM events. This is always a trick question in swimming trivia because people think that Tracy or one of the Spence brothers have had all available records in all of the disciplines. I know the Spences had all of the available records in all of the disciplines but they were different brothers and that is where the confusion is.
