Photos: Your Favorite Summer Olympian
Recall the athletes who capture our imaginations every four years and let us know who is your favorite
- By Channing Holman, Kat J. McAlpine, Jeanie Riess, K. Annabelle Smith and Ayesha Venkataraman
- Smithsonian.com, August 01, 2012
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(© Bettmann/CORBIS)
Johnny Weissmuller, Swimming
The dominant swimmer of the 1920s, Johnny Weissmuller set 67 world records and won five Olympic gold medals in a sport he first took up as a way of combating polio when he was 9 years old. He attained Olympic glory for freestyle swimming, using the distinctive six-beat crawl stroke, thought to be first-developed by him and his Olympian rival, Duke Kahanamoku. Weissmuller’s athleticism and movie-star good looks led to his becoming one, and he played a bare-chested, yodeling Tarzan in 12 films—a role that arguably became his most enduring legacy. Even cooler perhaps is that he is one of the many faces on the cover of The Beatles’ iconic album, Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. --AV
Vote for your favorite now!
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Comments (1)
Undoubtedly, the most fun "sport" was reviewing these 24 Greatest Olympians, then trying to pick a favorite! Thanks Smithsonian for a thorough look at OUR Greatest Athletes of All Time. And now I have to go back & change my vote, again, to The Dream Team!!! Shirley J. Pringle, Miami, FL USA
Posted by Shirley Pringle on August 2,2012 | 10:09 AM