July 19, 1922 – This was truly a monumental moment in swimming history! American swimmer Johnny Weissmuller became the first person to break the 1-minute mark barrier for the 100-meter freestyle swim. Weissmuller was like a torpedo as he swam the races duration recording a 58.6 second time at a pool in Alameda, California.
The talented athlete set numerous world records along with winning five gold medals in the Olympics for the US. Johnny won the 100m freestyle and the 4 × 200 m relay team event in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris and the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. Weissmuller also won gold in the 400m freestyle, as well as a bronze medal in the water polo competition in Paris.
His Olympic fame and good looks had him cast into films in Hollywood including the 1932 movie of “Tarzan the Apeman” in which he developed the famous Tarzan yell that is still associated with the vine-swinging hero today.
To find more great daily sports history make sure to check out the Sports Jersey Dispatch and Pigskin Dispatch.
More From Sports History Network
Kicking Cousins–Anglo and American Football Ties
You’re a freshman at Harvard in 1827. It’s Bloody Monday. You’re out on the
Inside the Record Makers Invitational: The Weightlifting Showdown of the 80s
I started Olympic Weightlifting in 1981, and up to that point, I didn’t know
Ric Flair’s Fake Heart Attack: The Shocking WCW Moment That Fooled Fans
A few weeks ago I found an Instagram video of Ric Flair having a
Victorian Football: From Mob Rule to Class Rule
In the early 1800s, British football begins to slowly take a more orderly form,
1963 New York Yankees: A Season of Dominance, A World Series To Forget
After winning the World Series in 1961 and 1962 under Manager Ralph Houk, the
From Elegant Ancient Chinese Footballers to the United Kingdom’s Crude Rabble
Over the last two millennia, humans have dotted the world with football. Connect these
The Best NFL Division in 1975 (AFC Central)
The American Football Conference’s Central Division was unquestionably the best division in pro football
Chuck Noll’s 1972 Steelers: How a Rookie and a Defense Built a Legacy
From 1933 (their first season in the NFL) through 1971, the Pittsburgh Steelers had