Michael Gross (swimmer)
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| Medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Men's Swimming | |||
| Competitor for Image:Flag of Germany.svg West Germany | |||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Gold | 1984 Los Angeles | 200m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1984 Los Angeles | 100m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1988 Seoul | 200m Butterfly | |
| Silver | 1984 Los Angeles | 200m Butterfly | |
| Silver | 1984 Los Angeles | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1988 Seoul | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| World Championships (LC) | |||
| Gold | 1982 Guayaquil | 200m Freestyle | |
| Silver | 1982 Guayaquil | 100m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1982 Guayaquil | 200m Butterfly | |
| Bronze | 1982 Guayaquil | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1982 Guayaquil | 4x100m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1986 Madrid | 200m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1986 Madrid | 200m Butterfly | |
| Silver | 1986 Madrid | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Silver | 1986 Madrid | 4x100m Medley | |
| Silver | 1991 Perth | 100m Butterfly | |
| Silver | 1991 Perth | 200m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1991 Perth | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1991 Perth | 4x100m Freestyle | |
| European Championships (LC) | |||
| Gold | 1981 Split | 200m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1983 Rome | 200m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1983 Rome | 100m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1983 Rome | 200m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1983 Rome | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1985 Sofia | 200m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1985 Sofia | 100m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1985 Sofia | 200m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1985 Sofia | 4x100m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1985 Sofia | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Gold | 1985 Sofia | 4x100m Medley | |
| Gold | 1987 Strasbourg | 200m Butterfly | |
| Gold | 1987 Strasbourg | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Silver | 1981 Split | 4x200m Freestyle | |
| Silver | 1987 Strasbourg | 100m Butterfly | |
| Silver | 1987 Strasbourg | 4x100m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 1981 Split | 4x100m Freestyle | |
Michael Gross (born June 17, 1964 in Frankfurt) is a former swimmer from Germany. A 202 cm (6 ft 7 in) athlete, he received nickname "The Albatross", due to his super long arms which gave him a total span of 2.27 m. Gross, competing for West Germany, won three Olympic gold medals, two in 1984 and one in 1988 in the freestyle and butterfly events, in addition to two World Championship titles in 1982, two in 1986 and one in 1991.
[edit] Career
Gross was probably the finest swimmer in the world in the 200 m butterfly race from 1981 to 1988. In this period he set four world records, won two world titles, four european titles and one Olympic gold medal. He is perhaps the finest European Swimmer ever.
The sole exception occurred in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, when Gross was one of the great athletes of the games. Gross easily won gold in the 200m freestyle, dominating the field. In the 100m butterfly, Gross pulled off a bit of an upset, winning over the favorite in the event, American Pablo Morales. However, in the 200m butterfly, Gross himself was upset by a relative unknown, Australian Jon Sieben. The men's 4x200m freestyle relay race became one of the marquee events of the games, with Gross leading the German relay against the underdog American squad. Despite the fact that Gross swam the fastest relay leg in the event's history, the American team pulled off the upset, earning the title of the Grossbusters.
Gross won a total of thirteen medals at the World Championships (including five gold), fifteen gold medals at the European Championships and was elected German "Athlete of the Year" four times (1982, 1983, 1984 and 1988). He retired from professional swimming in 1991.
He is featured in Bud Greenspan's 16 Days of Glory, the documentary film of the 1984 Summer Olympics.
1976 gold medal winning swimmer John Naber remarked to Sports Illustrated in 1984 that if Michael Gross were an American, he would have won six or seven medals, and that Gross was better than Mark Spitz.
He was named Male World Swimmer of the Year in 1985 by Swimming World magazine and admitted to the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1995.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Michael Gross at the Internet Movie Database
- {http://www.ishof.org/honorees/95/95mgross.html ISHOF Bio}
Olympic champions in men's 200 m freestyle |
|---|
1900: Frederick Lane | 1968: Michael Wenden | 1972: Mark Spitz | 1976: Bruce Furniss | 1980: Sergey Kopliakov | 1984: Michael Gross | 1988: Duncan Armstrong | 1992: Yevgeny Sadovyi | 1996: Danyon Loader | 2000: Pieter van den Hoogenband | 2004: Ian Thorpe |
Olympic champions in men's 100 m butterfly |
|---|
1968: Doug Russell | 1972: Mark Spitz | 1976: Matt Vogel | 1980: Pär Arvidsson | 1984: Michael Gross | 1988: Anthony Nesty | 1992: Pablo Morales | 1996: Denis Pankratov | 2000: Lars Frölander | 2004: Michael Phelps |
Olympic champions in men's 200 m butterfly |
|---|
1956: William Yorzyk | 1960: Michael Troy | 1964: Kevin Berry | 1968: Carl Robie | 1972: Mark Spitz | 1976: Mike Bruner | 1980: Sergey Fesenko | 1984: Jon Sieben | 1988: Michael Gross | 1992: Melvin Stewart | 1996: Denis Pankratov | 2000: Tom Malchow | 2004: Michael Phelps |
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Gross, Michael |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Groß, Michael (German) |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | West German swimmer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 17 1964 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Frankfurt, Hesse, West Germany |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
fr:Michael Gross (nageur) hr:Michael Groß it:Michael Gross (nuotatore) he:מיכאל גרוס (שחיין) nl:Michael Gross (zwemmer) ja:ミヒャエル・グロス ru:Гросс, Михаэль sl:Michael Gross (plavalec) fi:Michael Gross
Categories: 1964 births | Living people | People from Frankfurt | German swimmers | Swimmers at the 1984 Summer Olympics | Swimmers at the 1988 Summer Olympics | Swimming World World Swimmers of the Year | Olympic swimmers of West Germany | Olympic gold medalists for West Germany | Olympic silver medalists for West Germany | Olympic bronze medalists for West Germany
