Anthony Conrad Nesty (born November 25, 1967) is a former competition

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

from

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the nor ...

who was an Olympic gold medallist in the 100-metre

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group compris ...

event in

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

. He is currently the head coach of the Florida Gators men's and women's swim team at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

, where he attended school.

Early years

Anthony Nesty was born in

Port of Spain Port of Spain ( Spanish: ''Puerto España''), officially the City of Port of Spain (also stylized Port-of-Spain), is the capital of Trinidad and Tobago and the third largest municipality, after Chaguanas and San Fernando. The city has a muni ...

in 1967, the youngest of five children in his family. Nesty's family migrated to Suriname when he was seven months old, and he started swimming at the age of 5. Nesty trained and competed in Suriname and the Caribbean through the beginning of his teenage years. He represented Suriname along with his sister, Pauline, at the

1983 Pan American Games The 1983 Pan American Games were held in Caracas, Venezuela from August 14 to August 29, 1983. The games were the first major international competition to include relatively accurate steroid testing.Taylor, William N., ''Anabolic Steroids and the ...

.Stutgard, Ricky W. (1990
''De eerste Surinaamse sportencyclopedie (1893–1988)''
Alberga, Paramaribo. . p. 137 After placing twenty-first in the 100-metre butterfly at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...

in Los Angeles at just 16 years old, Nesty enrolled in The Bolles School in Jacksonville, Florida, a prep school with an athletic program known for training elite, world-class swimmers. While training under Bolles coach Gregg Troy, Nesty broke the prep school 100-yard butterfly record held by

Pablo Morales Pedro Pablo Morales Jr. (born December 5, 1964) is an American former competitive swimmer. He set world records in the 100-meter butterfly in 1984 and 1986. He was the 100-meter butterfly gold medalist at the 1992 Olympic Games, as well as winn ...

. Breaking Morales's record was the beginning of prominent successes for Nesty. He graduated from the Bolles School in 1987.

International swimming career

Nesty returned to international competition at the

1987 Pan American Games The 1987 Pan American Games, officially known as the X Pan American Games, was a major international multi-sport event held in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, on August 7–23, 1987. Over 4,300 athletes from 38 countries in the America ...

in Indianapolis, Indiana, winning a gold medal in the 100-metre butterfly and a bronze medal in the 200-metre butterfly. At the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

in Seoul, Korea, Nesty edged American favorite

Matt Biondi Matt may refer to: *Matt (name), people with the given name ''Matt'' or Matthew, meaning "gift from God", or the surname Matt *In British English, of a surface: having a non-glossy finish, see gloss (material appearance) *Matt, Switzerland, a mu ...

by one one-hundredth of a second to win the 100-metre butterfly; he finished the event in 53.00 seconds and Biondi in 53.01. Nesty is the only Olympic medal winner from

and after winning his Olympic gold medal, he was unbeaten in the 100-metre butterfly event for three years. Nesty was the first black male athlete and only the second black athlete to win an individual Olympic medal in swimming following

Enith Brigitha Enith Sijtje Maria Brigitha (born 15 April 1955) is a former leading competitive swimmer in the 1970s. She twice represented the Netherlands at the Summer Olympics, starting in 1972 ( Munich, West Germany). She won two bronze medals at the 19 ...

at the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

, and only the second South American swimmer to win an Olympic gold medal after Alberto Zorrilla in the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated fro ...

. Nesty's victory in Seoul was a momentous social and political event for Afro-Caribbeans. The Suriname government commemorated his gold-medal performance on a stamp and on gold and silver coins. A 25-guilders bank note portraying an illustration of a butterfly swimmer was printed in his honor. Surinam Airways named one of its planes after Nesty (this plane was destroyed in an accident while operating as Surinam Airways Flight 764), and the indoor stadium in

Paramaribo Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's po ...

was renamed for him. Nesty won gold medals in the 100-metre butterfly at the

Goodwill Games The Goodwill Games were an international sports competition created by Ted Turner in reaction to the political troubles surrounding the Olympic Games of the 1980s. In 1979, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan caused the United States and other ...

in 1990 and the

FINA World Aquatics Championships The FINA World Championships or World Aquatics Championships are the World Championships for aquatics sports: swimming, diving, high diving, open water swimming, artistic swimming, and water polo. They are run by FINA, and all swimming events ...

in 1991. At the 1991

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is hel ...

in Havana, Cuba, he again won a gold medal in 100-metre butterfly and a silver in the 200-metre butterfly. He attempted to defend his 1988 Olympic gold medal in the 100-metre butterfly at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

in Barcelona, Spain, but finished with a third-place bronze. At the

2008 Summer Olympics Parade of Nations 2008 Summer Olympics Parade of Nations was part of the opening ceremony that originating with the 1896 Olympic Games. The national team from each nation participating in the Olympic Games paraded behind their national flag into the Olympic Stadiu ...

of the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...

, while long retired from competition as an athlete himself, Nesty was invited to be Suriname's flag bearer at the opening ceremony. Nesty was inducted into the

International Swimming Hall of Fame The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests and serving as the central point for the stu ...

(ISHOF) as an "Honor Swimmer" in 1998, and the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 2002.

College swimming career

After winning his gold medal in Seoul, Nesty accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the

in Gainesville, Florida, where he enjoyed a successful swimming career with the Florida Gators swimming and diving team under coach

Randy Reese Randy Reese (born 1946) is an American college and Olympic swimming coach. Reese is best known for coaching the Florida Gators swimming and diving teams of the University of Florida to four national championships, and coaching the winners of e ...

and coach Skip Foster from 1989 to 1992. During his four years of

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

(NCAA) competition, he won three consecutive NCAA individual championships in the 100-yard butterfly (1990, 1991, 1992), one in the 200-yard butterfly (1990), and one as a member of the team's 400-yard medley relay team (1991), and received sixteen All-American honors. Nesty also won eleven

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC) titles—five in individual races and six as a member of Gators relay teams. Nesty graduated from the University of Florida with his bachelor's degree in 1994.

Coaching career

In the mid 1990s, Nesty returned to the Bolles School as a member of the swim coaching staff. Nesty was the associate head coach for the Florida Gators men's swimming team. As of June 4, 2018, he is the head coach for the Florida Gators men's swimming teams. On April 13, 2021, the university announced that Nesty would henceforth also be head coach of the Florida Gators women's swimming team. In November 2021,

Caeleb Dressel Caeleb Remel Dressel (born August 16, 1996) is an American professional swimmer who specializes in freestyle, butterfly, and individual medley events. He swims representing the Cali Condors as part of the International Swimming League. He won ...

would move under Nesty's college group at the University of Florida from his former long-time coach Gregg Troy. Notable swimmers currently under Nesty's direction include

Katie Ledecky Kathleen Genevieve Ledecky (born March 17, 1997) is an American competitive swimmer. She has won seven Olympics, Olympic gold medals and 19 world championship gold medals, the most in history for a female swimmer. Ledecky's six individual gold ...

, Bobby Finke, and

Kieran Smith Kieran Smith is an American swimmer specializing in freestyle and individual medley events. He currently co-holds short course world records in the 4×200 meter freestyle relay and the 4×100 meter medley relay. He is the Americas record hol ...

. In June 2021, Nesty was named Assistant Coach to the U.S. Men's Olympic Swim Team. In February 2022, he was named Head Coach of the U.S. Men's Swim Team for the 2022 FINA World Championships in Budapest.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nesty, Anthony 1967 births Living people Florida Gators men's swimmers Male butterfly swimmers Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for Suriname Olympic gold medalists for Suriname Olympic bronze medalists in swimming Olympic swimmers of Suriname Pan American Games bronze medalists for Suriname Pan American Games gold medalists for Suriname Pan American Games silver medalists for Suriname Pan American Games medalists in swimming Surinamese male swimmers Swimmers at the 1983 Pan American Games Swimmers at the 1984 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1987 Pan American Games Swimmers at the 1988 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1991 Pan American Games Swimmers at the 1992 Summer Olympics World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming Olympic gold medalists in swimming Bolles School alumni Competitors at the 1986 Central American and Caribbean Games Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Suriname Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in swimming Goodwill Games medalists in swimming Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games Medalists at the 1987 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1991 Pan American Games