Marilyn Ramenofsky (born August 20, 1946) is an American 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 ...

, Olympic medalist, and former world record-holder. She is currently a researcher at the

University of California at Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...

, studying the physiology and behavior of

bird migration Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...

. She has previously done research at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Swimming career

Ramenofsky was named to the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has ...

(AAU) All-America women's swimming teams in 1962, 1963 and 1964.

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 ...

national director Buck Dawson wrote: " amenofskywas the first female to swim a perfect freestyle stroke." She attended

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became ...

in Claremont, California, and trained with the Pomona College men's swim team because the college had no women's team. Ramenofsky set new world-record times for the 400-meter freestyle three times in 1964, including once at the U.S. Olympic Trials, reducing the record to 4:39.5. She also set a new U.S. record in the 220-yard freestyle in 1964, at 2:17.3. At the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this ho ...

in Tokyo, Japan, she represented the United States. She received a silver medal for her second-place performance in the women's 400-meter freestyle, breaking the existing Olympic record with a time of 4:47.7, but finishing behind American teammate

Ginny Duenkel Virginia Ruth Fuldner (née Duenkel; born March 7, 1947), also known as Ginny Fuldner, is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder. At the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, Duenkel medaled in ...

. At the

1961 Maccabiah Games The 6th Maccabiah Games were held in Tel Aviv, Israel in 1961, with 1,100 athletes from 27 countries competing in 18 sports. The Games were officially opened in an Opening Ceremony on August 29, 1961, in Ramat Gan Stadium by Israeli President Yit ...

she won a gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle relay and a bronze in the 400-meter freestyle. At the

1965 Maccabiah Games The 7th Maccabiah Games in 1965 saw 1,500 athletes from 29 different countries compete in 21 sports. It was the first Maccabiah Games for Iran, Jamaica, Peru, and Venezuela. The United States delegation won the most gold medals, followed by Israel, ...

she won gold medals in both the 200-meter and 400-meter freestyles.

Life after swimming

Ramenofsky, who is

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

ish, was inducted into the

International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame ( he, יד לאיש הספורט היהודי, translit=Yad Le'ish HaSport HaYehudi) was opened July 7, 1981 in Netanya, Israel. It honors Jewish athletes and their accomplishments from anywhere around ...

in 1988. Ramenofsky has published numerous peer reviewed articles on the physiology and behavior of migratory birds, most notably the

white-crowned sparrow The white-crowned sparrow (''Zonotrichia leucophrys'') is a species of passerine bird native to North America. A medium-sized member of the New World sparrow family, this species is marked by a grey face and black and white streaking on the uppe ...

. Much of her research has focused on how

glucocorticoids Glucocorticoids (or, less commonly, glucocorticosteroids) are a class of corticosteroids, which are a class of steroid hormones. Glucocorticoids are corticosteroids that bind to the glucocorticoid receptor that is present in almost every vertebr ...

may orchestrate the suite of life history changes associated with

. She now works at UC Davis studying the migration of birds, and changes in their muscle physiology during stages of migration.

References

External links

Marilyn Ramenofsky
– Athlete profile at National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
Image of Marilyn Ramenofsky with coach Peter Daland, California, 1964.

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

Photographic Archive (Collection 1429). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library,

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ramenofsky, Marilyn 1946 births Living people American female freestyle swimmers World record setters in swimming Jewish American sportspeople Jewish swimmers Competitors at the 1961 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1965 Maccabiah Games Maccabiah Games gold medalists for the United States Maccabiah Games bronze medalists for the United States Maccabiah Games medalists in swimming Olympic silver medalists for the United States in swimming Pomona College alumni Sportspeople from Phoenix, Arizona Swimmers at the 1964 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women

Swimming career

Life after swimming

See also

References

External links