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Mark Andrew Spitz (born February 10, 1950) is an American former competitive swimmer and nine-time Olympic champion. He was the most successful athlete at the
1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 19 ...
in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...
, winning seven gold medals, each in world-record time. This achievement lasted for 36 years, until it was surpassed by fellow American Michael Phelps, who won eight golds at 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 ...
in
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 ...
. Between 1968 and 1972, Spitz won nine Olympic golds, a silver, and a bronze, in addition to five Pan American golds, 31
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 h ...
(AAU) titles, and eight
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) titles. During those years he set 35 world records, two of which were in trials and unofficial. ''
Swimming World Magazine ''Swimming World'' is a US-based monthly swimming magazine that was first published in a magazine format as ''Junior Swimmer'' in January 1960. It concurrently runs online websites ''Swimming World Magazine'' and ''Swimming World News'', (known ...
'' named him World Swimmer of the Year in 1969, 1971, and 1972. He was the third athlete to win nine Olympic gold medals.


Early life

Spitz was born on February 10, 1950, in
Modesto, California Modesto () is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,464 at the 2020 census, it is the 19th largest city in the state of California and forms part of the Sacramento-Stockton- ...
, the first of three children of Lenore Sylvia (Smith) and Arnold Spitz. His family is
Jewish 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""The ...
; his father's family was from Hungary and his mother's, originally surnamed "Sklotkovick", were from Russia. When Spitz was two years old, his family moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, where he swam at
Waikiki Waikiki (; haw, Waikīkī; ; also known as Waikiki Beach) is a neighborhood of Honolulu on the south shore of the island of Oahu in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Waikiki is most famous for Waikiki Beach, which is one of six beaches in the distri ...
beach every day. "You should have seen that little boy dash into the ocean. He'd run like he was trying to commit suicide," Lenore Spitz told a reporter for ''Time'' in 1968. At age six, his family returned to
Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
, and he began to compete at his local swim club. At age nine, he was training at Arden Hills Swim Club in Sacramento with swimming coach
Sherm Chavoor Sherm Chavoor (1919 – September 3, 1992) was a swimming coach from the United States. He notably coached Olympic swimmers Mark Spitz, Debbie Meyer and Mike Burton, among others at Arden Hills Swimming and Tennis Club, in Carmichael, California ...
, who mentored six additional Olympic medal winners. Spitz held one world age-group record and 17 national records at the age of 10. When Spitz was 14, his family moved to Santa Clara, where he joined the Santa Clara Swim Club and was trained by coach George F. Haines. From 1964 to 1968, Mark trained with Haines at SCSC and Santa Clara High School. During his four years there, Mark held national high school records in every stroke and in every distance. In 1966 at age 16, he won the 100-meter butterfly at the AAU national championships, the first of his 24 total AAU titles. The following year, Spitz emerged on the world swimming stage when he set his first world record at a small California meet with a time of 4:10.60 in the 400-meter freestyle.


Swimming career


Maccabiah Games

Spitz swam in his first international competition at the 1965 Maccabiah Games in Israel. At age 15 and weighing 130 pounds, he won four gold medals in Tel Aviv—the 400 m freestyle, the 1,500 freestyle, the 400 m individual medley, and the 800 m freestyle relay, and was named the most outstanding athlete of the Games. He returned to Israel in 1969 following the Mexico Olympics to again compete, at the 1969 Maccabiah Games. This time, he won six gold medals. He was again named outstanding athlete of the Games. In 1985, Spitz lit the torch to open the
1985 Maccabiah Games The 12th Maccabiah Games brought over 4,000 athletes to Israel from 38 nations to compete in 28 sports. History The Maccabiah Games were first held in 1932. In 1961, they were declared a "Regional Sports Event" by, and under the auspices and super ...
. In 2005, he was a member of the U.S. delegation at the
2005 Maccabiah Games The 17th Maccabiah Games ( he, המכביה ה-17 ישראל תשס"ה), held in Israel, were an incarnation of the 'Jewish Olympics.' They attracted the largest attendance of any Maccabiah Games, including more than 900 representatives from the Un ...
. He spoke at the JCC Maccabiah Games Opening Ceremonies, which was held in Richmond, Virginia. The Weinstein JCC in Richmond was one of the Host JCC's for the 2005 games, with over 1,000 teenagers participating in various sports, including swimming.


Pan American Games

He won five gold medals at the
1967 Pan American Games The 1967 Pan American Games were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from July 23 to August 6, 1967. Winnipeg was chosen as host of the Pan American Games on its second try. It first bid for the 1963 Games at the 1959 PASO meeting in Chicag ...
, setting a record that lasted until 2007 when Brazilian swimmer,
Thiago Pereira Thiago Machado Vilela Pereira (born 26 January 1986) is a retired Brazilian international competition swimmer. One of the greatest swimmers in the history of Brazil, Pereira won the silver medal in the 400-meter individual medley at the 2012 S ...
, won six golds at the XV Pan American Games in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
.


1968 Olympics

Spitz was already the holder of ten world records, and he brashly predicted that he would win six gold medals at the
1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport ev ...
in
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. However, he won only two team golds: the 4×100-meter freestyle relay in 3:31.70, and the 4×200-meter freestyle relay in 7:52.33.Mark Spitz
. sports-reference.com
In addition, Spitz finished second to fellow American Doug Russell in the 100-meter butterfly. He lost to Russell by a half second, despite holding the world record and having beaten Russell the previous ten times they had swum against each other that year. Russell did briefly match Spitz's world record in late August 1967, holding the record equally with Spitz for five days before Spitz regained it solely on October 2, 1967. As a result of being beaten by Russell, Spitz did not get to swim in the 4×100-meter medley relay, which gave Russell his second gold medal and the USA team another world record performance.


College training

Spitz was disappointed in his 1968 Olympic performance. in January 1969, he decided to attend
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...
to train with legendary Indiana Hoosiers swimming coach
Doc Counsilman James Edward "Doc" Counsilman (December 28, 1920 – January 4, 2004)
P ...
, who was also his Olympic coach in
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. He called choosing Indiana and Counsilman "the biggest decision of my life (and) the best." While at Indiana, Spitz won eight individual
NCAA 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 ...
titles. In 1971, he won the
James E. Sullivan Award The AAU James E. Sullivan Award, presented by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), is awarded annually in April to "the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States". Representatives from the AAU created the AAU Sullivan Award with the int ...
as the top amateur athlete in the United States. Spitz also set a number of world records during the U.S. Olympic Swim Trials held in Chicago's
Portage Park Portage Park is a park in the Portage Park community area of Chicago, Illinois on the National Register of Historic Places. The park stretches from Irving Park Road on the south to Berteau Avenue between Central and Long Avenues. The largest p ...
in 1972. He was nicknamed "Mark the Shark" by his teammates.


1972 Olympics

At the
1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 19 ...
in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...
, Spitz was back to repeat his quest for the six gold medals. He did even better, winning seven Olympic gold medals. Furthermore, Spitz set a new world record in each of the seven events – 100-meter freestyle (51.22), 200-meter freestyle (1:52.78), 100-meter butterfly (54.27), 200-meter butterfly (2:00.70), 4×100-meter freestyle relay (3:26.42), 4×200-meter freestyle relay (7:35.78), and 4×100-meter medley relay (3:48.16). Spitz was originally reluctant to swim the 100-meter freestyle, fearing that he would not win the gold medal. Minutes before the race, he confessed on the pool deck to ABC's Donna de Varona, "I know I say I don't want to swim before every event, but this time I'm serious. If I swim six and win six, I'll be a hero. If I swim seven and win six, I'll be a failure." Spitz won by half a stroke in a world-record time of 51.22 seconds. Spitz is one of five Olympians to win nine or more career gold medals:
Larisa Latynina Larisa Semyonovna Latynina (russian: link=yes, Лариса Семёновна Латынина, née Diriy, Дирий; born 27 December 1934) is a former Soviet artistic gymnast. Between 1956 and 1964 she won 14 individual Olympic medals and ...
,
Paavo Nurmi Paavo Johannes Nurmi (; 13 June 1897 – 2 October 1973) was a Finnish middle-distance and long-distance runner. He was called the "Flying Finn" or the "Phantom Finn", as he dominated distance running in the 1920s. Nurmi set 22 official worl ...
, and
Carl Lewis Frederick Carlton Lewis (born July 1, 1961) is an American former track and field athlete who won nine Olympic gold medals, one Olympic silver medal, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. His career spanned from 1979 to 1996 ...
also have nine; only Phelps has won more with 23. Spitz's record of seven gold medals in a single Olympics was not surpassed until Phelps broke the record at 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 ...
. After he had completed his events, Spitz left Munich early as a result of the
Munich Massacre The Munich massacre was a terrorist attack carried out during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany, by eight members of the Palestinian militant organization Black September, who infiltrated the Olympic Village, killed two members ...
, where eleven Israeli athletes were taken hostage and later murdered by Palestinian terrorists. Being Jewish himself, there was concern among the Olympic authorities that Spitz would become a likely target for the Palestinians and he was escorted to London for his own safety. It is believed that he was escorted out of the country by US Marines stationed in West Germany.


Retirement

Following the Munich Olympics, Spitz retired from competition even though he was only 22 years old. At age 41, Spitz attempted a comeback for 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 ...
after filmmaker
Bud Greenspan Jonah J. "Bud" Greenspan (September 18, 1926December 25, 2010) was an American film director, writer, and producer known for his sports documentaries. His distinctive appearance in later years included wearing his large, dark-framed glasses atop ...
offered him a million dollars if he succeeded in qualifying. Spitz's comeback attempt made the cover of ''Parade'' and was also reported on in ''Sports Illustrated'' and ''Esquire''. Filmed by Greenspan's cameras, Spitz was two seconds slower than the Olympic standard and failed to qualify. In 1999, Spitz ranked No. 33 on ''
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
SportsCentury 50 Greatest Athletes'', the only aquatic athlete to make the list.


Hall of Fame

*
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 ...
, Inducted 1977. *
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 ...
, Inducted 1979. * United States Olympic Hall of Fame, Inducted 1983. *
Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, in Beverly Hills, California, is a hall of fame dedicated to honoring American Jewish athletes, other sports personalities, and teams from Southern California who have distinguished themsel ...
Inducted 1990. * San Jose Sports Hall of Fame, inducted Wednesday, November 14, 2007. *
National Jewish Museum Sports Hall of Fame The National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, in Commack, New York, is dedicated to honoring American Jewish figures who have distinguished themselves in sports. Its objective is to foster Jewish identity through athletics, and to comme ...
, Inducted 2007. * Long Beach City College Hall of Fame, Inducted 2007 * Indiana University Athletics Hall of Fame


Film and television career

After Spitz retired from competitive swimming at age 22, he was managed by the William Morris Agency, which tried to get him into
show business Show business, sometimes shortened to show biz or showbiz (since 1945), is a vernacular term for all aspects of the entertainment industry.''Oxford English Dictionary'' 2nd Ed. (1989) From the business side (including managers, agents, produce ...
while he was still a household name due to his athletic success. A poster featuring Spitz wearing his swimsuit and seven gold medals made him the hottest
pin-up A pin-up model (known as a pin-up girl for a female and less commonly male pin-up for a male) is a model whose mass-produced pictures see widespread appeal as part of popular culture. Pin-up models were variously glamour models, fashion models ...
since
Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million; for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she reign ...
. In Spitz's TV debut, he appeared as himself in a skit as a dentist on a
Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with ...
special that aired October 5, 1972. In 1973–74, Spitz appeared on TV's ''
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' was an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the ''Tonight Show'' franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, ...
'' and '' The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour''. On the TV drama '' Emergency!'', he portrayed Pete Barlow, whose wife (played by Spitz's wife, Suzy) is accidentally shot by a handgun in an overfull drawer. He also appeared briefly on '' The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast'' of California Governor
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
in September 1973. Spitz went to work for
ABC Sports ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Televisi ...
in 1976 and worked on many sports presentations, including coverage of 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 ...
in Montreal and 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. In 1985 he appeared as a TV announcer in ''
Challenge of a Lifetime ''Challenge of a Lifetime'' is a 1985 American sports drama television film directed by Russ Mayberry and written by Peachy Markowitz. Starring Penny Marshall and Jonathan Silverman, the film focuses on a 35-year-old woman entering a triathlon. ...
''. He continued as a broadcaster for some time, but within a few years, he was hardly seen as a public figure except perhaps as a commentator for swimming events like the
2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
. Instead Spitz focused on his
real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more genera ...
company in
Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...
and hobbies such as sailing.


Narration

Spitz narrated ''
Freedom's Fury ''Freedom's Fury'' is a documentary film about the semifinal water polo match between Hungary and the USSR at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. The match took place against the background of the Hungarian Revolution, that was bruta ...
'', a 2006 Hungarian documentary about the Olympic
water polo Water polo is a competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the ball into the opposing team's goal. The team with th ...
team's Blood in the Water match against the Soviet Union during the Revolution of 1956—considered among the most famous water polo matches. The film was executive produced by
Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, dark humor, non-linear storylines, cameos, ensembl ...
and
Lucy Liu Lucy Alexis Liu is an American actress. Her accolades include winning a Critics' Choice Television Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Seoul International Drama Award, in addition to nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award. Liu has sta ...
, and made its debut at the
Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. Tribeca was f ...
.


Commercials

He appeared in an advertisement for the California Milk Advisory Board. One of his print advertisements featured the caption "I always drink it-is something I like to do. I want to be loved by the mothers." In 1974, he was in a number of Schick razors commercials. In 1998 he appeared with
Evel Knievel Robert Craig "Evel" Knievel (; October 17, 1938 – November 30, 2007) was an American stunt performer and entertainer. Over the course of his career, he attempted more than 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps. Knievel was inducted into the Motor ...
in a TV commercial for
PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a di ...
. In 2004, he appeared in a TV commercial for Sprint PCS. Then in November 2007, Spitz made a
cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
on Amanda Beard's first television commercial (for GoDaddy) featuring her own seven Olympic medals (won between 1996 and 2004). The ad was entitled "Shock". Also, in 2007 he appeared in the infomercial for the "Orbitrek Elite" fitness workout. In 2012, Spitz appeared in a commercial for Ageless Male, a testosterone supplement. In a 2019 commercial, Spitz pitched a personal EKG device by KardiaMobile. In 2022, Spitz endorsed the health supplement Relief Factor.


Personal life


Family life

When Spitz returned from the Olympics, he began dating Suzy Weiner, a
UCLA 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 ...
theater student and part-time model, who also was the daughter of one of his father's business acquaintances. Less than a year after the Munich Olympics, they were married on May 6, 1973, in a traditional Jewish service at the Beverly Hills Hotel. They have two sons, Matthew (born October 1981) and Justin (born September 1991). Justin was a member of the Stanford swim team. Spitz and his wife reside in
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
.


Education

At
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...
from 1968 to 1972, Spitz was a pre-dental student and member of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. ''Time'' magazine asked him if he wanted to return to dental school after the Olympics. "I always wanted to be a dentist from the time I was in high school, and I was accepted to dental school in the spring of 1972. I was planning to go, but after the Olympics there were other opportunities. I did some television and speaking engagements, and things just went from there." Spitz graduated from Indiana University in 1972.


Post-swimming career

After Spitz's return to the United States following the 1972 Olympics, he landed several lucrative corporate endorsement contracts. He earned about $7 million in a two-year period. "A million dollars in 1972 would be equivalent to more than $10 million today," Spitz said in 2007. "I did very well, thank you very much." Spitz added, "I would say I was a pioneer. There wasn't anyone who'd gone to the Olympics before me who capitalized the same way on opportunity. It depends on timing, it depends on hype, it depends on the economy, and most importantly, it depends on looks. I mean, I've never seen a magazine of uglies. That's our society. I'm not saying it's right. That's just the facts." Spitz went on to start a real estate company. Per his official website, Spitz is self-employed as a corporate spokesperson and motivational speaker. However, Sports Yahoo! lists his occupation as a stock broker and motivational speaker. According to one interview, "Spitz became a stockbroker in 2002 and has since moved into private equity. He is now also dabbling in the 'water business', as he calls it, and is in negotiations to build a water-bottling facility on aquifer-rich land that he and a business partner own." Spitz has pursued various entrepreneurial projects with former NBA player Rick Barry. He travels the world, delivering about 25 lectures a year. His biography, ''The Extraordinary Life of An Olympic Champion'' by Richard J. Foster, was released in July 2008. In July 2012, he endorsed
Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...
's bid to host the
2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...
, but the award went to
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...
.


Hobbies

His hobbies include sailing, skiing and collecting art.


Famous moustache during Olympics

In an era when other swimmers, male and female, were shaving body hair, he swam with a moustache. When asked why he initially grew one he stated "I grew the moustache because a coach in college said I couldn't grow one." Spitz said he originally grew the moustache as a form of rebellion against the clean-cut look imposed on him in college. "It took a long time to grow," he said. It took four months to grow, but Spitz was proud of it, he decided the moustache was a "good-luck piece". Mark Spitz is quoted as saying, "When I went to the Olympics, I had every intention of shaving the moustache off, but I realized I was getting so many comments about it—and everybody was talking about it—that I decided to keep it. I had some fun with a Russian coach who asked me if my moustache slowed me down. I said, 'No, as a matter of fact, it deflects water away from my mouth, allows my rear end to rise and make me bullet-shaped in the water, and that's what had allowed me to swim so great.' According to a ''Sports Illustrated'' article, on February 14, 1988, after talking about shaving off his moustache for a year, he finally did. "He looked great with it, don't get me wrong," explained his wife Suzy, "but he looks so handsome without it." When he was asked why he shaved it off he responded "well, one, I'm not swimming anymore; two, it started to turn gray; and three, my wife had never seen me, nor my family, without the moustache ... I'm happy ithout it" He also commented on his moustache in a live, in-studio interview with KCRA host Mike TeSelle on June 14, 2008, Spitz stating that he no longer maintains his iconic moustache because it had become "too gray",


Health issues

After retirement, Spitz was diagnosed with acid reflux disease, a condition from which his physician thinks he suffered throughout his career. "During my Olympic training, I attributed the symptoms f acid refluxto an overexposure to chlorine and eating too soon before and after swimming," says Spitz. "It wasn't until the symptoms began to get in the way of my 1976 Olympic broadcasting career in Montreal, which was four years after retirement that I suspected something more serious must be happening." He has also reported having high cholesterol and other chronic health issues. "People don't believe that I have high cholesterol, but it's a fact," said Spitz. "I take medication every day because my doctor told me that diet and exercise are not enough to keep my cholesterol down." He is a paid spokesperson for Medco, a pharmacy benefit management company.


Olympic controversies


1972 medal podium incident

In 1972, Spitz was accused of
product placement Product placement, also known as embedded marketing, is a marketing technique where references to specific brands or products are incorporated into another work, such as a film or television program, with specific promotional intent. Much of th ...
during the medal ceremony. Following his victory in the 200-meter freestyle, Spitz carried his shoes and arrived barefoot to obtain his gold medal. He put them down as the American national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner" was played. After the anthem, he picked up his shoes and waved to the crowd. The Soviets saw this as product placement. When questioned by the IOC, Spitz explained that the gesture was innocent, the shoes were old and he was not paid. The IOC cleared him of any wrongdoing.


Issues with 2008 Summer Olympics

Spitz has said that he felt snubbed by not being asked to attend 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 ...
to watch Michael Phelps attempt to break his seven-gold-medal record: "I never got invited. You don't go to the Olympics just to say, I am going to go. Especially because of who I am. ... I am going to sit there and watch Michael Phelps break my record anonymously? That's almost demeaning to me. It is not almost—it is." Spitz added, "They voted me one of the top five Olympians of all time. Some of them are dead. But they invited the other ones to go to the Olympics, but not me," he said. "Yes, I am a bit upset about it." Spitz has stated that he has no hard feelings towards Phelps. However, on August 14, 2008, Spitz appeared on NBC's '' Today Show'' where he clarified his statement and his pride in Michael Phelps: Also on August 14, 2008, in an interview aired on Los Angeles KNBC-4's morning news show, '' Today in L.A.'', Spitz was quoted saying he does believe that "Michael Phelps is the greatest Olympic athlete ever." On August 15, 2008, as part of an interview on NBC, Spitz said that he felt Phelps's performance in the 100 fly in Beijing was "epic". Spitz paid this compliment to Phelps just two hours after his record-tying seventh gold medal during a live joint interview with
Bob Costas Robert Quinlan Costas (born March 22, 1952) is an American sportscaster who is known for his long tenure with NBC Sports, from 1980 through 2019. He has received 28 Emmy awards for his work and was the prime-time host of 12 Olympic Games from 19 ...
: In 2015, Spitz allegedly claimed that he had seen an email from Omega, the official timekeeper, that Phelps had lost the closely contested 100m butterfly final in 2008. He later claimed that his quote had been "misconstrued".


Views on drug testing

Mark Spitz has been consistent in his criticism of the two swimming world bodies, FINA and the IOC, in their incomplete attempts to keep drugs out of the sport. He has felt that not enough has been done to monitor and encourage drug-free participation. In 1998 he criticized FINA for its "embarrassing" attempts to stamp out drug abuse, urging them to test for all known drugs. In September 1999 Spitz said the IOC had the technology to test for a plethora of drugs but was refusing to do so because of some IOC member protests. During a radio interview in Australia, Spitz was quoted as saying "They don't want to test for everything because there's tremendous pressure from the television networks because they want the television to have athletic competitions with the world record holders there for the finals. They want the medals not to be tainted in their value of accomplishment by winning them, and it's all about ratings and commercial selling of time and about money. And an International Olympic Committee has got their hand in the pockets of the network television people, so there's a tremendous conflict of interest in what they should do and what they're doing." In August 2008, the ''Los Angeles Times'' reported that Spitz continued to discuss drug testing and was saying "the IOC has sponsors who demand a good show. Television pays the IOC for the rights to that good show, and its sponsors want that too. Drug news and drug distractions are not a good show. People are not going to tune in to see athletes have their medals taken away from them."


See also

*
List of Indiana University (Bloomington) people This is a list of notable current and former faculty members, alumni, and non-graduating attendees of Indiana University Bloomington in Bloomington, Indiana. Presidents of Indiana University Academics *R.J.Q. Adams, B.S., 1965, professor of ...
* List of multiple Olympic gold medalists * List of multiple Olympic gold medalists at a single Games *
List of multiple Summer Olympic medalists This page is a list of various individuals who are multiple Olympic medalists at the Summer Olympics. List of multiple Summer Olympic medalists This list shows only the athletes who have won ''at least eight medals'' at the Summer Olympics. Mo ...
* List of select Jewish swimmers *
List of top Olympic gold medalists in swimming This is the top 15 male Olympic swimming gold medals. This is the top 15 female Olympic swimming gold medalists: Individual events All swimmers with at least four individual gold medals are listed. Men Women See also * List of World A ...
*
World record progression 100 metres butterfly The first world record in the 100 metres butterfly in long course (50 metres) swimming was recognised by the International Swimming Federation (FINA) in 1957, for both men and women. In the short-course (25 metres) swimming events, t ...
* World record progression 100 metres freestyle *
World record progression 200 metres butterfly This is a history of the progression of the World Record for the Swimming event: the 200 Butterfly. It is a listing of the fastest-time-ever swum in the event, in both long course (50m) and short course (25m) swimming pool. These records are main ...
* World record progression 200 metres freestyle * World record progression 400 metres freestyle * World record progression 4 × 100 metres medley relay *
World record progression 4 × 200 metres freestyle relay In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...


References


External links


MarSpitzUSA.com
– Official website of Mark Spitz



* * * * , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Spitz, Mark 1950 births Living people American male butterfly swimmers American male freestyle swimmers American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent World record setters in swimming Indiana Hoosiers men's swimmers International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame inductees James E. Sullivan Award recipients Jewish American sportspeople Jewish swimmers Competitors at the 1965 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1969 Maccabiah Games Maccabiah Games gold medalists for the United States Maccabiah Games medalists in swimming Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Swimmers from California Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in swimming Olympic gold medalists for the United States in swimming Olympic silver medalists for the United States in swimming Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in swimming Sportspeople from Modesto, California Sportspeople from Sacramento, California Swimmers at the 1967 Pan American Games Swimmers at the 1968 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1972 Summer Olympics Swimming commentators Medalists at the 1967 Pan American Games 21st-century American Jews