George Gleason

Who is George Gleason?

George Gleason is a retired U.S. Virgin Islands swimmer, who specialized in freestyle and backstroke events. He is a two-time Olympian, a swimming captain for the Yale Bulldogs, and a graduate of sociology at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Gleason also capped his swimming career by an eleventh-place finish in the 200 m backstroke at the NCAA Swimming Championships in College Station, Texas, earning him All-American honors.

Gleason made his official debut, as U.S. Virgin Islands' only swimmer, at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He failed to advance into the semifinals in any of his individual events, placing thirty-ninth in the 200 m freestyle and forty-second each in the 100 m freestyle and 200 m individual medley.

At the 2002 FINA World Swimming Championships in Moscow, Gleason tackled an extended program of five swimming events, highlighted by a 16th place finish in the 200 metre freestyle where he challenged 8 other swimmers in heat 7, including Olympic medalist George Bovell of Trinidad and Tobago, who out-touched Gleason by 0.03 seconds.