Bill Smith

Who was Bill Smith?

William Melvin Smith, Jr. was an American former competition swimmer, two-time Olympic champion, and a former world record-holder in four events. He was one of the most successful competitive swimmers in the United States in the first half of the 20th Century.

Smith was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, of mixed Irish and Hawaiian ancestry. He attended Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, and swam for the Ohio State Buckeyes swimming and diving team in National Collegiate Athletic Association competition. As a college swimmer, he was undefeated in three years of dual meet competition, and was a four-time All-American. He set seven world records and won fourteen U.S. national championships: seven NCAA, six AAU indoor and one AAU outdoor.

At the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England, Smith won gold medals in the men's 400-meter freestyle and 4x200-meter freestyle relay. At one time, Smith held all of the world records in freestyle swimming events between the 200-meter and 1,000-meter distances.

Smith was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer" in 1966. He died February 8, 2013; he was 88 years old.