Peter the Great

by Chris Morgan 7

April 15th, 2012 International, News, Training

(This is Part 1 of a 2 part  series which we will post during the South African Olympic Trials in Durban, South Africa from April 16th to April 22nd.)

 

On the eve of the South African Olympic Trials at the Kings Aquatic Centre in Durban, South Africa, all eyes (and diehard swimming result junkies like me) will be following the ups and downs of the SA results; who makes the team, who misses out, and who surprises! Those who have somewhat followed the swimming results in South Africa over the last decade will of course remember the “upset” 4×100 freestyle relay at the 2004 Games in Athens, Greece; or, how about the great breaststroke performances from Penny Heyns and Terence Parkin in the 2000 Games in Sydney (Bronze and Silver respectively). Finally, nobody in swimming has forgotten the great Jonty Skinner, whose career was made complicated by the unforgettable Apartheid.

Unbeknownst to many swimming fans of South Africa, there has been a coach quietly yet methodically tinkering away with swim technique and training theories for the past 15 years. His name is Peter Williams. Peter was a swimmer, not a good swimmer…an AMAZING swimmer. He was once the worlds’ fastest man! On April 10th, 1988, Peter broke the World Record in the 50m freestyle. His time of 22.18 is still considered fast when compared to all the crazy “suit enhanced” times of the last few years. Unfortunately, as was the case earlier on with Jonty Skinner, the political situation in South Africa prevented Peter from attending the Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea in the summer of 1988. The only appearance Peter made at the 1988 Games was in the whisperings and conversations of some coaches and top swimmers that Peter’s time was, “the time to beat!”

Not long after, Peter had a short, yet successful career at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (when they still had a men’s swimming team). He received a scholarship, swam for the team and reached the NCAA finals. In 1992, with the fall of Apartheid, Peter was finally able to go for GOLD during the Barcelona Games in Spain–result…4th place, the “chocolate medal.” This unfortunate result, however, probably sparked the journey which Peter would undertake…the next 5 years Peter would dabble in the world of coaching, and fortunately, for a privileged group of athletes, especially 2 young men, Peter would find his calling with a small club in Johannesburg, South Africa named WATERBORN

to be continued!

Chris Morgan is a swimming coach in search of the next pool, the next set, and the most creative workouts. Follow him on Twitter @swim4chris

7
Leave a Reply

Subscribe
Notify of

7 Comments
newest
oldest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Francois Boshoff
8 years ago

Gr8 article! Pet has been my mate for more than 20y. I coached with him at WB for 7y before i left to coach in Richards Bay. Hope the article mentions that he has a hart of gold. His critics might disagree. What im trying to say is that doesnt matter what people say or think bout Pet its time we recognise what he has done for our sport but more importantley…what can he still do for swimming. This might shock people but i know the man and he can do for swimming in SA what Bill Sweetenham did for Aus!

Hilton
Reply to  Francois Boshoff
8 years ago

France no true words spoke, spending 7ys swimming in the same lane as him, made me even tougher as an athlete. …… Keep up the Good work to all the South African Coach we do have great athletes in our country.

Hilton
Reply to  Francois Boshoff
8 years ago

France no true words spoke, spending 7ys swimming in the same lane as him, made me even a tougher athlete. …… Keep up the Good work. To all South African Coach, we do have great athletes in our country.

10 years ago

I am wanting to contact Peter Williams I used to work with him, and have a new sport that I want to start in South Africa

Please contact me Peter at
[email protected]

11 years ago

Don’t forget the 1996 summer Olympics for South Africa where Penny Heyns won the gold in the 100 Breaststroke in a world record time of 1:07.73 and set the Olympic Record in her gold medal performance in the 200 Breaststroke 2:25.41!
She was the first woman to ever win gold in both the 100 and 200 breaststroke and was also South Africa’s first post-apartheid Olympic gold medalist.
Looking forward to part two of the story…

Admin
11 years ago

Great coverage, Chris…. Can’t wait for part II….

Gina
11 years ago

to be continued…..What?? You are leaving me hanging. I was digging this story. Looking forward to reading the rest. : )

About Chris Morgan

Chris Morgan has just recently moved back to the United States after a successful 14 year coaching carreer in Europe, primarily in Switzerland. Chris is currently the assistant coach at Harvard University working with the women's swimming and diving team. Chris began his career at Stanford University learning from one …

Read More »