Bill Smith

William Melvin Smith Jr., known as Bill Smith, was an American competitive swimmer born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on 16 May 1924, of mixed Irish and Native Hawaiian ancestry. He swam for Ohio State University under coach Mike Peppe, was undefeated in three years of dual meets and a four-time All-American, and won fourteen national championships. At the 1948 Summer Olympics in London he won gold medals in the 400-metre freestyle and the 4x200-metre freestyle relay, and at one time he held every world record in freestyle events from 200 to 1,000 metres. After competing he led the surf guards at Waikiki Beach and coached at the University of Hawaii. He entered the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1966 and died on 8 February 2013 at the age of 88.