View source for Fran Crippen

{{Short description|American swimmer (1984–2010)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2021}}
{{Infobox swimmer
| name           = Fran Crippen
| image          = <!-- Only free-content images are allowed for depicting living people -- see [[WP:NONFREE]]. -->
| image_size     = <!-- Only for images narrower than 220 pixels -->
| alt            = 
| caption        = 
| fullname       = Francis Crippen
| nicknames      = 
| national_team  = {{USA}}
| birth_date     = {{Birth date|1984|4|17|mf=y}}
| birth_place    = [[Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
| death_date     = {{Death date and age|2010|10|23|1984|4|17|mf=y}}
| death_place    = [[Fujairah]], [[United Arab Emirates]]
| height         = 6 ft 2 in
| weight         = 
| strokes        = [[Freestyle swimming|Freestyle]]
| club           = [[Mission Viejo Nadadores]]<br>(MVN 2006-2008) 
| coach          = [[Dick Shoulberg]] (Germantown)<br>{{nowrap|[[Bill Rose (swim coach)|Bill Rose]] (MVN)}}
| collegeteam    = [[Virginia Cavaliers swimming and diving|University of Virginia]]
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport | Men's swimming}}
{{MedalCountry | the United States}}
{{MedalCompetition | [[World Aquatics Championships|World Championships]]}}
{{MedalBronze| [[2009 World Aquatics Championships|2009 Rome]] | [[Open water swimming at the 2009 World Aquatics Championships – Men's 10 km|10 km open water]]}}
{{MedalCompetition | [[FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships|World Open Water Championships]]}}
{{MedalBronze | [[2010 FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships|2010 Roberval]] | [[2010 FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships – Men's 5K|5 km open water]]}}
{{MedalCompetition | [[Pan Pacific Swimming Championships|Pan Pacific Championships]]}}
{{MedalSilver | [[2006 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships|2006 Victoria]] | 10 km open water}}
{{MedalSilver | [[2010 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships|2010 Irvine]] | 10 km open water}}
{{MedalCompetition | [[Pan American Games]]}}
{{MedalGold | [[2007 Pan American Games|2007 Rio]] | [[Swimming at the 2007 Pan American Games – Men's marathon 10 kilometres|10 km open water]]}}
{{MedalSilver | [[2003 Pan American Games|2003 Santo Domingo]] | [[Swimming at the 2003 Pan American Games – Men's 400 meter freestyle|400 m freestyle]]}}
{{MedalSilver | 2003 Santo Domingo | [[Swimming at the 2003 Pan American Games – Men's 1500 meter freestyle|1500 m freestyle]]}}
}}

'''Francis Crippen''' (April 17, 1984 &ndash; October 23, 2010) was an American [[Long-distance swimming|long-distance]] [[Swimming (sport)|swimmer]]. After being a pool swimmer for most of his career, Crippen made the transition to [[open water swimming]] in 2006.  In international competitions, Crippen won seven medals, five of which were in the open water and two in the pool. Crippen died during an open water swimming race in the [[United Arab Emirates]] in 2010 at the age of 26.<ref name=dies>{{cite news|title=American Fran Crippen dies in open-water race |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/othersports/2013242888_digs24.html |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=2010-10-23 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101025123735/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/othersports/2013242888_digs24.html |archivedate=2010-10-25 |accessdate=2010-10-23 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Early life==
Crippen was born in [[Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania]], in 1984 to Pete and Pat Crippen. Crippen started swimming at the age of six because of his sister [[Maddy Crippen|Maddy]], as she and his other two sisters are all also competitive swimmers. Maddy was a 2000 Olympian in the 400 individual medley and swam for [[Villanova University]]. His sister Claire is an NCAA All-American and Olympic Trials qualifier who swam for the University of Virginia. [[Teresa Crippen]] is a Pan-American Games Champion in the 200 meter backstroke and U.S. national team member.<ref name=dies/>

===Germantown Academy===
He graduated from [[Germantown Academy]] in [[Fort Washington, Pennsylvania]], in 2002 where he swam for the highly accomplished and nationally recognized Head Coach [[Dick Shoulberg]], who by 1990 had coached four Olympic swimmers.  By 14, he trained around five hours a day during week days, five hours on Saturday and two on Sunday while at Germantown, which also had an extensive dryland training program for most swimmers.  By his Senior year just prior to his 18th birthday, Crippen was one of the top 500-yard and 200-yard freestyle swimmers in Germantown's history and one of the top 500-yard freestylers in the country.<ref>Iezzi, Bill, "Crippen Making an Even Bigger Splash", ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1 December 1999, pg. 19</ref> As an exceptional Prep School Swimmer, in 1999, Crippen was selected for the U.S. Junior National Team.  <ref name=dies/><ref>Iezzi, Bill, "Being Second at GA is Never a Disgrace", ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 24, 2002, pg. B04</ref>

==Swimming career==
Crippen swam for the [[University of Virginia]], where he was an 11-time All-American and two-time [[Atlantic Coast Conference]] (ACC) swimmer of the year.<ref name=grunge>{{cite web|url=https://www.grunge.com/376358/the-tragic-death-of-all-american-swimmer-fran-crippen/|title=The Tragic Death of All American Swimmer Fran Crippen|website=www.grunge.com|access-date=March 26, 2025}}</ref> Crippen received MVP awards in 2003-4, a rookie of the year award in 2003, a hardest worker award in 2006 as well as a Coaches award and a Ramirez family leadership award from the University of Virginia.  His sister Claire received the MVP award swimming for  Virginia in 2008.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uvaswimdive.com/banquet-frame.htm|title=University of Virginia, Virginia Swimming and Diving Team Awards Recipients|website=uvaswimdive.com|access-date=March 27, 2025}}</ref> He graduated from the [[University of Virginia]] in 2006 where he majored in [[sociology]]. During Crippen's time at UVa, he was a member of the [[IMP Society]], one of the University's secret societies.<ref name=grunge/>

He earned a bronze medal as a member of USA Swimming at the [[2001 Goodwill Games]] in [[Brisbane]], [[Australia]]. At the [[Swimming at the 2003 Pan American Games|2003 Pan American Games]], in [[Santo Domingo]], [[Dominican Republic]], he won two individual silver medals in the 400 and 1500&nbsp;m freestyle. Crippen represented the United States at the [[Pan Pacific Swimming Championships|Pan Pacific Championships]] in 2006, where he earned a silver medal in the 10&nbsp;km open water swim. From 2006 to 2008 Crippen trained with the Mission Viejo Nadadores in California and swam for coach [[Bill Rose (swim coach)|Bill Rose]], who specialized in training distance swimmers. In 2007, he earned a gold medal in the 10&nbsp;km distance event at the Pan American Games in [[Rio de Janeiro]], [[Brazil]]. Two years later, Crippen won a bronze medal in the 10&nbsp;km open water race at the [[2009 World Aquatics Championships]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.omegatiming.com/openwater/racearchives/2009/Roma2009/10_km_Mens_Results.pdf|title=2009 World Aquatics Championships: Men's 10 km|publisher=Omega Timing|accessdate=2010-10-23|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806170304/http://www.omegatiming.com/openwater/racearchives/2009/Roma2009/10_km_Mens_Results.pdf|archivedate=2009-08-06}}</ref> A year later, Crippen again won silver in the 10&nbsp;km at the [[2010 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships]] in [[Irvine, California]].<ref name=WA>{{cite web|url=https://www.worldaquatics.com/athletes/1025778/wd|title=World Aquatics Profile, Fran Crippen|website=worldaquatics.com|access-date=March 27, 2025}}</ref>

Crippen was a six-time US National Champion.  He won two national titles in the 800&nbsp;m freestyle, two in the 5&nbsp;km open water, and two in the 10&nbsp;km open water event.<ref name=WA/>

During his swimming career, Crippen represented TYR Sports and Swimming, Inc.<ref name=grunge/>

==Death==
{{wikinews|US swimmer dies in open-water race}}
Crippen died while swimming the last race of [[FINA]]'s [[FINA Marathon Swim World Series|2010 10K series]] in [[Fujairah|Fujairah, United Arab Emirates]] after having won the penultimate race in [[Cancun, Mexico]] the weekend before. Crippen's absence at the finish was reportedly first noticed by fellow USA swimmer [[Alex Meyer (swimmer)|Alex Meyer]]. After searching for Crippen and not finding him, Meyer and other swimmers returned to the water to try to locate Crippen. Two hours after the finish of the men's race, and after 90 minutes of searching by other swimmers, Crippen's body was found underwater by deep-sea divers near the race course's final buoy about 500 yards from shore. Crippen was rushed to the local hospital, where he was pronounced dead, though it was suspected he died at the scene.<ref name=dies/>

Winner [[Thomas Lurz]] and other swimmers cited the water as being overly warm—above {{convert|30|C|F}} during the race—and several other swimmers experienced heat-related symptoms upon completing the race, including two Americans and one Brazilian (Allan do Carmo) who were briefly hospitalized.<ref name=conditions>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cbssports.com/worldsports/story/14182241/winner-rips-organizers-over-race-conditions-after-swimmers-death|title="Winner Rips Organizers Over Race Conditions", CBS Sports (October 24, 2010)}}</ref>

[[FINA]] president [[Julio Maglione|Dr. Julio Maglione]] said it was the first death in any FINA event and an investigation was opened.<ref>{{cite magazine|title =Passages: Fran Crippen, 26 – FINA, USA Swimming, USOC Release Statements|url =http://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/lane9/news/25369.asp|magazine =Swimming World Magazine|date =2010-10-23|archiveurl =https://web.archive.org/web/20120825215512/http://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/lane9/news/25369.asp#RT|archivedate =August 25, 2012|accessdate =2010-10-23|url-status =bot: unknown}}</ref> Crippen had told his coach after 8 kilometers that he was feeling thirsty, yet continued with the race. A report released by FINA following Crippen's death called for an update in open water swimming safety regulations.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.aroundtherings.com/articles/view.aspx?id=36832|title=Fran Crippen Report Demands Major Changes for Marathon Swim|access-date=June 1, 2011|archive-date=March 22, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322235013/http://www.aroundtherings.com/articles/view.aspx?id=36832|url-status=dead}}</ref> The report concluded that Crippen may have died of a "cardiac abnormality" and "uncontrolled exercise-induced asthma in unfavourable race environmental conditions".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archives.fina.org/H2O/docs/report/FCrippen/Report_FC_8.pdf|title=Report FINA Appointed Task Force Part 8 – Conclusions and Recommendations|page=2|publisher=FINA|accessdate=2016-07-31|archive-date=September 14, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914221210/http://archives.fina.org/H2O/docs/report/FCrippen/Report_FC_8.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=conditions/>

==Changing the open water scene==
Following Crippen's death, members of the swimming community and overall Olympic community were outraged with the lack of regulations at the site where Crippen drowned. The former vice president of the International Olympic Committee, [[Dick Pound]], headed a separate investigation through [[USA Swimming]] due to the lack of compliance from the international governing body, [[FINA]]. According to ''[[USA Today]]'',<ref name=today>{{Cite web|url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/2011-04-15-fran-crippen-death-safety-report-fina_N.htm|title=Report into Fran Crippen's death condemns race safety|website=USATODAY.COM}}</ref> Crippen's former coach Dick Shoulburg of [[Germantown Academy]], and the Crippen family brought pressure on [[World Aquatics|FINA]] to adopt better safety regulations.<ref name=today/><ref name=conditions/>

In USA Swimming, changes were made for the well-being of the athletes. Organizers of an open water swim in [[Fort Myers, Florida|Fort Myers]] have reconsidered the timing of their race because it may exceed the recommended water temperature of {{convert|87.8|F}}, or the combined air and water temperature of {{convert|145.4|F}}.<ref name=conditions/>

[[U.S. Masters Swimming|United States Masters Swimming]] (USMS) adopted a warm water conditions rule to the USMS Open Water Rule 302.2.2 (3) A swim of 5 kilometers or greater shall not begin if the water temperature exceeds 85°F (29.45°C). A swim of less than 5 kilometers shall not begin if the water temperature exceeds 87.8°F (31°C).<ref>https://www.usms.org/-/media/usms/pdfs/volunteer%20central/rule%20book/part%203.pdf {{Bare URL PDF|date=March 2022}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of University of Virginia people]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Official website|https://www.francrippen.net/}}
* {{World Aquatics}}
* {{USA Swimming|new_id=fran-crippen|archive=20210602224356}}
* {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120306114029/http://virginiasports.cstv.com/sports/c-swim/mtt/crippen_fran00.html |title=University of Virginia bio of Fran Crippen |date=March 6, 2012}}
* [http://www.tyr.com/athletes/fran-crippen/ TYR bio of Fran Crippen]
* {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161225015359/http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=txswimmerdies |title=Yahoo Sports Page |date=December 25, 2016}}

{{Footer Pan American Champions 10 km Marathon Men}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Crippen, Fran}}
[[Category:1984 births]]
[[Category:2010 deaths]]
[[Category:American male freestyle swimmers]]
[[Category:American male long-distance swimmers]]
[[Category:Germantown Academy alumni]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Swimmers from Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Sport deaths in the United Arab Emirates]]
[[Category:Virginia Cavaliers men's swimmers]]
[[Category:World Aquatics Championships medalists in open water swimming]]
[[Category:Competitors at the 2001 Goodwill Games]]
[[Category:Swimmers at the 2003 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Swimmers at the 2007 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2007 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in swimming]]
[[Category:Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in swimming]]
[[Category:21st-century American sportsmen]]