Richard Saeger

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Richard Edwin "Rich" Saeger (born March 4, 1964) in Rochester, New York, is an American former competition swimmer for Southern Methodist University, a 1984 Olympic gold medalist, and a former world record-holder in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay.[1]

Born in Rochester, New York on March 4, 1964, Saeger swam for nearby Penfield High School in Penfield, New York. In January 1982, he held New York State High School swimming records of 1:39.89 in the in the 200 freestyle, 45.66 in the 100 freestyle and 52.91 in the 100 backstroke.[2]

He later transferred as a Senior to Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania where he was coached by John Trembley, a future coach of Southwest Conference Champions University of Tennessee.[3] While at Mercersburg, Saeger set the national record for independent schools for the short-course 100-meter butterfly with a time of 56.60.[4] During his Senior year at Mercersburg in March 1982, Saeger set a National high school record in the 100-yard freestyle of :39.25.[5] While at Senior at Mercersburg in February, 1982 he set three prep school records at the Interscholastic Swimming Championships in the 200-yard freestyle of 1:37.257, and in the 100-yard butterfly of :49.359, also helping Mercersburg to set a new record in the 400-yard freestyle relay of 3:03.05.[6]

Southern Methodist U.

He swam for Southern Methodist University (SMU) where he was mentored by Hall of Fame Coach George McMillion and graduated in 1986. A strong program recognized nationally, the 1983 team finished fifth at the NCAA championships, and were rated 11th nationally in polling before the start of the 1984 season.[7][8] [1] In his Senior year at SMU in February 1986, he held Southwest Conference times of 1:40.18 in the 200 freestyle, 53.05 in the 100 backstroke, 1:52.43 in the 200 backstroke, and 1:56.06 in the 200 Individual Medley.[9]

Saeger won a gold medal in the 4x200-meter freestyle relay in Guayaquil, Ecuador, at the 1982 World Aquatics Championships. He again won gold in the 4x200 at the 1983 Pan American Games in Caracas, and added a silver in the 4x200 at the 1983 Universiade in Edmonton.[1]

1984 Olympics

At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Saeger earned a gold medal by swimming for the winning U.S. team in the final of the men's 4×200-meter freestyle relay.[10][11] The American team of Geoff Gaberino, David Larson, Bruce Hayes and Saeger set a new world record in the Olympic preliminary heat (7:18.87), only for the Americans to break the record again in the event final later on the same day with an improved world record of 7:15.69.[11][12]

In an extremely close finish in the final heat, The West German team swam a combined time of 7:15.73, touching only .04 seconds after the American team. The team from Great Britain finished fourth for the bronze. In the close 4x200 meter final, West German anchor Michael Grob caught up to the American anchor Bruce Hayes in the early part of the final leg closing a margin of only 1.56 seconds. America's anchor, Bruce Hayes swam very close to the West German for most of the remaining race with the audience not knowing which team had touched first at the finish, until the scoreboard revealed the American team's, slight .04 second advantage. At the time, the race was considered one of the closest relay finishes in Olympic history. The American Olympic team head coach Don Gambril noted later that the final relay swimmer Grob wore himself out trying to catch Hayes, the final American swimmer, in the first part of their final 200-meter leg.[1]

Former SMU swimmers and teamates Steve Lundquist, and Ricardo Prado, also medaled at the 1984 Olympic games.[8]

Saeger later participated in United States Masters Swimming, competing sporadically in meets from 2001-2015 from ages 37-51. He specialized in back, fly, and freestyle events, from 50 to 200 meters.[13]

See also

References

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  1. ↑ a b c d Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ "New York State High School Swimming Records", The Post-Standard, Syracuse, New York, January 5, 1982, pg. 20
  3. ↑ Julian, Roland, "UT Hires Trembley as Coach", The Knoxville News Sentinel, Knoxville, Tennessee, 6 March 1988, p. 39
  4. ↑ "Wilson Sets National Mark", The Star Ledger, Newark, New Jersey, January 10, 2006, pg. 62
  5. ↑ "Delp Gets Two Ninths", The Morning Press, Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, March 1, 1982, pg. 12
  6. ↑ "Rich Saeger Sets Records", Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, New York, March 2, 1982, pg. 9
  7. ↑ Crisp, David, "Mustangs Roll Over Aggies", Bryan College Station Eagle, College Station, Texas, November 11, 1984, pg. 25
  8. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ "Water Sports, Swimming", Corpus Christi Times, Corpus Christi, Texas, February 7, 1986, pg. 20
  10. ↑ Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, Swimming at the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Games, Men's 4 × 200 metres Freestyle Relay Round One. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  11. ↑ a b Associated Press, "Add 3 / U.S. gold total at 9," The Indiana Gazette, p. 14 (July 31, 1984). Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  12. ↑ Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, Swimming at the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Games, Men's 4 × 200 metres Freestyle Relay Final. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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Bibliography

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