Hans Dersch

Last updated

Hans Dersch
Personal information
Full nameHans F. Dersch
National teamFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Born (1967-12-25) December 25, 1967 (age 56)
Alexandria, Virginia, U.S.
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight163 lb (74 kg)
Sport
Sport Swimming
Strokes Breaststroke
ClubSwimatlanta Swim Team
College team University of Texas
Coach Eddie Reese (U. Texas)
Kris Kubik (U. Texas)
Medal record
Men's swimming
Representing the Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Olympic Games
Olympic rings.svg
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1992 Barcelona 4x100 m medley
Pan American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1991 Havana 100 m breaststroke
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1991 Havana 4x100 m medley

Hans F. Dersch (born December 25, 1967) is an American former competition swimmer and breaststroke specialist who represented the United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.

Contents

Born in Alexandria, Viginia on December 25, 1967, Dersch grew up in a rough part of Atlanta and attended and swam for Avondale High School in Georgia's DeKalb County, graduating in 1985. [1] Most of his training and competitive meets took place with the SwimAtlanta swim club coached by Bill Behrens, who would later serve as an Assistant Coach at University of Arizona. Two of Dersch's brothers also swam competitively with some success. [2] [3] [4] In April 1985, Swimatlanta won the U.S. Junior National Short Course Championship, and placed second in the U.S. Junior Nationals Long Course championships in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in August. Dersch swam a 1:06.14 in the 100 breaststroke. [5] [6] At the DeKalb Swimming Championships, swimming for Avondale in March, 1983, Dersch swam a 1:06.40 for the 100 breaststroke. [7] At the August 1987 Jr. National Long Course Championships in Fort Lauderdale, competing for Swimatlanta, Dersch swam a 1:04.45 in the 100 breaststroke and also participated in the 400 medley relay. [8]

Career

University of Texas

Coach Eddie Reese, 2010 Eddie Reese 1.jpg
Coach Eddie Reese, 2010

After High School, he received a scholarship to the University of Texas and came under the direction of Hall of Fame Head Coach Eddie Reese and Assistant Coach Kris Kubik. At Texas, Dersch was a breaststroke specialist, and made important contributions to three Texas NCAA National Championship teams. Graduating in 1990, Dersch majored in advertising. [3] At Texas, he placed second in both the 100y and 200y breaststroke events in all of the three years Texas captured the NCAA National team title, between 1988-1991. [5] At the March, 1987 Southwestern Conference Championships at Austin, Dersh took his second place finish in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 55.28.3. [9]

Dersch was a two-time gold medalist at the 1991 Pan American Games, in Havana in the 100 breaststroke and 400 medley relay. [10] [11]

Dersch was known to have a smooth, fluid backstroke style with little splash. He was considered by some of his coaches to lack the work ethic of some Olympic candidates, though he differed with this assessment. Among his most notable accomplishments during his college years, was being a part of the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle, being voted the 1986 U.S. Swimming Long Course Rookie of the Meet, and setting a Junior Olympic Record in the 100-yard breaststroke at the 1986 U.S. Swimming Short Course Championships. [3]

Prior to the 1992, Olympics, Dersch received a small grant to train from United States Swimming, and worked in the marketing department for the national accounting firm, Ernst and Young. U.S. Swimming helped him find the job with Ernst and Young, and the firm allowed him time to work around his training schedule. Dersch trained for the 1992 Olympics with Swimatlanta coach Chris Davis. [3]

1992 Olympic gold

At the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Dersch won the gold medal in the men's 4×100-meter medley relay, after having swum in the preliminary heats for the winning U.S. team. He swam a 1:01.79 for his breaststroke leg of the morning preliminary 4x100 metre heat. [12] [10]

In the 100-meter individual event in the preliminaries, he finished in a three way tie for 10th overall with a time of 1:02.29. [10]

Dersch retired from competitive swimming in 1992 after a victory in Great Britain in his only professional event. [11]

Later life

Dersch worked in advertising and marketing, and as a swim coach after the Olympics, where he was an assistant coach at Texas A&M University from 1993-1995. He started a sizable private recreational park in Texas, was a founder of a number of non-profit organizations, and ran without success as a candidate for Texas State Representative. In 2017, Dersch did print media marketing for a company, [11] and coached the National group for Nitro Swimming, an Austin based swim club, to the Senior and Junior Nationals, and Grand Prix Meets. [11] In 2012, he took a position as the head swim coach at Austin, Texas's St. Michael’s Academy, a Catholic school. [10] [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brendan Hansen</span> American swimmer (born 1981)

Brendan Joseph Hansen is an American former competition swimmer who specialized in breaststroke events. Hansen is a six-time Olympic medalist, and is also a former world record-holder in both the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremy Linn</span> American swimmer (born 1975)

Jeremy Porter Linn is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic medalist, world record-holder and current swim coach. Linn set an American record in the 100-meter breaststroke while winning the silver medal in that event at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, in a time of 1:00.77. With a burst of speed in the final stretch, he finished just .12 seconds behind the gold medal winner from Belgium who had previously set the World Record.

Kristine Lora Quance, also known by her married name Kristine Julian, is an American former competition swimmer who specialized in breaststroke and medley events. Quance competed at the international level in the 1990s, and swam at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, winning a gold medal in the 4×100-meter medley relay. She is a 10-time United States national champion; and twice won the Kiphuth Award as the highest individual point scorer at an individual national championship. In the 1992 Summer National Championships, she won all four of the events in which she swam.

Stephen K. Lundquist is an American former competition swimmer who is an Olympic gold medalist and former world record-holder. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, he won gold medals in the 100-meter breaststroke and the 400-meter medley relay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Hencken</span> American swimmer (born 1954)

John Frederick Hencken is an American former competition swimmer for Stanford University, three-time Olympic champion, and former world record-holder primarily in the 100 and 200 meter breaststroke events. Hencken won five Olympic medals during his career in the 1972 Munich, and 1976 Montreal Olympics, including three golds.

Jon C. Olsen is an American former competition swimmer, four-time Olympic champion, and former world record-holder. Olsen was a successful relay swimmer for the U.S. national team in the late 1980s and 1990s. He has won a total of 27 medals in major international competition, 20 gold, 5 silver, and 2 bronze spanning the Olympics, the World, Pan Pacific, and the Pan American championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uğur Taner</span> Turkish swimmer (born 1974)

Mehmet Uğur Taner is a retired Turkish-born American swimmer who was a High School All American, national public school record holder and Washington state champion specializing in sprint freestyle and butterfly. He competed for Turkey at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics in five events, won a gold medal for the U.S. team in the September, 1994 Rome World Championships in the 4x100-meter relay, and was an All American swimmer at the University of California Berkeley.

Elizabeth Cynthia Barr, later known by her married name Beth Isaak, is an American former competition swimmer for the University of Texas who was a backstroke specialist and 1988 Seoul Olympic silver medalist for the United States in the women's 4×100-meter medley relay. After her swimming career ended, she worked as a lobbyist, and in public relations in Washington D.C., and Phoenix, Arizona, and in 2010 returned to her native Pensacola to teach and coach swimming with her company BARRacuda Swimming Works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Davis (swimmer)</span> American swimmer (born 1972)

Joshua Clark Davis is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic gold medalist, and former world record-holder. Davis represented the United States at two consecutive Summer Olympics.

Ryan Thomas Berube is an American former competition swimmer and freestyle and individual medley specialist for Southern Methodist University who won the gold medal anchoring the U.S. men's team in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. A business major at SMU, he would later work as a wealth manager, and serve two decades on various boards and committees of USA Swimming.

Whitney Lynn Hedgepeth is an American former competition swimmer who won a gold and two silver medals at the 1996 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan von der Lippe</span> American swimmer (born 1965)

Susan von der Lippe was an American competition swimmer for Stanford University, a 1984 Olympic gold and silver medalist, and a United States Masters world record-holder in multiple events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doug Russell (swimmer)</span> American swimmer (born 1946)

Douglas Albert Russell is an American former competitive swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder in three different events.

Kim Daniela Pavlin is a Croatian swimmer who attended Texas A&M University and competed for Croatia in the 2012 London Olympics in the 200-metre backstroke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nic Fink</span> American swimmer (born 1993)

Nicolas Fink is an American competitive swimmer. He is a five-time world champion in breaststroke events and a 2024 Olympic Silver Medalist in the 100 meter breaststroke. He is a world record holder in the short course 4×100 meter medley relay and 4×50 meter mixed medley relay. He is the Americas record holder in the short course 50 meter breaststroke, 100 meter breaststroke, and 200 meter breaststroke as well as the American record holder in the long course 50 meter breaststroke. In the 50 meter breaststroke, he won the World Short Course titles in 2021 and 2022 and World Long Course title in 2022. In the 100 meter breaststroke, he is the 2022 World Short Course gold medalist. In the 200 meter breaststroke, he is the 2021 World Short Course gold medalist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sydney Pickrem</span> Canadian swimmer (born 1997)

Sydney Pickrem is a Canadian competitive swimmer who competed for Texas A&M University in College Station. A three-time Olympian, she placed sixth in the 200m individual medley at the 2016 Summer Olympics and won a bronze medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics as part of the Canadian 4×100 metre medley relay team. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, she participated in the women’s 200-meter individual medley and the 200-meter breaststroke, but finished out of medal contention. Accomplished in international competition, she is a seven-time World Aquatics Championships medallist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Andrew (swimmer)</span> American swimmer (born 1999)

Michael Charles Andrew is an American competitive swimmer and an Olympic gold medalist. He was the 2016 world champion in the 100 meter individual medley. At his first Olympic Games, the 2020 Summer Olympics, he won a gold medal and set a world record as part of the 4x100 meter medley relay, placed fourth in the 100 meter breaststroke, fourth in the 50 meter freestyle, and fifth in the 200 meter individual medley. Andrew's swims in 2021 at the 2020 Olympics made him the first swimmer to represent the United States at an Olympic Games in an individual breaststroke event as well as another individual event other than an individual medley in the then-125-year-history of swimming at the Summer Olympics. He has won 78 medals at Swimming World Cup circuits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katie Meili</span> American swimmer (born 1991)

Catherine Michelle "Katie" Meili is a former American competitive swimmer, who won a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in the 100 meter breaststroke and a gold medal for swimming the preliminary heats of the 4 × 100-meter medley relay. In 2020, Meili joined USA Swimming Board of Directors for a four-year term as their Athlete Representative.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Will Licon</span> American swimmer (born 1994)

William Andrew Licon is an American competitive swimmer who specializes in breaststroke and medley events. He previously competed for the professional team LA Current in the International Swimming League. Licon is a three-time World Championship medalist, a two-time Pan American Games gold medalist and has been a member of the United States national team since 2015. He is the current American record-holder and former NCAA & US Open record-holder in the 200-yard breaststroke.

Katherine Cadwallader Douglass is an American competitive swimmer. A versatile swimmer who competes in many events, Douglass won her first major international medal at the 2020 Olympic Games and won three medals at the 2022 World Championships. Douglass then won six medals, including two golds, at the 2023 World Championships. At the 2024 World Championships, she won five medals, including two golds. Douglass won four medals, including two golds, at the 2024 Olympic Games; she became the Olympic champion in the 200 m breaststroke.

References

  1. ↑ "DeKalb Swimming and Diving Championships", The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, 10 March 1983, pg. 115
  2. ↑ "Rosen, Karen, Decatur's Dersch Makes Team as get well present", The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, 2 March 1992, pg. 57
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Awtry, Stan, Dersch Dives Back In", Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, 6 January 1991, pg.152.
  4. ↑ "Braden, Keith, Former St. Xavier, Arizona Coach Bill Behrens Dies"". swimswam.com. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Hans Dersh, Georgia Aquatics Hall of Fame". gahof.org. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  6. ↑ Satterly, Jim, "Better Swim Atlanta Effort Places Second at Nationals", The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, 22 August 1985, pg. 162
  7. ↑ "Dekalb Swimming and Diving Championships, 100 breaststroke", Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia,10 March 1983, pg. 115
  8. ↑ "Swimmers at Nationals", The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, 13 August 1987, pg. 55
  9. ↑ "Men's Swimming Southwestern Conference Championships, 100-yard breaststroke", Fort-Worth Star Telegram, Fort Worth, Texas, 7 March 1987, pg. 46
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Olympedia Bio, Hans Dersch". olympedia.org. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Swimming Lifted Dersch to Achieve His Dreams". usaswimming.org. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Wangrin, Mark, Prelim Swim Earns Medal for Dersch", Austin American Statesman", 1 August 1992, pg. 83
  13. ↑ "St. Michaels Gets New Coaches", Westlake Picayune, Austin, Texas, 31 May 2012, pg. B3

[Olympedia Bio, Hans Dersch]

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.