Rick Colella

Last updated

Rick Colella
Rick Colella 1972.jpg
Colella in 1972
Personal information
Full nameRichard Phillip Colella, Jr.
Nickname"Rick"
National teamUnited States
Born (1951-12-14) December 14, 1951 (age 72)
Seattle, Washington
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight181 lb (82 kg)
Sport
Sport Swimming
Strokes Breaststroke
ClubTotem Lake Swim Club
College team University of Washington
Medal record
Representing the United States
Olympic Games
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1976 Montreal 200 m breaststroke
World Championships (LC)
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1975 Cali 4×100 m medley
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1975 Cali 200 m breaststroke
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1973 Belgrade 400 m medley
Pan American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1971 Cali 200 m breaststroke
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1975 Mexico City 100 m breaststroke
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1975 Mexico City 200 m breaststroke
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1975 Mexico City 4×100 m medley
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1975 Mexico City 400 m medley
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1971 Cali 400 m medley
Universiade
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1970 Turin 200 m breaststroke
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1970 Turin 400 m medley

Richard Phillip Colella, Jr. (born December 14, 1951) [1] is an American former breaststroke swimmer who represented the United States at two consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1972.

Contents

Colella's sister Lynn was also an Olympic swimmer. In 1971 Richard and Lynn won the Seattle Post-Intelligencer Man of the Year award. [2]

1972, 1976 Olympics

Colella finished fourth in the final of the men's 200-meter breaststroke at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. At the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, he finished third and received the bronze medal in the 200-meter breaststroke, his signature event.

Colella and his wife Terry have raised four children, Elise, Mariel, Brian and Angie. For the past twenty years, the Colellas have dedicated themselves to raising money for research to find a cure for facioscapulohumeral disease (FSHD), a common form of muscular dystrophy that affects their son Brian. They formed FSH Friends, an organization that they run out of their home. They work to raise money and put on an annual auction gala that takes place the beginning of February. They've also co-sponsored local workshops, bringing researchers together from around the world, to help move the research forward. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

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

Amanda Ray Beard, also known by her married name Amanda Brown, is an American swimmer and a seven-time Olympic medalist. She is a former world record holder in the 200-meter breaststroke.

<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">Megan Jendrick</span> American swimmer

Megan M. Jendrick is an American former competition swimmer, former world record-holder, and fitness columnist. She won two gold medals at the 2000 Summer Olympics and a silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Jendrick set 27 American records and four world records in her swimming career. She is a 13-time national champion, ten-time U.S. Open champion, seven-time masters world record-holder, and fifteen-time U.S. Masters national record-holder. Jendrick is married to American author Nathan Jendrick.

Michael Ray Barrowman is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder. Barrowman was one of the pioneers of the "wave-style" breaststroke technique. Prior to attending University of Michigan, he trained with Montgomery Square Copenhaver Swim Club and the Rockville-Montgomery Swim Club in Maryland.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Genter</span> American swimmer (born 1951)

Robert Steven Genter is an American former competition swimmer and three-time Olympic medalist. He was a freestyle specialist who earned a gold medal as a member of the winning U.S. team in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. He also won silver medals at the Munich Olympics in the 200-meter and 400-meter freestyle events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Wayte</span> American swimmer (born 1965)

Mary Alice Bradburne is an American former competition swimmer, two-time Olympic gold medalist, and television sports commentator. During her international swimming career, Wayte won ten medals in major international championships, including four golds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Skelton (swimmer)</span> American swimmer (1903–1977)

Robert Danforth Skelton was an American competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharon Wichman</span> American swimmer (born 1952)

Sharon Lynn Wichman, also known by her married name Sharon Jones, is an American former competition swimmer and 1968 Olympic champion in the breaststroke.

Brian Gregory Job was an American competition swimmer, Olympic medalist, and world record-holder. At the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, he won the bronze medal for his third-place finish in the men's 200-meter breaststroke. He later graduated from Harvard Business School.

Kurt David Grote is an American former competition swimmer and Olympic gold medalist. Grote competed internationally in the breaststroke events during the 1990s.

Christopher Clark Burckle Jr. is an American competition swimmer who specializes in breaststroke and medley events. He competed in the 200-meter breaststroke at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Richard Alan Schroeder is an American former competition swimmer who was a breaststroke specialist and two-time Olympic gold medalist.

Lynn Marie Vidali, also known by her married name Lynn Gautschi, is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic medalist, and former world record-holder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynn Colella</span> American swimmer (born 1950)

Lynn Ann Colella is an American former swimmer and Olympic medalist. She represented the United States at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, where she won a silver medal in the 200-meter butterfly, finishing behind compatriot Karen Moe. She is the sister of Rick Colella, an Olympic bronze medalist in swimming.

Kenneth Owen Merten is an American former competition swimmer, three-time Pan American Games medalist, and former world record-holder.

<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.

Andrew Wilson is a retired American swimmer. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, he placed 6th in the 100 meter breaststroke, 17th in the 200 meter breaststroke, and won a gold medal in the 4x100 meter medley relay, for his efforts in the prelims of the relay.

References

  1. ↑ Rick Colella. sports-reference.com.
  2. ↑ Dan Raley (July 15, 2008) Where Are They Now? Colella left hanging on swimming replay. Seattle P-I
  3. ↑ Friends of FSH Research. fshfriends.org


Flag of the United States.svg Olive branch.svg

This article about a swimming Olympic medalist of the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

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.