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This Week in Olympic Sport History 15-21 April: First-ever tie in Olympic swimming final 

Olympics.com examines the week in Olympic sports history, highlighting Olympian birthdays and notable sporting events from April 15 to 21.

5 minBy Ontiou Dasylva
Dara TORRES
Nancy Hogshead and Carrie Steinseifer celebrate their joint gold medal at Los Angeles 1984

Welcome to This Week in Olympic Sports History, where Olympics.com remembers the most significant sports events of the past. This week, we'll cover April 15-21.

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Did you Know?

Nancy Hogshead, born on April 17, 1962, made history at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles as part of the first-ever tie in Olympic swimming.

During the women's 100-meter freestyle event, Hogshead and Carrie Steinseifer, both representing the United States, raced neck-and-neck, reaching the finish line simultaneously in 55.92 seconds. Electronic timing technology was crucial in determining the outcome and distinguishing the two racers.

The two Americans were awarded a gold medal for the first time in an Olympic competition, while Dutch Anne Marie Verstappen received bronze. Under the Olympics' scoring rules, when two athletes tie, they each get a medal—meaning that while this race had two gold medalists, no one got a silver.

Only two other instances of gold-medal ties have occurred in Olympic swimming since 1984, both in sprint-freestyle events. Sixteen years later, Gary Hall Jr. and Anthony Ervin of the United States earned gold in the 50m freestyle at the Sydney Games. Similarly, at Rio 2016, American Simone Manuel and Canadian Penny Oleksiak shared gold in the 100m freestyle.

Notable Olympic birthdays: April 15-21

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - MARCH 09: Basketball player Candace Parker poses for a portrait at the 2016 Team USA Media Summit at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on March 9, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

(2016 Getty Images)

Quote of the week - Dara Torres

You don’t have to put an age limit on your dreams

Dara Torres, born on April 15, 1967, has exemplified the notion that age is just a number throughout her career. Over nearly three decades of competition, the swimmer prodigee won Olympic medals as a teenager, in her twenties, thirties, and forties, making her one of the most successful Olympians in history.

The American star made her Olympic debut at only 17 at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. She was part of the American team that won gold in the 400-meter freestyle relay. Four years later, at the 1988 Olympics, she won a silver medal in the 4x100 meters medley relay and a bronze medal in the 4x100 meters freestyle relay. She continued to excel at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where she added another gold medal to her impressive collection, this time in the 4x100 meters freestyle relay.

Oldest Female Swimmer in Olympic History

At 33, the Californian made a comeback to competitive swimming in Sydney 2000. She had previously taken a break from competition and did not participate in the 1996 Olympics. In Australia, she won five medals, including two golds and three bronzes.

Torres came out of retirement once again to compete in the 2008 Beijing Olympics at 41 years old. She became the oldest female swimmer to compete and won silver medals in the 50-meter freestyle, 400-meter freestyle, and 400-meter medley relay events, defying expectations and proving that age is just a number.

The Olympic champion's hunger for gold still needed to be satisfied. Despite being well in her forties and having undergone reconstructive surgery on one of her knees, she continued to train to participate in the 2012 Olympics. She narrowly missed the US trials, ending her dream of competing in another Olympics. Torres officially retired from competitive swimming with 12 Olympic medals spread over 24 years and five Olympic Games.

Make sure to check back on Olympics.com next week for more sports and Olympic history.

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