Alan Robert FORD

Alan Ford came from the Canal Zone, and after attending Mercersburg Academy went to Yale. The first of the many highlights of his swim career came in 1943 when he broke Johnny Weissmuller’s 17-year-old world record for the 100y freestyle. The following year he became the first man to swim that distance under 50 seconds, and it was eight years before Dick Cleveland became the second man under that barrier. Ford also broke the 100m freestyle world record twice, won two AAU titles and, after service in the navy, made a comeback to win a silver medal at the 1948 Olympics. In 1944 he became only the third man in history to win three NCAA individual titles in one year.