Michigan's 25 Greatest Olympians
7/6/2016 12:00:00 AM | General, Olympics
Few colleges and universities can match the rich Olympic history of the University of Michigan. For more than a century, its students, student-athletes and coaches have represented their countries on the world's biggest stage, collecting 157 Olympic medals.
As the Rio Olympic Games move ever closer, MGoBlue.com will spend the next five weeks unveiling 25 of the greatest Olympians in our school's history. They are presented in no certain order.
Ralph Craig // Track & Field
As a sprinter, Ralph Craig won gold medals in the 100- and 200-meter dash events at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm. In 1948, Craig returned to the Olympics as an alternate on the American yachting team. Craig carried the American flag at the opening ceremonies of the 1948 London Olympics, though he did not compete. At the University of Michigan, Craig won the IC4A 220-yard dash in both 1910 and 1911. In his last meet with the Wolverines, he tied the intercollegiate record in the 100-yard dash and also tied the world record in the 220-yard dash. Craig was inducted in the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 2010.
Charles Dvorak // Track & Field
Charles Dvorak participated at the 1900 Olympics in Paris as a pole vaulter. Following controversy and confusion surrounding the scheduling of the event finals on a Sunday, he won the silver medal in a special, unofficial competition. Four years later, Dvorak won a gold medal in the pole vault at the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis, setting an Olympic record. He is known as the first pole vaulter to use a bamboo pole. At the University of Michigan, Dvorak was a captain of the track and field team. As a Wolverine in 1903, Dvorak set a world record in the pole vault.
Phil Hubbard // Basketball
Phil Hubbard was a member of the gold medal-winning American basketball team at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. As a student-athlete at the University of Michigan, he led the Wolverines to the 1976 NCAA championship game, where the Wolverines lost to Indiana. Hubbard was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the 15th overall pick in the 1979 NBA Draft. He played 12 seasons in the NBA and coached as an assistant for another 15. In 2004, Hubbard's No. 35 was retired by Michigan.
Tom Malchow // Swimming
At the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Tom Malchow received a silver medal in the 200-meter butterfly. Four years later, he won a gold medal in the same event at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney while setting a new world record which was later broken by Michael Phelps. Malchow was the captain of the Team USA at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, though he did not win any medals. As a student-athlete at the University of Michigan, Malchow was an NCAA champion and three-time Big Ten champion in the 200-yard butterfly. He was the 1998 Big Ten Swimmer of the Year and was an NCAA All-American in all four years. In 2014, Malchow was inducted in the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
Bob Webster // Diving
One of the best divers in the history of the men's swimming and diving program, Bob Webster transferred to the University of Michigan in 1960. Representing the United States, Webster went on to win back-to-back gold medals on platform in 1960 and 1964. He also claimed gold on platform at the 1963 Pan American Games.
Jim Abbott // Baseball
Known for playing in Major League Baseball as a pitcher born without a right hand, Jim Abbott played for the United States in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Abbott, a native of Flint, Michigan, pitched the final game when his team won an unofficial gold medal since baseball was a demonstration sport at the time. After his high school career, Abbott was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1985 MLB Draft but elected to instead play at the University of Michigan. At Michigan, Abbott led the Wolverines to two Big Ten championships and was voted Big Ten Athlete of the Year in 1988. In 1987, Abbott won the James E. Sullivan Award given to the nation's top amateur athlete, becoming the first baseball player to win the award. He was eventually selected eighth overall in the 1988 MLB draft. Abbott was elected to the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007, and his No. 31 is currently retired at Michigan.
Betsey Armstrong // Water Polo
A native of Ann Arbor, Betsey Armstrong was a goalkeeper as a member of the two Olympic medal-winning water polo teams. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Armstrong and the United States won a silver medal. Armstrong was in goal for every second of the United States' six games en route to winning a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics. Less than a week after winning gold, Armstrong was named an assistant coach for the University of Michigan water polo team. As a student-athlete at Michigan, she was a four-time NCAA All-American and finalist for the 2004 Cutino Award as the nation's top player. She established program records in blocks (1,267), minutes (3,329), goals against average (5.64) and save percentage (.654). In 2008, Armstrong was inducted to the CWPA Hall of Fame.
Mike Barrowman // Swimming
Considered one of the pioneers of the "wave-style" breaststroke technique, Mike Barrowman placed fourth in the 200-meter breaststroke at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. He won a gold medal in the same event in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, setting a world record. As a student-athlete at the University of Michigan, Barrowman won three consecutive NCAA titles in the 200-yard breaststroke. His NCAA record in that event stood for 11 years. He was named NCAA Swimmer of the Year in 1990 and Big Ten Athlete of the Year in 1991. Barrowman broke the world record in the 200-meter breaststroke six times and held the world record for over 13 years, both of which were world records in themselves.
Steve Fraser // Wrestling
Steve Fraser became the first American to win an Olympic medal in Greco-Roman wrestling when he captured gold in the 198-pound division at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. Fraser posted a 5-0 record en route to the achievement, including a 1-1 criteria decision over Romania's Ilie Matei in the gold-medal final. Fraser also won gold at the 1983 Pan American Games and was a member of the 1979 and 1982 U.S. World Teams. He was named the 1984 USA Wrestling Athlete of the Year and was a finalist for the James E. Sullivan Award. Fraser served as the national Greco-Roman coach from 1997-2014 and is now USA Wrestling's chief of donor and alumni relations. As a wrestler at the University of Michigan, Fraser was a two-time NCAA All-American at 190 pounds.
Elise Ray // Women's Gymnastics
Before coming to Michigan in 2001, Elise Ray was the captain of the U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. She qualified for the all-around final and also made the event final on balance beam, but didn't medal in either competition (Note: Olympic officials discovered the vault apparatus had been set five centimeters too low halfway through the competition. Ray had already performed her vaults and fallen before the error had been corrected, though she was allowed to re-take her vaults at the end of the rotations.) Team USA finished fourth, but 10 years later, the members of the team were awarded bronze medals after it was discovered that a member of the Chinese team had falsified her age, rendering the results null. Ray went on to be one of the best gymnasts in program history, winning three NCAA titles and 14 NCAA All-America honors.
Barry Larkin // Baseball
As a student-athlete at the University of Michigan, Barry Larkin won a silver medal playing baseball for the United States in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Larkin played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball for his hometown Cincinnati Reds. During his MLB career, Larkin was a 12-time All-Star, World Series champion and the 1995 National League MVP. In 2012, Larkin was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. At the University of Michigan, Larkin accepted a football scholarship from head coach Bo Schembechler before deciding to focus solely on baseball. Larkin was a two-time NCAA All-American and led the Wolverines to two consecutive berths in the College World Series. In both 1984 and 1985, Larkin was named Big Ten Player of the Year. Larkin's No. 16 is retired by the Michigan baseball team.
Carl Robie // Swimming
Carl Robie was a two-time Olympic medalist in the 200-meter butterfly, winning silver in 1964 (Tokyo) and gold in 1968 (Mexico City). During his swimming career, Robie broke the world record four times, including twice on the same day in 1962. A two-time NCAA champion at the University of Michigan, Robie was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1976.
Jerome Singleton // Track & Field
Born without a fibula in his right calf, Jerome Singleton had his leg amputated when he was 18 months old. In the 2008 Beijing Paralympics, he won a silver medal in the 100-meter dash. Singleton holds a bachelor's degree in industrial and operations engineering from the University of Michigan.
Eddie Tolan // Track & Field
Nicknamed the "Midnight Express," Eddie Tolan was a two-time gold medalist at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, winning the 100- and 200-meter dashes to join former Wolverines Archie Hahn (1904) and Ralph Craig (1912) in completing the sweep at the Olympics. In addition to track, he played football at Detroit's Cass Tech High School before choosing to play football at the University of Michigan, though he never played for Michigan's varsity team. The 5-foot-6, 130-pound sprinter won multiple Big Ten championships, including the 100-yard dash in 1930, a world-record performance.
Peter Vanderkaay // Swimming
One of four brothers -- all of whom swam for Michigan -- Peter Vanderkaay is a four-time Olympic medalist. In 2004, Vanderkaay was a part of the gold-medal winning 4x200-meter freestyle relay team along with Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte and Klete Keller. Four years later, he won gold again, this time with Phelps, Lochte and Ricky Berens, as the foursome set a world record and became the first team in history to break the seven-minute mark. Individually, Vanderkaay won bronze medals in the 200-meter freestyle (2008) and 400-meter freestyle (2012). At Michigan, Vanderkaay was a six-time NCAA champion and 14-time Big Ten champion.
Gustavo Borges // Swimming
Swimming in four Olympiads, Gustavo Borges is one of Brazil's most decorated athletes. He won his first medal, a silver, in the 100-meter freestyle at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. Four years later in Atlanta, Borges became the first Brazilian to win three medals, adding a silver in the 200-meter freestyle and a bronze in the 100-meter freestyle. He won a bronze medal as part of Brazil's 4x100-meter freestyle relay team at the 2000 Games in Sydney and competed at the 2004 Games in Athens before retiring from the sport. Widely considered to be one of the best swimmers at the University of Michigan (1992-95), Borges was a 10-time NCAA champion, 20-time Big Ten champion and 24-time NCAA All-American. In 2012, he was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
Meryl Davis & Charlie White // Ice Dancing
The ice-dancing duo of Meryl Davis and Charlie White teamed up in 1997 and went on to become six-time U.S. champions (2009-14) and achieve unprecedented international success. At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, they received a silver medal after posting a personal-best total score. Four years later in Sochi, Davis and White were awarded the first Olympic gold medals for Americans in ice dancing after posting record scores. They also won a bronze medal in the team event. Both Davis and White attended the University of Michigan.
Tom Dolan // Swimming
Tom Dolan was a two-time Olympian for Team USA, winning back-to-back gold medals in the 400-meter individual medley in both 1996 and 2000 (world record). He also won a silver medal in the 200-meter IM at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. As a student-athlete at the University of Michigan, Dolan was a 10-time NCAA champion. He was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2009.
Alvin Kraenzlein // Track & Field
Known as "the father of the modern hurdling technique," Alvin Kraenzlein was the first athlete to win four gold medals (60-meter dash, 110-meter hurdles, 200-meter hurdles and long jump) in one sport in a single Olympic Games at the 1900 Olympics in Paris. His hurdling technique allowed him to set two world hurdles records. Kraenzlein, who competed as a collegian at Wisconsin (1896-97) and Penn (1898-1901), was the head track and field coach at the University of Michigan from 1910-13 and a football trainer from 1910-11. In 1984, he was inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame.
Ralph Rose // Track & Field
Ralph Rose finished his Olympic career with six medals -- three gold, two silver, one bronze. His primary events were the shot put, discus throw and hammer throw. Rose was the first shot putter to break 50 feet, and the world record he set in 1909 lasted for 16 years. At the University of Michigan, Rose competed for the Wolverines in 1904 and was a Big Ten champion in both the shot put and discus. In 1913, Rose died from typhoid fever at the age of 28.
Greg Barton // Kayaking
Greg Barton competed in three Summer Olympics, winning a total of four medals. He won bronze in 1984 (Los Angeles), then two golds in 1988 (Seoul) before adding another bronze in 1992 (Barcelona). As a student-athlete at the University of Michigan, Barton received a degree in mechanical engineering and was a member of the Chi Phi fraternity.
Archie Hahn // Track & Field
Nicknamed the "Milwaukee Meteor," Archie Hahn won three gold medals in the 1904 St. Louis Olympics in track, including the 100-meter dash. He won the same event two years later at the 1906 Intercalated Games in Athens. After Hahn, no track athlete won two consecutive gold medals in the 100-meter dash until Carl Lewis in 1988. Hahn was a member of the U-M track team from 1901 to 1904 and later returned to Michigan as a track assistant coach and a trainer for the football team in the early 1920s.
DeHart Hubbard // Track & Field
DeHart Hubbard made history at the 1924 Paris Olympics when he became the first African-American to win an Olympic gold medal in an individual event. In June 1925, Hubbard set a world record for running long jump and tied the 100-yard dash world record a year later. As a student-athlete at Michigan, Hubbard was a three-time NCAA champion and seven-time Big Ten Conference champion. Hubbard is a member of the National Track Hall of Fame as well as the University of Michigan Hall of Honor.
Micki King // Diving
Under the tutelage of diving coach Dick Kimball -- and before Michigan had a varsity women's swimming and diving program -- Micki King was one of the best female divers in the country. With individual national titles in the double digits, King graduated from Michigan in 1966 and joined the University's Air Force ROTC program, allowing her to stay on campus and train with Kimball for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. There, she was in first place through the ninth dive when she suffered a broken left forearm after hitting the board. The pain became too much to endure, as King broke her form on the 10th and final dive, slipping to fourth. She found redemption four years later at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, winning gold on the springboard. King went on to a 26-year career in the U.S. Air Force, reaching the rank of colonel. She has since been inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame, International Swimming Hall of Fame and International Women's Sports Hall of Fame.
Michael Phelps // Swimming
Though Michael Phelps did not technically swim in college, the most decorated Olympian in history got about as close as one could get. When his coach, Bob Bowman, became the head coach of the Michigan men's swimming and diving program in 2004, Phelps followed, spending the next four years training under Bowman with Club Wolverine and serving as the team's volunteer coach. Phelps has won 22 total medals, including an Olympic-record 18 gold medals. At the 2008 Games in Beijing, he broke the record for most first-place finishes at a single Olympic Games with eight gold medals. He has said that the 2016 Olympics will be his last. Phelps is currently training at Arizona State, where Bowman is head coach.
For more information, please visit the Bentley Historical Library.
