Bruce Furniss
From Openwaterpedia
Bruce Furniss at the Vindication Swim premiere at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California
Bruce MacFarlane Furniss (born 27 May 1957) is a former American competitive swimmer, Olympic double gold medalist, and ten-time world record-holder in four events. He is the third of four successful aquatic brothers, often referred to as the "Orange County California's First Family of Swimming."
Swimming Highlights
- At the 1976 Montreal Olympics, he won the 200-meter freestyle in 1:50.29, leading an American sweep finishing ahead of fellow Americans John Naber (silver) and Jim Montgomery (bronze).
- He was a member of the winning U.S. team in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay, both in world record time on 21 July 1976. He teamed up with John Naber, Jim Montgomery and Mike Bruner on the relay with a winning time of 7:23.22. On that relay when he swam the second leg, he became the first person ever to break the 1:50 second barrier, splitting 1:49.56 (53.77 and 55.79).
- He broke 10 world records and 19 American records, and won eleven Amateur Athletic Union and six NCAA titles during his career.
- He was a successful individual medley swimmer, however it was his freestyle technique for which he is most often recognized and remembered. Many coaches and swimming experts lauded his "perfect freestyle stroke" and six-beat flutter kick as his best weapon against his much taller and bigger opponents.
- As a junior high school stuudent at the 1974 CIF-SS Championships, Furniss broke Mark Spitz's National Interscholastic High School Record in the 200-yard individual medley and then topped the record again at the same championship in 1975.
- He was an integral part of USC's NCAA National Collegiate Championship winning teams of 1976 and 1977.
- He won two gold and two silver medals in the 1975 World Aquatics Championships in Colombia and 1978 World Aquatics Championships in West Berlin.
- He broke the 200-meter freestyle world record four different times.
- He broke the world record in the 200-meter individual medley at the 1975 AAU Senior National Outdoor Championships.
- He held the 200-meter freestyle world record from 1975 to 1979.
- He held the 200-meter individual medley world record from 1975 to 1977.
- He either broke or was on relay teams that broke 10 world records in 4 different events over a 3-year period.
- He and his brother Steve Furniss remain in an exclusive group of four sets of brothers to win Olympic swimming medals, joining Hawaiian brothers, Duke Kahanamoku and Samuel Kahanamoku and Warren Kealoha and Pua Kealoha, and Spain's David Lopez-Zubero and Martin Lopez-Zubero.
