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City of Seattle
Gregory J. Nickels, Mayor
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NEWS ADVISORY
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| SUBJECT: Mayor Nickels to Re-Dedicate Helene Madison Pool
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
12/29/2006 3:01:00 PM |
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dewey Potter (206) 684-7241
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Mayor Nickels to Re-Dedicate Helene Madison Pool
Mayor Greg Nickels will join local swimmers, the Bitter Lake Advisory Council,
and community members from 1 to 2 p.m. Monday, January 8 to rededicate Helene
Madison Pool, 13401 Meridian Ave. N, by unveiling a sign honoring Olympic gold
medalist Helene Madison with photos and information.
The Forward Thrust bond-funded pool is named in honor of Madison, who at age
19 won three gold medals in freestyle swimming: the 100-meter freestyle, the
400-meter freestyle, and the 4 by 100-meter relay at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics.
When Madison returned triumphantly to Seattle after the 1932 Olympic Games,
Seattle honored the hometown heroine, nicknamed "Queen Helene" and
"Queen of the Waters" by the press, with the biggest parade the city
had ever seen.
Madison learned to swim through Seattle Parks and Recreation programs, trained
competitively under coach Ray Daughters at the Moore Hotel pool (the "Crystal"
pool) and the Washington Athletic Club, and during a 16 ½-month period
in 1931 and 1932 she broke all 16 freestyle world records for distances between
100 yards and one mile. In 1931 the Associated Press named her Female Athlete
of the Year.
In its March 31, 1930 issue, Time Magazine said this of Madison: "Helene
Madison swims "free-style." which means she uses that adaptation of
the Australian crawl which U. S. coaches have worked out as the fastest way
in which a human being can propel itself through water. A swimmer using this
stroke must have long, supple legs for much of the power comes from the hips,
knees and ankles. The arms are used somewhat as in the trudgeon stroke. Helene
Madison's feet are narrower than those of Johnny Weissmuller, famed male freestyler,
but long enough to be good paddles. She has big hands and a tall, athletic body
so matured by swimming that it looks little like the body of a 16-year-old girl.
She has blonde hair, an expression of indolence and good-nature."
She was honored in 1990 on a U.S. postage stamp, and while she never swam as
an amateur again, Madison was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in
1992. She died of cancer in 1970.
Since the 1971 opening of the pool named in Madison's honor, her legacy has
inspired thousands of Seattle children, adults, and seniors to learn to swim,
to swim regularly for fun and exercise, to swim competitively through a partnership
with Ingraham High School, learn springboard diving, participate in the Special
Olympics swim team, study maritime safety, and learn kayaking, all under the
guidance of a highly trained and experienced staff.
The pool, which enjoys the support of the Bitter Lake Advisory Council, also
participates in a unique partnership with the Arthritis Foundation to provide
swim programs for people who have movement limitations.
The swimming pool at the Washington Athletic Club in downtown Seattle is also
named in Madison's honor.
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Seattle Parks and Recreation
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