Ervin, Anthony (1981-…), became the first United States swimmer of African American descent to win a medal at an Olympic Games . At the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney , Australia, Ervin won a gold medal in the men’s 50-meter freestyle and a silver medal as a member of the second-place United States 4×100-meter freestyle relay team.
At the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro , Brazil, Ervin won gold medals in the 50-meter freestyle and as a member of the winning 4×100-meter freestyle relay team. His victory in the 50-meter freestyle at the age of 35 made him the oldest athlete ever to win an individual Olympic gold medal in swimming.
Ervin was born in Valencia, California, on May 26, 1981. His father was of African American and Native American descent, and his mother was of European Jewish descent. As a teenager, Ervin swam for the Canyons Aquatic Club in Santa Clarita, California. Later, he swam for the University of California at Berkeley, where he won seven National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) titles. After winning two Olympic medals at the age of 19 in 2000, he won gold medals in the 50-meter and 100-meter freestyle races at the 2001 World Swimming Championships.
Ervin stopped swimming competitively in 2003. He spent his 20’s experimenting with drugs, playing the guitar in a rock band, and teaching swimming. Ervin resumed training in 2011 and swam in the 2012 Summer Olympics, finishing fifth in the 50-meter freestyle. Ervin’s memoir, Chasing Water: Elegy of an Olympian, was published in 2016.
