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Gary Hall Sr.

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American swimmer (born 1951)

Gary Hall Sr.
Hall in c. 1972
Personal information
Full nameGary Wayne Hall Sr.
National teamUnited States
Born (1951-08-07) August 7, 1951 (age 73)
Fayetteville, North Carolina
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight163 lb (74 kg)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesButterfly, individual medley
ClubCincinnati Marlins
College teamIndiana University
Medal record
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1968 Mexico City 400 m medley
Silver medal – second place 1972 Munich 200 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place 1976 Montreal 100 m butterfly

Gary Wayne Hall Sr. (born August 7, 1951) is an American former competitive swimmer, three-time Olympic medalist, and former world record-holder in five events. He is also a former ophthalmologist.

Background

Hall attended Indiana University, where he swam for the Indiana Hoosiers swimming and diving team under coach Doc Counsilman. As a college swimmer, he specialized in the individual medley. Hall was elected captain of the Hoosiers swimming team in his senior year. In academics, Hall excelled in the classroom and was consistently cited by the NCAA as an outstanding example of student-athlete. He was accepted for medical school at the University of Cincinnati. He later became an ophthalmologist, and practiced in Phoenix, Arizona.

Hall first represented the United States in the 1968 Summer Olympics held in Mexico City, Mexico, where he won a silver medal for his second-place finish in the men's 400-meter individual medley. Two years later he broke the world record in the 200-meter butterfly.

Hall made it a point to vigorously exercise in the swimming pool after daily med school classes. His wife, the former Mary Keating, being from a swimming family, understood his love of the water.

At the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, he earned a silver medal in the men's 200-meter butterfly. His final Olympic appearance was at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Canada, capping his Olympic career with a bronze medal in the men's 100-meter butterfly. At the end of the Montreal Olympics, his fellow American athletes from all sports disciplines chose him to be the U.S. flagbearer in the closing ceremony.

Ophthalmologist career

Hall graduated from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. He practiced as Gary Hall, MD as an ophthalmologist in Phoenix, Arizona at the Gary Hall Lasik Center. Common conditions he treated in ophthalmology included macular degeneration and cataracts. Hall was a recipient of the NCAA Silver Anniversary Award for his outstanding career in ophthalmology.

History of malpractice in ophthalmology

In January 1996, Hall was ordered by the Arizona Medical Board to spend three years on probation and to pay the board $10,000 to cover the costs of an investigation, the details of which are no longer on the board's site. In October 1999, he was placed on probation for three more years and was censured for unprofessional conduct, permanently prohibited from performing certain procedures, forced to take additional educational courses, and pay a penalty of $15,000. In April 2005, the Arizona Medical Board placed Hall on probation for another five years, with the demand that he never perform surgery again.

In October 2009, after being found in violation of the Arizona Medical Board's demands, the board stripped Hall of his medical license. The Board found that Hall had been guilty of unprofessional conduct, negligence, and incompetence in his practice.

A 1998 article from the Phoenix New Times indicated that Hall had 121 complaints lodged against him to the Arizona Medical Board since he began practicing in 1982. It is unknown how many complaints he had accumulated by 2009 when his license was finally revoked.

An article from the Los Angeles Times said that as of June 2000, Hall had paid over $5.3 million in medical malpractice claims and was listed 27 times in the federal database for medical malpractice.

International Swimming Hall of Fame

In 1981, Hall was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer." Later on, he also became a local celebrity in Phoenix, as an ophthalmologist – appearing in his office's television ads and billboard campaigns.

His son Gary Hall Jr. became a famous Olympic swimmer as well, starting in the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games, getting various gold medals at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. With his son's participation at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, the Halls became the first father-and-son pair to make three Olympic appearances.

Swimming camps

Gary Hall Sr. currently lives in San Diego and operates The Race Club swimming camps. The Race Club is a swimming club founded by Hall and his son Gary Hall Jr. The swimming club, originally known as "The World Team," was designed to serve as a swimming training group for elite swimmers across the world in preparation for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. To be able to train with The Race Club, one must either have been ranked in the top 20 in the world the past three calendar years or top three in their nation in the past year. The Race Club included such well-known swimmers as Roland Mark Schoeman, Mark Foster, Ryk Neethling, Milorad Čavić and Therese Alshammar. They were coached by University of Michigan coach Mike Bottom.

The Race Club provides facilities, swimming techniques coaching, swimming training programs, technical instruction, swimming technique videos, fitness and health programs for swimmers of all ages and abilities. The club's summer swim camps are designed and tailored to satisfy each swimmer's needs, whether one is trying to reach the Olympic Games or simply improve one's swimming techniques or fitness level. The swimming camps programs are suitable for beginner swimmers, pleasure swimmers, fitness swimmers, USA swimming or YMCA swimmers, or triathletes; anyone who wants to improve swimming skills.

Charles Keating IV

Hall's nephew is Chief petty officer Charles Keating IV, a Navy SEAL, who was killed at age 31 in combat with ISIS in Iraq in 2016. He was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for his actions in combat.

See also

References

  1. ^ Gary Hall Sr.. sportsillustrated.cnn.com
  2. "- Swimming World News". Archived from the original on August 25, 2012.
  3. Indiana Hoosiers Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. (PDF) . cstv.com.
  4. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Gary Hall". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on May 24, 2010.
  5. Anonymous. "Gary Hall, MD". wellness.com.
  6. William Heisel. "Doctors Behaving Badly".
  7. CHRIS FARNSWORTH. "The BOMEX Files".
  8. L.A. TIMES ARCHIVES (June 30, 2000). "Access Sought to Secret List of Sanctioned Doctors Files". Los Angeles Times.
  9. "Gary Hall Sr". ISHOF.org. International Swimming Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved March 18, 2015.
  10. "The World Team". The Race Club. Archived from the original on August 20, 2016. Retrieved May 23, 2012.
  11. "Swim Camps – The Race Club – Swimming Technique, Swimming Training Program, Florida Swim Camps, Summer Swim Camps". The Race Club.

External links


Olympic Games
Preceded byCindy Nelson United States Flagbearer
Montreal 1976 		Succeeded byScott Hamilton
Records
Preceded byMark Spitz Men's 200-meter butterfly
world record-holder (long course)
August 22, 1970 – August 27, 1971 		Succeeded byMark Spitz
Preceded byCharlie Hickcox Men's 200-meter individual medley
world record-holder (long course)
August 17, 1969 – September 12, 1970 		Succeeded byGunnar Larsson
Preceded by
Greg Buckingham
Charlie Hickcox 		Men's 400-meter individual medley
world record-holder (long course)
July 20, 1968 – August 30, 1968
July 11, 1969 – August 20, 1974 		Succeeded by
Charlie Hickcox
András Hargitay
1968 USA Olympic swimming team
Men's Team
Women's Team
Staff
1972 USA Olympic swimming team
Men's team
Women's team
Coaches
1976 USA Olympic swimming team
Men's Team
Women's Team
Coaches
NCAA Champions in Men's 200 y Individual Medley
NCAA Champions in Men's 400 y Individual Medley
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