44°
OSSINING, N.Y. Ossining swim coach Mike Kane is hoping a visit from a 2000 Olympic gold medalist Sunday will inspire his Westchester swimmers.
Anthony Ervin, who won gold in the 50-meter freestyle, is the star of the Metropolitan Swimmings 2012 Diversity Clinic at 10 a.m. Sunday at Ossinings Caputo Community Center. More than 150 swimmers are expected to attend.
Its a chance for people to see one of the fastest swimmers in the world here in Ossining, Kane said. Hes not only a gold medalist, but hes also training for the Olympic trials right now. And hes competing at a very high level. The talk is free and open to the public.
Ervin, who in March finished third in the 50-meter freestyle at the Indianapolis Grand Prix, will dive in to the water set the Ossining Aquatics Centers first official pool record.
After winning the Olympic gold in 2000, he retired at the age of 22. Now he's finishing his master's degree at University of California at Berkeley while gunning for a spot on the U.S. team for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, according to his website.
Ervin represents a broad demographic of Jewish, Native American and African-American decent, according to his website. Ervin also has done work in Asia, where he auctioned his gold medal on eBay and donated the proceeds to tsunami relief in southeast Asia, according to his website.
It gives our young athletes an opportunity to see an athlete at the top of his game and to see someone with a diverse background who has accomplished so much, Kane said. Ossining is close to 50 percent in multiracial families, and theyre not very well represented in swimming. Its really going to open their eyes to see whats out there and what they could accomplish.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Ossining and receive free news updates.
