George Harrison (swimmer)

George Harrison
Harrison in 1960
Personal information
Full name George Prifold Harrison
National team United States
Born April 9, 1939
Berkeley, California
Died 3 October 2011 (aged 72)
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight 179 lb (81 kg)
Sport
Sport Swimming
Strokes Freestyle
Club Santa Clara Swim Club
College team Stanford University
Medal record
Representing the United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1960 Rome 4×200 m freestyle
Pan American Games
Silver medal – second place 1959 Chicago 400 m freestyle

George Prifold Harrison (April 9, 1939 – October 3, 2011) was an American competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder in three events. He competed at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, where he received a gold medal as the lead-off swimmer of the winning U.S. team in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. Harrison, together with his American relay teammates Dick Blick, Mike Troy and Jeff Farrell, set a new world record of 8:10.2 in the event final.

Individually Harrison won a silver medal in the 400-meter freestyle at the 1959 Pan American Games. He also held the world record in 200-meter individual medley (long course) from August 24, 1956, to July 19, 1958, and the world record in the 400-meter individual medley (long course) from June 24 to July 22, 1960.

Harrison studied at Acalanes High School, and in 1965 graduated from Stanford University, where he was a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity and was later inducted into the Swimming Hall of Fame. He spent most of his career with Lee & Associates at Pleasanton, California, working in investment and industrial brokerage. At the time of his death, from complications during surgery, he lived in Moraga, California.

See also