Mary Freeman (swimmer)
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United States As U. of Pennsylvania Coach circa 1960 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Mary Gray Freeman |
| National team | United States |
| Born | October 30, 1933 Bangor, Maine, U.S. |
| Coaching career | |
| Biographical details | |
| Alma mater | George Washington University |
| Playing career | |
| 1948-1953[1] | Walter Reed Swimming Club |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1955-1968 | Vesper Boat Club Women's Swim Team Philadelphia |
| 1960[1] | U. of Pennsylvania Women's Swim Team |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 1961 National Championship (Vespar Boat Club) '61 '66 AAU Nat. Outdoor Team Champs 56-58 Eastern U.S. & Middle Atlantic Champs (Vesper Boat Club) | |
| Awards | |
| International Swimming Hall of Fame | |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Swimming |
| Strokes | Backstroke, Individual Medley |
| Club | Walter Reed Swim Club |
| Coach | Jim Campbell |
Mary Gray Freeman (born October 30, 1933), also known by her former married name Mary Kelly, as Mary Freeman Kelly and by her subsequent married name Mary Spitzer, is an American former competition swimmer who represented the United States at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland in the 100-meter backstroke. After leaving competitive swimming in 1953, she became a Hall of Fame swim coach for Philadelphia's Vesper Boat Club from 1955–68 and coached the Women's Team at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960. Recognized as one of the most outstanding women coaches of her era, in 1964 she was the first woman to be recommended as an American Olympic coach but declined the nomination, believing a man should take the honor as they were more reliant on earning wages to live.[2][1]
Mary Grey Freeman was born in Bangor, Maine, to Colonel Monroe E. Freeman of the U.S. Army who would later work for the Pentagon in Washington. She attended Amherst High School in Massachusetts, and graduated from Coolidge High School in Washington. She later attended George Washington University from around 1950-1954, while continuing to pursue competitive swimming through clubs, as George Washington had no women's swim team at the time. [3][4]
Swimming competitor
Kelly began swimming as a beginner in the Walter Reed Army Hospital pool in Washington as her father, a chemist, was on the staff. Her competitive career began around 1948, around the age of 15.[5] She started with 6 a.m. practices with the Walter Reed swim club under Coach Jim Campbell, who was also a physical therapist at the hospital. Campbell would later coach swimmers at the University of Pennsylvania as would Mary.[6] In 1952, Freeman made the U.S. Olympic team bound for Helsinki. Recognized as an attractive American athletic champion with a Hollywood connection through her husband, she held a measure of celebrity status and appeared on the cover of Life Magazine on July 23, 1951.[1]
1952 Olympics
In the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, she finished ninth in the women's 100-meter backstroke, placing ninth overall with a time of 1:18.0, and did not qualify for the finals.[7][8]
AAU National champion
Freeman won the backstroke competition in the 100-meter and 200-meter events at the 1951 AAU outdoor championships. That year she also captured AAU 200-yard indoor backstroke title. In 1953, one of her best years, she won three additional AAU competitions; the 330-yard outdoor medley relay, the 880 yard outdoor freestyle relay, and the indoor 300 yard individual medley.[7]
She was proficient in each of the three swim strokes at the time and in January 1952, set a national record in the 150-yard individual medley consisting of back, breast, and freestyle, at a District AAU Meet in York, Pennsylvania. Her proficiency in all three strokes would be an advantage as a future swim coach.[9][1]
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