Biondi takes to hills

Press, 27 September 1988, Page 25

Biondi takes to hills

NZPA-Reuter Seoul Matt Biondi, the towering Californian who swam with the dolphins on his way to seven Olympic medals, is off to the hills. “I have travelled all over the world and the United States but all I have seen is pools,’” said America’s greatest Olympic swimmer since Mark Spitz. Officially announcing his retirement from swimming on Sunday, Biondi said his goal now was to be on the United States waterpolo team at the next Olympics in Barcelona. But first: “I want to take some time out and do some backpacking.” Biondi unwound at his news conference after the United States 4XIOO medley team won in world record time and. he

landed his fifth gold. He also won a silver and a bronze. When he came into the interview room, his latest gold medal fell off its ribbon on to the floor. Grinning broadly, he said: “Don’t worry, I have got six more.” The night before that last triumph, he finally let his mind wander over the enormity of his sporting achievement and could not get to sleep until four in the morning. Seoul was a life-long dream come true for Biondi who said: “As a child, I always thought of Olympians as super heroes.” In an intriguing experiment in the run-up to Seoul, Biondi swam with dolphins to see what the lightening-fast creatures could teach man. “What I

did learn watching them was an awareness of how the water moves across their bodies. That helped me with my technique,” he said. Olympic victory on such a scale means big money but 22-year-old Biondi pledged to choose his endorsements carefully. “I definitely would not do underwear commercials. There will be no posters of me just standing there with seven medals round my neck.” “Outside of a swimming context I don’t feel comfortable about being on somebody’s wall.” Biondi, still wearing a bemused grin after his seventh trip to the podium, said: “It hasn’t really hit me yet. When it does, I don’t think I shall be able to sleep for a couple of days.”