Anthony Ervin

Anthony Ervin is a U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist, former world record holder in the 50 freestyle, and former World Champion in the 50 and 100 freestyle.

In the Summer of 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, “Tony” swam to a gold in the 50 freestyle becoming the fastest man on the planet. Ervin is back in the water and has been trained at U.C. Berkeley (his alma mater) alongside Olympic Gold medalists Natalie Coughlin and Nathan Adrian through 2014. In December 2011 -- in his first USA Swim meet in 7 years -- he won gold at the Chesapeake Pro-Am and immediately put himself back in the U.S. top five. Ervin participated in the the U.S. Olympic Trials and was selected for the London Olympic Games for the 50 freestyle. Following The Olympics, Ervin swam to 16 medals on the World Cup circuit, 9 of them being gold and an American record in the 50 Freestyle. In 2014, Ervin regained his U.S. National title in the 50m Freestyle snagging a Silver medal at that year's Pan Pacific Championships in Australia. His return at 30 brings a renewed outlook of enjoying the journey and appreciating the moment. His memoir will appear worldwide in 2016.

After winning the Olympic gold, 2 World Championships, and 7 NCAA titles, Ervin retired at the young age of 22. Ervin then spent several years traveling the world and exploring other interests, including his higher education, music, tattoos, teaching people all over the world about swimming, and tsunami flood relief. His vision is to use his experiences and his platform as a chance to give back and inspire people of all ages to live the life they love. His return to the swimming world has already caught the attention of major media outlets including Sports Illustrated, Rolling Stone, The Guardian, The New York Times and CNN.

Ervin's story is especially unique in that his family tree represents a broad demographic of Jewish, Native American, and African American decent. He truly embodies the diversity of our modern world. Over the years Ervin has grown to embrace his place in the world as an opportunity to reach out and try to give back. He auctioned off his Gold medal on eBay and donated the funds to tsunami relief in Southeast Asia. He was also the current spokesperson for the International Water Safety Day that reached over a quarter million people last spring. This inaugural water safety day partnered with US Rowing, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, and USA Swimming member clubs nationwide. Ervin proudly represents FINIS swimming & apparel and is currently training under Dave Salo at USC.