Yury Gromak

In 1966 Yury Gromak, a young and practically unknown backstroke swimmer from Ukraine, surprised everyone by winning the 200 metre backstroke at the 1966 European Championships. Before the 1966 European Championships, Gromak had won only four bronze medals at the Soviet Championships (1966 in 100 back and 1964-66 in 200 back). In 1967 Gromak won his only two Soviet titles, capturing both the 100 and 200 back.

In 1968 Gromak won silver in the 100 metre backstroke at the Soviet Championships and competed at the 1968 Olympics, where he reached the semifinals of the 100 backstroke and won bronze as a member of the Soviet medley relay team. In 1969 Gromak won his last major medal, silver in 100 m backstroke, at the Soviet championships and retired from swimming when he was not selected for the Soviet 1970 European Championships team.

Personal Best: 100 m backstroke – 1:01.3 (1967); 200 m backstroke – 2:12.9 (1966).