Graham Johnston

Biographical information

RolesCompeted in Olympic Games
SexMale
Full nameGraham Murray•Johnston
Used nameGraham•Johnston
Born10 July 1930 in Bloemfontein, Free State (RSA)
Died27 July 2019 in Houston, Texas (USA)
NOC South Africa

Biography

Graham Johnston swam for South Africa at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. He won five medals at the British Empire Games, highlighted by gold medals in the 1,650 yard freestyle in 1950 and 1954. He also won a silver in the 440 yd free in 1950, and bronzes in the 1954 440 free and the 4x220 yd freestyle relay. His older brother, Don Johnston, swam the 1,500 freestyle at the 1948 Olympics.

After his 1952 Olympic appearance, Graham was given a swimming scholarship at the University of Oklahoma in the United States, where he made All-American for three years. He was selected for the 1956 South African Olympic team, but studies in his final year at Oklahoma conflicted with the Games and he elected not to compete. After college Johnston stopped swimming but returned to the sport in 1973 and became a legend in masters swimming. Over the next 47 years he set numerous world age-group records and won multiple world and national titles.

Settling in Houston, Texas, he was also known for long-distance swimming, and won the oldest open water swim in the USA, the Waikiki Rough Water Swim, eight years in a row from 1993-2000. He completed the Robben Island to Capetown, South Africa swim in 51-degree water without a wetsuit. Graham swam the Lanai-to-Maui Channel relay several times. At age 74 became the oldest man to swim the Straits of Gibraltar.

Graham Johnston was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1998. He was also inducted into the Texas Swimming and Diving Hall of Fame in 2009, the National Senior Games Hall of Fame in 2011, and the Huntsman World Senior Games Hall of Fame in 2012.

Results

Games Discipline (Sport) / Event NOC / Team Pos Medal As
1952 Summer Olympics Swimming (Aquatics) RSA Graham Johnston
400 metres Freestyle, Men (Olympic) 10
1,500 metres Freestyle, Men (Olympic) 17
4 × 200 metres Freestyle Relay, Men (Olympic) South Africa 7

Olympic family relations

Special Notes

Errata

Date of birth also seen as 15 May 1931.