Thomas Stachewicz
Encyclopedia
Thomas 'Tom' Stachewicz, born in Germany (5 December 1965), is a former freestyle
and backstroke
swimmer, who represented Australia
at three Summer Olympics.
Stachewicz made his Olympic debut in the 1984 Summer Olympics
in Los Angeles
, where he competed in the heats of the Men's 4x200m freestyle relay. The Australian 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay team recorded national records in both the preliminaries and final, finishing with a time of 7 minutes 25.63 seconds
, 0.85 seconds behind third place Great Britain
. Stachewicz swam the preliminary only at this meet.
At the 1986 Commonwealth Games
in Edinburgh
, Stachewicz was part of the gold-medal-winning Men's 4x200m Freestyle relay team. He also won bronze in the Men's 200m Freestyle.
Later that year he competed in the World Swimming Championships
in Madrid
, where he was part of the 4x200m freestyle relay team which finished fourth.
In 1987 Stachewicz broke the Commonwealth record in the 200m freestyle at the NOK International championship in East Berlin in a time of 1 minute 49.32 seconds being the first Australian to break the 1 minute 50 second mark.
At 1988 Summer Olympics
in Seoul
, Stachewicz swam well below his best in the Men's 200 metre freestyle
heats, qualifying only for the B Final, where he finished 3rd in 1 minute 50.83 seconds. He also competed in the individual Men's 50m and 100m freestyle events, winning the B Final in the 100m freestyle in 50.71 seconds. He led off the relay in the final of the 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
, recording a personal best of 1 minute 48.99 seconds. This time ranked him second all-time Australian in the 200 metre freestyle behind Duncan Armstrong's World record
swim from earlier in the meet. The Australian team went on to record a national record of 7 minutes 15.23 seconds for their fourth place, 0.88 seconds behind the West German team in the bronze medal position.
At the 1990 Commonwealth Games
in Auckland Stachewicz was a member of the gold-medal-winning Men's 4x100m Freestyle relay and 4x200m freestyle relay teams. He was also a member of the bronze-medal-winning 4x200m medley relay team and won an individual bronze in the Men's 200m freestyle final in a time of 1 minute 49.98 seconds.
In 1991 he competed at the World Swimming Championships
in Perth, Western Australia
, where he came seventh in the Men's 100m backstroke.
Stachewicz then competed in the 4x100m Freestyle and 4x100m Medley relays at the 1992 Summer Olympics
in Barcelona where the team finished 7th and 8th respectively. He also competed in the Men's 100m Backstroke, finishing 4th in his heat with a time of 57.03 seconds.
He was coach of the Mauritian
Olympic team for the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics and his career since then has included the post of Director of Swimming at All Saints College, Perth
.
In 2009 he was inducted into the Swimming Western Australia Hall of Fame.
Freestyle swimming
Freestyle is an unregulated swimming style used in swimming competitions according to the rules of FINA. The front crawl stroke is almost universally used during a freestyle race, as this style is generally the fastest...
and backstroke
Backstroke
The backstroke, also sometimes called the back crawl, is one of the four swimming styles regulated by FINA, and the only regulated style swum on the back. This has the advantage of easy breathing, but the disadvantage of swimmers not being able to see where they are going. It is also the only...
swimmer, who represented Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
at three Summer Olympics.
Stachewicz made his Olympic debut in the 1984 Summer Olympics
Swimming at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Swimming at the 1984 Summer Olympics, held at the McDonald's Olympic Swim Stadium, located on the USC campus. There was a total of 494 participants from 67 countries competing.-Medal table:-Men's events:-Women's events:-References:...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, where he competed in the heats of the Men's 4x200m freestyle relay. The Australian 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay team recorded national records in both the preliminaries and final, finishing with a time of 7 minutes 25.63 seconds
Swimming at the 1984 Summer Olympics - Men's 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
The final of the Men's 4x200 metres Freestyle Relay event at the 1984 Summer Olympics was held in Los Angeles, California, on July 30, 1984. The first eight teams qualified for the final.-Final:-Qualifying heats:-References:* * *...
, 0.85 seconds behind third place Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. Stachewicz swam the preliminary only at this meet.
At the 1986 Commonwealth Games
Aquatics at the 1986 Commonwealth Games
-Diving:-Men's events:-Women's events:-Synchronised swimming:...
in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Stachewicz was part of the gold-medal-winning Men's 4x200m Freestyle relay team. He also won bronze in the Men's 200m Freestyle.
Later that year he competed in the World Swimming Championships
1986 World Aquatics Championships
The 1986 World Aquatics Championships took place in Madrid, Spain between August 13 and August 23, 1986 with 1119 participating athletes. In swimming, the women's 4×200 m freestyle relay was held for the first time.- Medals table :-Diving:MenWomen...
in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, where he was part of the 4x200m freestyle relay team which finished fourth.
In 1987 Stachewicz broke the Commonwealth record in the 200m freestyle at the NOK International championship in East Berlin in a time of 1 minute 49.32 seconds being the first Australian to break the 1 minute 50 second mark.
At 1988 Summer Olympics
Swimming at the 1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics took place in Seoul, South Korea. The swimming competition, held from September 18 to September 25, was notable for the seven medals, including five golds, won by Matt Biondi, the six golds won by Kristin Otto, and the three individual golds won by Janet Evans...
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, Stachewicz swam well below his best in the Men's 200 metre freestyle
Swimming at the 1988 Summer Olympics - Men's 200 metre freestyle
-A Final:-B final:-Heats:-References:*Swimming World Magazine, November 1988....
heats, qualifying only for the B Final, where he finished 3rd in 1 minute 50.83 seconds. He also competed in the individual Men's 50m and 100m freestyle events, winning the B Final in the 100m freestyle in 50.71 seconds. He led off the relay in the final of the 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
Swimming at the 1988 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
The men's 4×200 metre freestyle relay event at the 1988 Olympic Games took place between September 20 & September 21. The relay featured teams of four swimmers each swimming four lengths of the 50 m pool freestyle.-Medalists:-Heats:Heat 1...
, recording a personal best of 1 minute 48.99 seconds. This time ranked him second all-time Australian in the 200 metre freestyle behind Duncan Armstrong's World record
World record progression 200 metres freestyle
This is a history of the World Record in the 200 Freestyle swimming event. Swimming World Records are recognized by FINA in either long-course or short-course pool courses....
swim from earlier in the meet. The Australian team went on to record a national record of 7 minutes 15.23 seconds for their fourth place, 0.88 seconds behind the West German team in the bronze medal position.
At the 1990 Commonwealth Games
Aquatics at the 1990 Commonwealth Games
-Diving:-Men's events:-Women's events:-Synchronized swimming:...
in Auckland Stachewicz was a member of the gold-medal-winning Men's 4x100m Freestyle relay and 4x200m freestyle relay teams. He was also a member of the bronze-medal-winning 4x200m medley relay team and won an individual bronze in the Men's 200m freestyle final in a time of 1 minute 49.98 seconds.
In 1991 he competed at the World Swimming Championships
1991 World Aquatics Championships
The 1991 World Aquatics Championships took place in Perth, Australia between 3 January and 13 January 1991 with 1142 participating athletes.- Medals table :-Diving:MenWomen-Open water swimming:MenWomen-Swimming:MenWomen...
in Perth, Western Australia
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, where he came seventh in the Men's 100m backstroke.
Stachewicz then competed in the 4x100m Freestyle and 4x100m Medley relays at the 1992 Summer Olympics
Swimming at the 1992 Summer Olympics
At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, 31 swimming events were contested. There was a total of 641 participants from 92 countries competing.-Medal table:-Men's events:* Swimmers who participated in the heats only and received medals....
in Barcelona where the team finished 7th and 8th respectively. He also competed in the Men's 100m Backstroke, finishing 4th in his heat with a time of 57.03 seconds.
He was coach of the Mauritian
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
Olympic team for the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics and his career since then has included the post of Director of Swimming at All Saints College, Perth
All Saints College, Perth
All Saints' College is a private school situated on 18 hectares in Bull Creek, a southern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. It was the first coeducational Anglican school to be founded in the Perth metropolitan area and now caters for students from kindergarten to year 12/13.The college is...
.
In 2009 he was inducted into the Swimming Western Australia Hall of Fame.