John Hencken

John Frederick Hencken (born May 29, 1954) is an American former competition swimmer for Stanford University, three-time Olympic champion, and former world record-holder primarily in the 100 and 200 meter breaststroke events. Hencken won five Olympic medals during his career in the 1972 Munich, and 1976 Montreal Olympics, including three golds. where he swam for the Berkeley YMCA. At 16, Hencken set a National Junior Olympics record of 1:01.7 in the 100-yard breaststroke, though he had already broken a minute in the event, and had swum the 200-yard breaststroke in 2:14.6, just a second short of the Junior Olympic record. Swimming for Cupertino High as a Senior in 1972, Hencken set a school record of 22.2 in the 50 freestyle, and swam a 1:00.9 in the 100 breast stroke, the best time in his central coast high school section.

Stanford University

Hencken attended and swam for Stanford University under Hall of Fame Coach Jim Gaughran beginning in 1972, majoring in general engineering and product design, and graduated in 1977. He later completed his MBA at the University of Phoenix.

During his years swimming for Stanford, Hencken won five NCAA titles in his signature stroke, with three in the 100-yard breast and two in the 200-yard breast events. At the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, he won a gold medal in the 200-meter breaststroke with a world record time of 2:21.55, breaking his former record of 2:22.8 and a bronze medal in the 100-meter breaststroke.

Four years later at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Canada, Hencken won a gold medal in the 100-meter breaststroke with a world record time of 1:03.11. He also took a gold swimming with the 4×100-meter medley relay with a world record time of 3:42.22, and a silver in the 200-meter breaststroke with an American record time of 2:17.26. Each of the four swimmers for the gold-medal winning US 4x100 medley team recorded the swiftest individual time in the event final for their leg, with John Naber taking a significant lead in his opening backstroke leg. Qualifying in 1972, 1976, and 1980, he remains the only swimmer to ever qualify for three Olympic teams in the 100 meter and 200 meter breaststroke. He was elected to the Santa Clara International Swim Center Hall Of Fame in July 1998.