Faith Leech

Infobox Swimmer
swimmername = Faith Leech


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fullname = Faith Leech
nicknames = Flying fish
nationality = AUS
strokes = Freestyle
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collegeteam =
birthdate =birth date and age|df=yes|1941|03|31
birthplace =Bendigo, Victoria, Australia
deathdate =
deathplace =
height = 180 cm
weight = 57 kg
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Faith Leech (born 31 March 1941 in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia) is a former Australian freestyle swimmer of the 1950s, who won a gold medal in the 4 × 100 m freestyle relay at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics as well as bronze in the 100 m freestyle event. A tall and slim swimmer known for her elegant technique, Leech started swimming as child to build strength after a series of eating disorders in her infancy. She quickly rose to prominence and in 1955, became the youngest girl to win the convert|110|yd|abbr=on national title, achieving the feat before her fourteenth birthday. She twice broke the Australian record in the event in late 1955, which positioned her as a leading contender for the upcoming Olympics. Leech's preparations were hindered by illness in the Olympic year, but she gained selection in both the individual 100 m and the relay event for the Olympics. She produced a late surge to take bronze in the individual event to seal an Australian trifecta, before combining in the team event to secure a gold medal for Australia in world record time. Leech retired after the Olympics at the age of just 15, citing anxiety caused by racing as one of the factors.

Early years

The second child of John and Jessie Leech, her parents named her Faith after their first child, who died at the age of two due to leukaemia.Howell, p. 133.] Leech was a delicate child, having an aversion to eating in the first two years of her life, forcing her mother to feed her hourly in small doses. Twice Leech had to be rushed from the family home in the regional Victorian town of Bendigo to Melbourne to be hospitalised. After conventional medicine had failed to rectify her daughter's dietary issues, Leech's mother consulted a naturopath who recommended that Leech be put on a fast for ten days. She was later put on a diet of fruit, salad and vegetables, in particular beetroot and carrot juice. Leech's health improved, but she remained weak and skinny. In an effort to help her gain muscle control and confidence, her parents first sent her to ballet, but later they tried swimming, a sport her mother had participated in competitively. Aged six, she was taken to swimming classes while holidaying in the Mornington Peninsula. There she was coached by Gus Froelich, a former European swimming champion who had coached former Australian Olympian Judy-Joy Davies. After a difficult start, Leech improved in the following year. She first showed her potential by setting a new State record at the Victorian championships of 17.4 s for the convert|25|yd|abbr=on in the under 8 division. The following year she covered 25 yard (yd) in 15.7 seconds (s), three seconds faster than Davies had done at the same age. She progressed steadily, winning all the State age titles from 9 to 13, often setting new records that were faster than those by boys of the same age.

Living in Bendigo, she could only travel three times a year during Christmas holidays to train with Froelich, so she was forced to rely heavily on dry land simulations, such as a pulley attached to the kitchen door. When she was 12, she covered 110 yd in 70.1 s, then an unofficial world record for her age group.Howell, p. 134.] This achievement prompted her parents to rent an apartment in Melbourne, so that she could train regularly with Froelich. She moved with her mother, while her father stayed in Bendigo tending to the family's jewellery business. Starting in 1954, Leech attended St. Michael's Girls' Grammar School and trained with Froelich on a daily basis at the City Baths. The regular sessions bore fruit when at the 1955 Victorian Championships, she won the open 110 yd and 220 yd freestyle in 1 minute (m) 7.2 s and 2 m 39.3 s respectively, setting new Victorian records in both events. She proceeded to the Australian Championships, becoming the youngest to win an open title at 13, winning the 110 yd freestyle in 1 m 7.6 s. Leech also won the national junior 110 yd and 220 yd events.

Leech's regimen differed from that of other swimmers in that Froelich was not an advocate of distance training, and designed short work outs. Leech trained only once a day, swimming no more than two miles (3 km). Froelich did not push her to continue training when she felt that she was tired. Froelich emphasised an efficient stroke mechanism, and Leech used a long and graceful arm action. She stood convert|180|cm|ft|abbr=on, but weighed only convert|57|kg|lb|abbr=on, with broad shoulders, slim hips and large hands and feet. Her long streamlined action led observers to dub her a "flying fish". Because of spinal problems caused by a back misalignment, she was unable to use the optimal flip turn used by freestyle swimmers. Instead, she was forced to use the slower touch turn.

National selection

In August 1955, Leech set an Australian record of 65.0 s for the convert|110|yd|abbr=on and lowered it again to 64.8 s in October, prompting newspapers to trumpet her as a prospect for the Melbourne Olympics. She did not get an opportunity to defend her Australian record when illness forced her to be hospitalised in 1956. Leech recovered to win the national age title in the same distance in 64.6 s, just 0.1 s slower than Dawn Fraser's world record. She defeated Fraser and Lorraine Crapp again at another meeting the following month in a time of 64.8 s. Leech was named in the Olympic squad but was not required to travel to the training camp in Townsville as she was given special dispensation by the Australian Swimming Union to train in Melbourne with Froliech due to her special dietary requirements. Leech joined the squad for the final race trials in Melbourne in October before the Olympics. Fraser and Crapp were too strong, with Leech finishing second and third in the two trial races. After combining with Fraser, Crapp and Margaret Gibson to break the 4 × 100 metres (m) freestyle relay world record prior to the Olympics, Leech was selected as one of the three individual 100 m freestyle entrants as well as in a squad of six swimmers for the 4 × 100 m freestyle relay at the Melbourne Olympics.

International career

Having arrived on the Olympic stage, Leech made her debut in the 100 m freestyle, an event in which she, Fraser and Crapp were regarded as the three strongest competitors. All three won their heats. Leech won her heat by 1.6 s in a time of 1 m 4.9 s and was third-fastest overall, behind Fraser and Crapp, who were over 1.5 s faster. Allocated to compete in Fraser's semifinal, Leech finished second in a time of 1 m 5.2 s, and was the third fastest qualifier to the final behind the other two Australians. The semifinals followed a similar pattern to the heats, with Fraser and Crapp more than two seconds ahead of the rest, who were separated by just 0.8 s.cite web |url=http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1956/SWI/womens-100-metres-freestyle.html |title=Swimming at the 1956 Melbourne Summer Games:Women's 100 metres Freestyle |publisher=Sports Reference |accessdate=2008-09-08]

This pattern was repeated in the final. Fraser and Crapp were far ahead of the field, finishing in 1 m 62.0 s and 1 m 2.3 s respectively. Leech overtook Joan Rosazza of the United States in the final 25 m to take bronze in 65.1 s. The race for third place had been tight, with just 0.7 s separating Leech and the eight-place finisher. The youngest swimmer in the field had come through to claima podium position. Leech said that it had been an emotional occasion, having seen the Australian men take a trifecta in the corresponding event on the previous night of competition.

As the Australians had taken the top three placings in the individual 100 m event, they were natural favourites for the corresponding relay, especially with Fraser and Crapp being three seconds faster than all other swimmers. Leech was not assured of a place in the final quartet for the relay. In the heats, Fraser and Crapp were rested and the remaining four swimmers, Sandra Morgan, Elizabeth Fraser, Gibson and Leech qualified the team. Leech swam the second leg in 1 m 5.9 s, the second fastest of the quartet, securing her position in the final team along with Sandra Morgan, who recorded 1 m 5.9 s.Howell, p. 131.] Australia qualified quickest into the final, winning the second heat by 3.1 s. They were 1.8 and 2.3 s faster than South Africa and the United States respectively, both of which swam in the first heat. The selection of Leech and Morgan generated controversy, as they were the youngest swimmers and lacked experience at open level swimming: Morgan had false started twice at the Australian Championships.

In the final, Australia made a poor start when Fraser almost stopped when she heard a second gun shot, believing a false start had occurred. She finished her leg in 64.0 s, two seconds slower than the world record she set in the final, but with a 2.3 s over the United States' Sylvia Ruuska.Howell, p. 132.] Nevertheless, this meant that they had a smaller advantage than they had expected. Leech, swimming the second leg, maintained the lead in the first 50 m but faded in the second half and finished in 65.1 s, the Australian lead cut to 0.9 s. Even with the advantage of a flying start, Leech's leg was 0.4 s slower than her fastest time during the course of the individual event.cite web |url=http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1956/SWI/womens-4-x-100-metres-freestyle-relay.html |title=Swimming at the 1956 Melbourne Summer Games:Women's 4 × 100 metres Freestyle Relay |publisher=Sports Reference |accessdate=2008-09-08]

Morgan was then overhauled and passed by Nancy Simons. With 25 m left, Morgan took her head out of the water, and seeing the American a bodylength in front, responded with a surge to regain a 0.7 s lead into the final changeover.Howell, p. 136.] Crapp then established a 2.2 s margin over the United States to secure an Australian gold in a world record time of 4 m 17.1 s. The victory was the first time that Australia had made a clean sweep of the sprint relay and individual events for both men and women. It had previously only been achieved by the Americans in 1920 in Antwerp. The victory was Australia's only female swimming relay victory at the Olympics until the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.

Retirement

After the Olympics, Leech retired at the age of 15 as the first person from Bendigo to win an Olympic medal, having been feted upon her return to her home town. She regarded the experience of living in the Olympic Village as an unusual one, as it was the first time that she had been away from the family home, in addition to the large crowds and pressure of an Olympics. Her decision to retire was endorsed by physicians, who felt that she had become too nervous prior to her races. She briefly worked as a model in Melbourne, before returning to Bendigo to help run her family's jewelry business. She has two sons, but discouraged them from swimming competitively. In retirement, she stopped competing in sport, but still maintained her athleticism.Andrew, p. 249.] Howell, p. 135.]

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Persondata
NAME=Leech, Faith
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Olympic swimmer
DATE OF BIRTH=31 March 1941
PLACE OF BIRTH=Bendigo, Victoria, Australia
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=