Profiling Clarke Scholes

Clarke Scholes (USA) was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an Honor Swimmer in 1980. The following text was included in the program for the induction ceremony of that year:

For the Record: The 1952 Olympic gold (100-meter freestyle). 1955 Pan Am golds (100-meter freestyle and medley relay). Two National AAU titles (100-yard freestyle). Five NCAA Championships (50-, and 100-yard freestyle and 400-yard freestyle relay). Three Big Ten Championships (50-, and 100-yard freestyle).

Clarke Scholes could be forgiven for driving his coaches crazy in training because he always won the big ones, culminating with an Olympic gold medal at Helsinki in 1952. His international performance in winning both the Olympic and Pan American 100-meter freestyle was all the more impressive because he was supposed to be a better short course swimmer, a title he certainly earned in winning seven major U.S. indoor 100-yard championships in 25 yard pools. Scholes’s pressure win in the 1952 Olympic final was all the more remarkable because his teammate and arch rival Dick Cleveland (usually a better long course swimmer) had been eliminated in the semi-finals. Clarke's coaches were Betty Pinkston (age group), Clarence Pinkston (AAU), Richard Stuckey (high school), Charles McCaffree (college), and Matt Mann (Olympic).