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(cont'd)

After Sydney, Eric kept swimming. In 2004 he swam a 100 free time 56.9s (compared to 1:52.72 in Sydney).

Two years later, he achieved a PB of 52.18 (5 seconds off the winning time Sydney 2000), and would've been fast enough for a Gold Medal at the Melbourne 1956 Olympics!

The IOC's wild card initiative, designed to nurture sport in developing nations, arguably found success in Eric's story.

He became an icon for swimming in Equatorial Guinea, which now features two Olympic-size pools, and Eric became the national coach in 2012.

Here is Eric's iconic swim on YouTube :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P8U4g_srRU

The conclusion of his story is arguably more important than its beginnings.

#Olympics

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