By Amanda Hu
In conjunction with the Dinos’ 40th anniversary season, the Gauntlet is profiling influential athletes from five decades of Dinos history.
The University of Calgary swim team is one of the most acclaimed programs in university athletics. Among the all-star swimmers the team has produced is Olympian Curtis Myden.
Myden burst onto the Dinos swimming scene in 1993, impressing many with his versatility and prowess in the water. During his seven-year swimming career, he achieved great fame within the program, helping the Dinos to capture the Canada West and Canadian Interuniversity Sport championship in 1997. Among his accolades are winning the Swim Alberta Jubilee Trophy for Alberta’s outstanding male swimmer from 1994 to 2001, CIS male athlete of the year in 1997, U of C athlete of the year in 1994 and 1999, a gold medal at the 1999 Pan American Games and two silver medals at the Pan Pacific Games in 1999.
“Curtis is a living example of an epic athlete,” said Dinos sports information director Jack Neumann. “He’s done so much for the program and is a great role model.”
The nine-year national team member’s most famous accomplishments are his three Olympic bronze medals. In the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, he captured the third spot on the podium in the 200 and 400 metre individual medley events. This feat was surpassed when he captured the 200m IM bronze medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, making him the only Canadian swimmer to medal that year.
“Curtis worked and worked at his craft,” said Neumann. “He paid the price to get to where he got.”
The 34-year-old has fond memories of his Olympic days.
“I definitely feel like I’ve accomplished a lot,” said Myden in an online forum. “To look back and have three medals is a nice achievement. I never look down on myself or my abilities and I set a personal best in the 400[m IM]. I was very happy with that.”
Myden is currently in the orthopedic residency program at Foothills Hospital after graduating from the U of C’s medical school in 2006.