Pieter van den Hoogenband: First Man Under 48

Alongside his coach, Jacco Verhaeren

Author

SWIM NERD
September 18, 2023

It took nearly 4 years to get Hoogie on the pod, but Brett finally locked him down alongside his coach, Jacco Verhaeren.

When we started this podcast, we were focused on the history of swimming - to hear & record the storied moments of our sport straight from the horse’s mouth.

Pieter van den Hoogenband has been the most requested guest since the beginning…

Pieter van den Hoogenband - aka Hoogie - is the Netherlands’ greatest Olympian and one of the legend’s of our sport. He is still the only man to ever win both the 100 and 200 freestyles at the same Olympic Games. He snapped Alexander Popov’s bid for 3 straight 100 Freestyle crowns, becoming the first man to go sub 48 in the process. At the 2000 Sydney Games, he beat Ian Thorpe in front of the home crowd in the 200 Freestyle. In Athens, he successfully defended his 100 Freestyle title, going back-to-back like Popov.

In this two hour epic, Brett, Pieter, & Jacco discuss…

  • balancing training for the 50/100/200

  • how Anthony Nesty from Suriname inspired them after beating Matt Biondi in the 100 Fly

  • getting into the flow state - the slow motion state

  • winning his first gold medal, the 200 Freestyle against Ian Thorpe at the 2000 Sydney Games

  • how he broke 48 in practice the week before the Sydney Games

  • enjoying 1 cold beer before the 50 Freestyle

  • relaxing and recovering during big meets

  • Eric the Eel

  • defending his 100 Free Olympic title in Athens by overcoming a herniated disc, ripping Nike suits, and breaking his finger on the touch

  • why he didn’t swim the 200 Freestyle in Beijing

  • how he never won a World Championship

  • training for the unexpected

  • his freestyle technique

  • racing Michael Phelps

  • the influence Jacco has had on Australian Swimming and working with the French team in the leadup to the Paris Olympics

  • Pieter’s role as the Chef de Mission for Team Netherlands in Paris

  • the rise of David Popovici and Leon Marchand

And much, much more. Listen here on Apple Podcasts. Enjoy!