The Slowest Swimmer in History -- Who Became a Star....

It's one of the greatest inspirational stories of our times....

The time is last year -- 2000. The place is Olympic Park, Sydney, Australia.....

There were just three contestants in this heat of the 100 meter swim race. Eric Moussambani, and two others....

The starting buzzer sounded, and the three swimmers dived into the pool.... TWO of the contestants were disqualified for leaping in too early. That left one contestant, who started swimming....

Eric was from the tiny African country of Equatorial Guinea, and could only find a 20 meter pool to train in (less than half the length of the Olympic Pool), at a hotel in his home city. Because he couldn't afford the entrance fee at the pool, he was only allowed to train for one hour a week.

Before the Olympics, he had never even swum 100 meters.

Despite these difficulties, Eric made the journey to Sydney -- and the 2000 Olympics.

When he swam, he was swimming alone, since his two contestants were disqualified. As he swam, the crowd could see he was no professional swimmer, as he slowly made the laps up and down the pool.

At first, the crowd was laughing at him, at what a hopeless swimmer he was. But some time during his swim, the mood of the crowd changed. Eric kept swimming, but as he began to slow -- unsure if he would even make the distance -- the crowd began to cheer him on, willing him to make it!

And Eric made his 100 meter swim. He became one of the most famous athletes of the Olympics!

His story shows why you shouldn't give up.... He had no hope of winning an Olympic medal. He took more than twice as long to swim the distance than the other athletes. He recorded the slowest Olympic swimming time in history.

Yet, even though he didn't win the race, he won anyway. The crowd loved him, the newspapers printed the story, and "Eric the Eel" (as he's known) has been written about everywhere!

What was Eric's story after the Olympics? He says his life has changed....

The Olympics brought him unexpected fame, and he's spent his time after the Olympics traveling the planet, mixing with movie and sports stars, signing autographs, and doing interviews....

Sometimes, as Eric Moussambani shows, it pays just to get in there and give it a shot, and see it right through to the end.... The rewards may be beyond what you expect!

- Dien Rice


A recent article about "Eric the Eel"....