Josh Davis, a proud Texan and San Antonio native, was born on September 1st, 1972. That was the same day Mark Spitz was making Olympic history while winning one of his 7 gold medals in world record time at the '72 Munich Games. As an active child who participated in many sports, it wasn't until after watching the '84 Los Angeles Olympic Games that Josh thought it might be fun to try out for the summer league swim team. Having just started swimming at 12 years old some thought it was too late to try a new sport. But with the encouragement of his family and some great coaches, Josh surprised many and met his first goal of making the Churchill High School swim team. From then on he has been setting and meeting goals beyond anyone's expectations.
After becoming the fastest swimmer ever out of San Antonio, Josh accepted a scholarship to attend UT. While in Austin he became the fastest swimmer out of Texas and did not stop there. Since 1995 he has been the fastest swimmer in the USA in the 200m freestyle. His prowess in freestyle earned him 3 gold medals in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. And he went on to go even faster at the 2000 Sydney Olympics while being elected captain of one of the most successful swimming teams of all time. Even after 2 Olympics (Atlanta & Sydney) and 5 Olympic medals (3 gold & 2 silver) Josh has set the goal of being the fastest ever in the world!
Certainly he has set his goals high, but with the support of his family and hometown Josh is poised to make the Athens Games his best one yet. One of the keys to his success is the balance he has in establishing priorities. The most important thing in his life is his relationship with Christ, next his marriage of 7 years to Shantel and finally his relationship with his four children.
In training to represent San Antonio and America, Josh's thankfulness for the many blessings in his life motivates him to be intense and excellent in everything he does. He is confident that 2004 will be his best Olympics and does not rule out getting faster in 2008 and maybe 2012.
