Dana Schoenfield
Encyclopedia
Dana Lee Schoenfield is an American swimmer who partipicated in the 1972 Summer Olympic Games in Munich, Germany and won a silver medal
Silver medal
A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....

 in the 200 metre breaststroke
Breaststroke
The breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on his or her chest and the torso does not rotate. It is the most popular recreational style due to its stability and the ability to keep the head out of the water a large portion of the time. In most swimming classes, beginners learn...

.

Early life

Dana was born in Harvey, Illinois
Harvey, Illinois
Harvey is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, near Chicago. The population was 30,000 at the 2000 census.Harvey is bordered by Dixmoor, Riverdale and Blue Island to the north, Posen and Markham to the west, South Holland, Phoenix, and Dolton to the east, and East Hazel Crest to the...

 and spent her childhood in Schererville, Indiana
Schererville, Indiana
Schererville is a town in St. John Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 29,243 at the 2010 census.- History :...

. She first learned to swim at the local Sherwood Golf and Swim Club, where she began to excel in the breaststroke. Her family relocated to Anaheim, California
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...

 in 1963 where Dana, along with her brother Michael, actively swam on the Disneyland Hotel
Disneyland Hotel
Disneyland Hotel may refer to any of the following properties and/or licensees of The Walt Disney Company:* Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California, USA, the original property to bear the moniker....

 Swim Team. She qualified for the Women's Senior National Championships in the 200 meter breaststroke at age 12 years, the youngest swimmer to participate. At 14 years, Dana was the second fastest Women's 200 meter breaststroke swimmer in the country, and just missed making the 1968 U.S. Olympic Team
1968 Summer Olympics
The 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Mexico City, Mexico in October 1968. The 1968 Games were the first Olympic Games hosted by a developing country, and the first Games hosted by a Spanish-speaking country...

. She would have been the youngest swimmer on the U.S. Team. After semi-retiring for the next 3 years, she was a varsity cheerleader for Loara High School
Loara High School
Loara High School is a public, four year International Baccalaureate American high school in the Anaheim Union High School District, located in the city of Anaheim in Orange County, California. The campus consists of 2,578 students and 111 certificated staff. As of 2008 the student to teacher...

 in Anaheim, California.

1972 Summer Olympic Games

After graduation, Dana, along with her swim coach Ray Woods, began a 1-year regimen of serious training in an effort to make the 1972 Olympic Team
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972....

. At the 1972 Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 Olympic Swimming Trials, she qualified first in the 200 m breaststroke, with a personal best time of 2:43.7. At the Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

 Olympic Games, Dana was not expected to 'medal' as she had just the 4th fastest time/ranking for 1972. She placed fourth in the qualifying heats, and was in lane 6 for the Munich final. With her swim idol, alina Prozumenschikova-Stepanova] of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

 swimming in lane 3, Dana out-touched Stepanova with a time of 2:42.03, another personal best. Beverly Whitfield of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, on the outside #7 lane, beat Dana for the gold medal at 2:41.7.

College career

After the Munich Olympic Games, Dana attended UCLA where she helped start the Women's Swim Team under the auspices of the AIAW. In 1973, she qualified for the World University Games in Moscow, Russia. Afterward, retiring from swimming, Dana was selected to the 1975-76 UCLA Spirit Squad as a Songgirl/Dance Team member, where she performed at the 1976 Rose Bowl
1976 Rose Bowl
The 1976 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 1976. It was the 62nd Rose Bowl Game. The UCLA Bruins defeated the number one ranked and undefeated Ohio State Buckeyes 23-10. UCLA quarterback John Sciarra was named the Rose Bowl Player Of The Game...

 (UCLA
UCLA Bruins Football
The UCLA Bruins football program represents the University of California, Los Angeles in college football as members of the Pacific-12 Conference at the NCAA Division I FBS level. The Bruins have enjoyed several periods of success in their history, having been ranked in the top ten of the AP Poll...

 vs. Ohio St.
Ohio State Buckeyes football
The Ohio State Buckeyes football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of The Ohio State University. The team is a member of the Big Ten Conference of the NCAA, playing at the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly Division I-A, level. The team nickname is derived from the state...

), and the NCAA men's basketball Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...

 in Philadelphia, PA (UCLA
UCLA Bruins men's basketball
The UCLA Bruins men's basketball program, established in 1920, owns a record 11 Division I NCAA championships. UCLA teams coached by John Wooden won 10 national titles in 12 seasons from 1964 to 1975, including 7 straight from 1967 to 1973. UCLA went undefeated a record 4 times, in 1964, 1967,...

 vs. Indiana, Michigan
Michigan Wolverines
The Michigan Wolverines comprise 27 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except men's ice hockey which competes in the NCAA D1 Central Collegiate Hockey Association, and women's water polo, which...

). She met her husband, Bob Reyes, a UCLA football player, when they shared their first kiss after the Rose Bowl win!
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