.gif)
Mark Foster (swimmer)
Encyclopedia
Mark Andrew Foster is a British professional swimmer, specialising in butterfly
and freestyle
at 50 metres.
He is a specialist short course (25 metre pool) swimmer. In terms of medals and longevity (1986–2008), Foster is amongst the most successful British swimmers of all-time. He made a comeback at the national championships in July 2007 winning both events he competed in after barely training. He achieved the fifth best time in 2007 in the world at 50 metres freestyle and retired for the second time after the 2008 Olympics.
at a pool in Southend-on-Sea
. He was the fastest swimmer in the country by age 15.
Mark Foster was educated at Alleyn Court Preparatory School in Westcliff on Sea, Millfield School, and Southend High School for Boys
where he excelled in athletics, football and tennis..
in Auckland
. He finished the 50 metres freestyle with a time of 23.16 seconds. He had previously won bronze as part of the 100 metre freestyle relay in the Edinburgh
games four years previous, but cites the 1990 medal as his first great sporting moment.
Success followed rapidly, and in the next few years Foster broke the World Short Course freestyle record
four times, the World Short Course butterfly record twice, and set the World Long Course butterfly record (in 1996) with a time of 24.07 seconds.
Despite success at Commonwealth, European and World championship level, Olympic
titles eluded him, and he has never won a medal. Some have suggested that he has never quite achieved his full potential, arguing his maverick approach to training and preparation cost him a higher world ranking.
In 2004, Foster was to face the disappointment of not being selected for the Olympic Games. At the British Olympic Trials, he won the 50 free in 22.49 seconds, well under the Olympic qualifying standard but seven hundredths of a second below the standard National Team Director Bill Sweetenham
had set for inclusion in the British Olympic Team. Foster has openly criticised Sweetenham's management style, so Sweetenham ensured he was not selected.
Nonetheless he was to respond to his omission from the Olympic squad with a stunning gold in the World Short Course Championships in Indianapolis
later that year. In the 50 metre freestyle he touched in 21.58 seconds, ahead of Stefan Nystrand
of Sweden
. Although Mark announced his retirement from swimming after the European short course championships in April 2006 at the age of 35, he still occasionally competed that year at invitational meets.
He returned from "retirement" in 2007 with an aim to win an Olympic medal at the 2008 Olympic Games. Returning to the British squad he won a silver medal in the 50 m freestyle at the 2008 FINA Short Course World Championships
, and qualified to represent Great Britain
at the same distance in the Olympics. At the opening ceremony on 8 August, he carried the flag for Great Britain during the Parade of Nations. He failed to qualify for the men's 50 m freestyle semi-finals, finishing almost two-tenths of a second outside the top 16.
, broadcast on ITV on 8 September 2009.
In October 2008, Mark Foster was announced as a celebrity judge for the Miele Fashion Prize, in aid of children's medical charity, Sparks.
In June 2009, Mark Foster supported ActionAid's PoverTee Day by having a T-shirt painted on his torso.
show Beat the Star first broadcasted on 4 April 2008 in which he won 18-3, appearing as the 'star' and as a guest home owner on BBC2's Through the Keyhole
first broadcast on 28 May 2008.
During Summer 2008, Mark appeared on the new series of Superstars
broadcast on Five in the UK.
He later appeared on a Strictly Come Dancing special of the Weakest Link
in December 2008, and won £15,900 for charity, beating Anton du Beke
in the final round. He had previously appeared on an Olympic special, but did not win.
Foster co-presented BBC Look Easts 6.30pm bulletin, with Susie Fowler-Watt on Thursday 12 February 2009.
Mark is a contestant on the BBC1 programme 'Let's Dance For Sport Relief' as of 20 February 2010 as part of the dance group The Olympians.
Mark also regularly appears on BBC TV regional news and local radio in his role of Ambassador of Pools 4 Schools, a programme run by Total Swimming with the Amateur Swimming Association
to increase participation in swimming amongst primary school children.
with professional dancer Hayley Holt
He managed to stay in the competition until Week Six when he was voted off by the judges in the dance-off, while they saved Andrew Castle
Short course (25 m)
Butterfly stroke
The butterfly is a swimming stroke swum on the breast, with both arms moving simultaneously. The butterfly kick was developed separately, and is also known as the "dolphin kick"...
and freestyle
Freestyle swimming
Freestyle is an unregulated swimming style used in swimming competitions according to the rules of FINA. The front crawl stroke is almost universally used during a freestyle race, as this style is generally the fastest...
at 50 metres.
He is a specialist short course (25 metre pool) swimmer. In terms of medals and longevity (1986–2008), Foster is amongst the most successful British swimmers of all-time. He made a comeback at the national championships in July 2007 winning both events he competed in after barely training. He achieved the fifth best time in 2007 in the world at 50 metres freestyle and retired for the second time after the 2008 Olympics.
Early career
Mark was first taught by the mother of Sarah HardcastleSarah Hardcastle
Sarah Lucy Hardcastle is a former freestyle swimmer from England. She won a bronze and a silver medal as a fifteen-year old at the 1984 in Los Angeles, California...
at a pool in Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
. He was the fastest swimmer in the country by age 15.
Mark Foster was educated at Alleyn Court Preparatory School in Westcliff on Sea, Millfield School, and Southend High School for Boys
Southend High School for Boys
Southend High School for Boys, also known by its acronym SHSB, is a selective secondary Academy Grammar school along Prittlewell Chase in Prittlewell, in the north-west of Southend-on-Sea, England, south-west of the roundabout of the A127 and A1159...
where he excelled in athletics, football and tennis..
International career
First selected for the British team in 1985, the breakthrough came in 1990 when he won his first individual international medal - bronze - in the Commonwealth Games1990 Commonwealth Games
The 1990 Commonwealth Games were held in Auckland, New Zealand from 24 January-3 February 1990. It was the 14th Commonwealth Games, and part of New Zealand's 1990 sesquicentennial celebrations. Participants competed in ten sports: athletics, aquatics, badminton, boxing, cycling, gymnastics, judo,...
in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
. He finished the 50 metres freestyle with a time of 23.16 seconds. He had previously won bronze as part of the 100 metre freestyle relay in the Edinburgh
1986 Commonwealth Games
The 1986 Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland for the second time. The Games were held from 24 July-2 August 1986.-Organisation and Controversy:...
games four years previous, but cites the 1990 medal as his first great sporting moment.
Success followed rapidly, and in the next few years Foster broke the World Short Course freestyle record
World record progression 50 metres freestyle
The first world record in the men's 50 metres freestyle in long course swimming was recognised by the International Swimming Federation in 1976...
four times, the World Short Course butterfly record twice, and set the World Long Course butterfly record (in 1996) with a time of 24.07 seconds.
Despite success at Commonwealth, European and World championship level, Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
titles eluded him, and he has never won a medal. Some have suggested that he has never quite achieved his full potential, arguing his maverick approach to training and preparation cost him a higher world ranking.
In 2004, Foster was to face the disappointment of not being selected for the Olympic Games. At the British Olympic Trials, he won the 50 free in 22.49 seconds, well under the Olympic qualifying standard but seven hundredths of a second below the standard National Team Director Bill Sweetenham
Bill Sweetenham
Bill Sweetenham is a competitive swimming coach. He was the National Performance Director for British Swimming until 2007, having previously been the National Youth Coach for Swimming Australia.Sweetenham has worked directly with more than 40 Olympians....
had set for inclusion in the British Olympic Team. Foster has openly criticised Sweetenham's management style, so Sweetenham ensured he was not selected.
Nonetheless he was to respond to his omission from the Olympic squad with a stunning gold in the World Short Course Championships in Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
later that year. In the 50 metre freestyle he touched in 21.58 seconds, ahead of Stefan Nystrand
Stefan Nystrand
Stefan Nystrand is a freestyle swimmer from Sweden.-Biography:His father Sture Nystrand is a Swede and his mother Smiljana Kokeza is Croatian from Split...
of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Although Mark announced his retirement from swimming after the European short course championships in April 2006 at the age of 35, he still occasionally competed that year at invitational meets.
2008 FINA Short Course World Championships
The 9th FINA Swimming World Championships were held at the Manchester Evening News Arena, in Manchester, England April 9 – April 13 2008....
, and qualified to represent Great Britain
Great Britain at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Great Britain competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. The United Kingdom was represented by the British Olympic Association , and the team of selected athletes was officially known as Team GB. Britain is one of only five NOCs to have competed in every Summer Olympic Games since 1896...
at the same distance in the Olympics. At the opening ceremony on 8 August, he carried the flag for Great Britain during the Parade of Nations. He failed to qualify for the men's 50 m freestyle semi-finals, finishing almost two-tenths of a second outside the top 16.
Charity work
In May 2009, Mark Foster became patron of The Anaphylaxis Campaign, the UK charity for people with severe allergies. He won £10,000 for the Campaign by participating in Who Wants to be a Millionaire?Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? is a television game show which offers large cash prizes for correctly answering a series of multiple-choice questions of increasing difficulty. The format is owned and licensed by Sony Pictures Television International. The maximum cash prize is one million pounds...
, broadcast on ITV on 8 September 2009.
In October 2008, Mark Foster was announced as a celebrity judge for the Miele Fashion Prize, in aid of children's medical charity, Sparks.
In June 2009, Mark Foster supported ActionAid's PoverTee Day by having a T-shirt painted on his torso.
Media appearances
Mark appeared on the ITVITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
show Beat the Star first broadcasted on 4 April 2008 in which he won 18-3, appearing as the 'star' and as a guest home owner on BBC2's Through the Keyhole
Through the Keyhole
Through the Keyhole was a British panel game, hosted by Sir David Frost where panellists are given a video tour of a mystery famous guest's property and attempt to identify them. As of 1996, it is produced by David Frost's own production company, Paradine Productions at The Leeds Studios , and has...
first broadcast on 28 May 2008.
During Summer 2008, Mark appeared on the new series of Superstars
Superstars
Superstars is an all-around sports competition that pits elite athletes from different sports against one another in a series of athletic events resembling a decathlon....
broadcast on Five in the UK.
He later appeared on a Strictly Come Dancing special of the Weakest Link
Weakest Link
The Weakest Link is a British television quiz show, currently broadcast on BBC Two. It was devised by Mr Wilton and Euan Green and Cathy Dunning, and developed for television by the BBC Entertainment Department. It has since been replicated around the world. The UK version is hosted by Anne...
in December 2008, and won £15,900 for charity, beating Anton du Beke
Anton du Beke
Anton du Beke is a British ballroom dancer and television presenter. His professional dance partner since 1997 has been Erin Boag. With Boag, he won the IDTA Classic in England in November 2003.-Family and early life:...
in the final round. He had previously appeared on an Olympic special, but did not win.
Foster co-presented BBC Look Easts 6.30pm bulletin, with Susie Fowler-Watt on Thursday 12 February 2009.
Mark is a contestant on the BBC1 programme 'Let's Dance For Sport Relief' as of 20 February 2010 as part of the dance group The Olympians.
Mark also regularly appears on BBC TV regional news and local radio in his role of Ambassador of Pools 4 Schools, a programme run by Total Swimming with the Amateur Swimming Association
Amateur Swimming Association
-History:It was the first Governing Body of swimming to be established in the world and today remains the English national governing body for swimming, diving, water polo, open water, and synchronised swimming....
to increase participation in swimming amongst primary school children.
Strictly Come Dancing
Foster competed in the sixth series of Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
with professional dancer Hayley Holt
Hayley Holt
Hayley Holt is a New Zealand snowboarder and ballroom dancer notable for her appearances on several reality television series...
He managed to stay in the competition until Week Six when he was voted off by the judges in the dance-off, while they saved Andrew Castle
Andrew Castle
Andrew Nicholas Castle is an English retired tennis professional, former British No. 1, and now television presenter.-Biography:...
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | ||||
| Horwood | Phillips | Goodman | Tonioli | Total | |||
| 1 | Waltz Waltz The waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim... / Tennessee Waltz |
3 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 22 | Safe |
| 3 | Tango Digimon , short for , is a Japanese media franchise encompassing digital toys, anime, manga and video games. The franchise's eponymous creatures are monsters of various forms living in a "Digital World", a parallel universe that originated from Earth's various communication networks.-Conception and... / Tanguera |
5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 24 | Bottom Two/Saved |
| 5 | Samba Samba Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival... / Spice Up Your Life Spice Up Your Life "Spice Up Your Life" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the group members, with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard, at the same time as the group was filming scenes for their movie Spice World... |
3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 17 | Safe |
| 6 | Paso Doble / Since U Been Gone Since U Been Gone "Since U Been Gone" is a song written and produced by Max Martin and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald for American singer Kelly Clarkson. The song was released as the second single from her second album, Breakaway in the US and Australia and was released as the first single in Europe... |
2 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 16 | Bottom Two/Eliminated |
Personal bests and records held
Long course (50 m)Short course (25 m)
See also
- World record progression 50 metres freestyleWorld record progression 50 metres freestyleThe first world record in the men's 50 metres freestyle in long course swimming was recognised by the International Swimming Federation in 1976...
- 2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearers2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearersDuring the Parade of Nations portion of the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag...