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Olympic surprise: American Finke leaves Tokyo with two golds

Tokyo Olympics Swimming
Posted at 12:12 PM, Aug 01, 2021
and last updated 2021-08-01 12:12:40-04

TOKYO (AP) — Bobby Finke will be the first to concede he had modest goals for the Tokyo Olympics. He was thrilled merely to make the U.S. team in a couple of grueling freestyle events.

He couldn’t really envision winning a medal. Now, he’s got a couple of golds.

Finke capped off his stunning emergence as the world's greatest male distance swimmer by winning the 1,500-meter freestyle on the final day of swimming at the Tokyo pool.

He turned on his trademark finishing kick to become the first American man since 1984 to win the metric mile.