Former Swimmer Paul Asmuth To Be Inducted Into International Swimming Hall Of Fame - AuburnTigers.com

Former Swimmer Paul Asmuth To Be Inducted Into International Swimming Hall Of Fame Asmuth swam for Auburn during the 1975-76 season

May 10, 2010

AUBURN, Ala. - Former Auburn swimmer Paul Asmuth will be inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Monday.

Asmuth, brother of former Auburn head coach John Asmuth, swam for Auburn during the 1975-76 season under head coach Eddie Reese. Following his stint at Auburn, Asmuth spent a year training in California before completing his collegiate career at Arizona State. As a Sun Devil, Asmuth was an All-American in the 1650 free.

"There have been many who helped me achieve a wonderful swimming career and I feel very blessed," Asmuth said. "My year at Auburn was instrumental to my swimming success. It was Coach Reese's idea to take a red-shirt year and train in Mission Viejo. That served as a turning point for my swimming career."

Following his stint at Arizona State, Asmuth become one of the top marathon swimmers on the professional circuit and was one of the first to use speed techniques from the pool into open water. During his illustrious career in the 1980s, he recorded seven World Professional Marathon Swimmers Federation titles with his first coming in 1980.

In addition, Asmuth competed in 59 international marathon swimming races and has the most wins at La Traversee du Lac Memphremagog in Canada, capturing the 27-mile title a record six times. Among his other great accomplishments, he also won the 23-mile Around the Island Swim in Atlantic City eight times.

His solo swims include three English Channel crossings, including the men's record time of eight hours and 12 minutes. Asmuth became the only swimmer to complete the 31-mile swim from Nantucket to Cape Cod and the first person to swim around Manhattan Island (28 miles) in under seven hours.