Anthony Nesty Triumphs As First Black Olympic Gold Medalist And U.S. Swimming Head Coach – Essence

In 1988, Anthony Nesty became the first Black swimmer to win an Olympic gold medal. Now, 36 years later, he is making history once again as the first Black head swimming coach for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Nesty began coaching after winning bronze during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Since 1998, he’s been a member of the swimming and diving coaching staff at the University of Florida, his alma mater. According to the University of Florida’s website, Nesty “serves as head coach for both the men’s and women’s teams. He has led the men’s team for six seasons and the women’s team for three.”

In addition to his college coaching career, Nesty also coaches at the international level, leading the U.S. national team. He “trains the likes of seven-time Olympic gold medalist Caeleb Dressel and two-time Olympic gold medalist Bobby Finke, both of whom he coached at the University of Florida, as well as seven-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledecky,” NBC reports.

Looking back at such an illustrious career, Nesty credits his success in and out of the water to his father. As he recounted to TODAY.com, “I didn’t enjoy swimming,” but did so because “his father made him.” Nesty says, “Why he chose swimming, I think, is because of the discipline of the sport…It’s just you and the clock.”

The 56-year-old said, “My dad, he had a vision for me.” At five years old, Nesty took his first swim in a Learn to Swim program in Suriname, where he grew up. This experience led to winning local and regional meets across his home country, the Caribbean, and even South America. Nesty specialized in the 100m butterfly. He went on to attend and compete for the University of Florida, where he was a three-time NCAA champion, in addition to his Olympic accolades.

On the coaching side of things, Nesty has been the recipient of the SEC Men’s Swim Coach of the Year multiple times on top of a two-peat for women’s swimming in 2023 and 2024.

Nesty understands the significance of his role as a Black coach in a predominantly white sport, and he takes it “seriously.”

“You know you’re a role model,” Nesty said. “You have to take that very seriously. Maybe it’s why I work so hard at what I do. I try to be the best Anthony Nesty I can be.”

Under Nesty’s leadership, Team USA is leaving the Paris Olympics with a total of 28 medals — eight gold, 13 silver, and seven bronze. Additionally, America came out on top in their rivalry with Australia in total medals, with Australia earning 18. The U.S. also earned one more gold medal than Australia, CBS News reports.

“I’m kind of greedy as it comes to performances. I want the best performances for my athletes. That is the goal of any coach. So our job as a staff is, we’re going to go to Paris and see how many medals we can win and see if we can make history,” stated Nesty.

Nesty knows his father would be very proud of the path his life has taken because of swimming. “He put so much time, effort and just financial support — he would be jumping up and down to see that his son is the head coach of the U.S. men’s team…That’s kind of the pinnacle of our sport and he would be happy that I’ve reached the top now.”