Former ‘Open’ World Record Holder Peder Dahlberg Breaks Masters World Records

Wisconsin Masters State Long Course Meters Championships

• June 15th, 2019
• Schroeder YMCA, Brown Deer, Wisconsin
• Full Results (PDF)

Racing last weekend at the 2019 Wisconsin Masters State Long Course Meters Championships, 70-year old Peder Dahlberg broke a pair of Masters National and World Records.

Dahlberg, who trains with Chicago Masters Swim Club under the umbrella of Illinois Masters, recently turned 70, and in spite of not beating his seed time in either the 50 or 100 breaststroke, his swims broke records in his new age group.

In the 50, he swam a 36.57, and in the 100 he swam a 1:21.98. In both cases, he broke the old records held by fellow American Bob Strand, who in 2016 swam 36.68 in the 50 breaststroke and 1:23.63 in the 100 breaststroke. Dahlberg broke the latter record by almost 2 seconds.

Dahlberg wound up scratching the 200 (as the only entrant), and so didn’t pull off the sweep.

Dahlberg swam collegiately at Indiana and, in 1971, combined with Charlie Campbell, Mark Spitz, and Jerry Heidenreich to break the FINA World Record in the 400 medley relay in a dual meet against Easst Germany. Dahlberg swam the breaststroke leg of that relay, unsurprisingly.

Dahlberg was the head coach of the Spanish swimming team at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, and was a member of 3 NCAA title teams from 1979 until 1971. At one point, he held the open-age American Record in the 100 meter breaststroke.

Strand also attended Indiana, where he committed to swim but, ultimately, never participated in NCAA competition. It would be 25 years before he would take up the sport again seriously in his 40s.