IU men’s swimming, long one of the most successful athletic programs in Bloomington, has produced two more gold medalists.
Former Indiana All-Americans Zach Apple and Blake Pieroni claimed gold for the United States on Sunday night in the 400-meter freestyle relay, giving the Hoosiers their first medals of Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
In contributing to the victory, Pieroni joined some elite company in the annals of IU history. He and Mark Spitz (1969, 1972) are the only Hoosiers to repeat as Olympic champions in the event in back-to-back games. The race also marked the first time since 1972 (Spitz, John Murphy) that a pair of IU athletes teamed to win gold in the 400m freestyle relay.