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 Tarwater signs autographs at 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Davis Edward Tarwater | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team |  United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | March 24, 1984 Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 187 lb (85 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Butterfly, freestyle | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | SwimMAC Carolina | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | University of Michigan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Davis Edward Tarwater (born March 24, 1984) is an American swimmer and Olympic gold medalist. He grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee and began competitive swimming at age seven. During high school, he set three state swimming records and led Webb School of Knoxville to the state title. In 2002, he was named High School Swimmer of the Year. Tarwater attended the University of Michigan, earning a bachelor's degree in political science, and St. Antony's College, Oxford earning a master's degree in Latin American Studies.
At Michigan, he shifted his focus from the freestyle to the butterfly. He was a three-time NCAA national champion and thirteen-time All-American. Tarwater set three Big Ten conference and six school records en route to six Big Ten titles. In his senior season, he was awarded the Big Ten Medal of Honor, recognizing his joint athletic and academic excellence throughout his college career.
Tarwater has represented the United States in the World Championships three times, winning a gold medal as part of the 4×200-meter freestyle relay team in 2009. He has won three individual and five relay national titles, and has finished in the top three more than fifteen times. In 2011, he set an American record in the 200-meter butterfly, and as of 2012 jointly holds two additional national records in relay events. He qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012. In 2004, 2008 and 2012, he narrowly missed making the Olympic team in the 200-meter butterfly. In 2012, he finished seventh in the 200-meter freestyle and missed qualifying for the U.S. 4×200-meter freestyle relay team by one spot. Michael Phelps elected to scratch the 200-meter freestyle from his Olympic schedule, however, allowing Tarwater to make the team. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Tarwater won a gold medal for his contributions in the preliminary heats of the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.