Sport: Swimming
Born: 1953
Town: Long Branch, New Jersey
Cathy Corcione was born in February of 1953 and grew up in Long Branch, NJ. She and her brother were both adopted by a large Italian family. Her father, Fred, a former high school gridiron star, tutored her in a range of sports, from football to bowling. Cathy began competing as a swimmer at the age of seven and was beating older swimmers almost immediately. She continued eclipsing older swimmers in junior and then senior events, all while she was a pre-teen. Cathy was a member of Bill Palmer’s Shore Aquatic Club, the first AAU swim club in Monmouth County. Susan Halfacre was also a member. She and Susan would go on to rank among the world’s fastest swimmers.
Cathy was a smart, twinkly, funny kid who later became a cheerleader at Long Branch High and one of the first female lifeguards on the Jersey Shore. As a swimmer, she mastered everything from freestyle to backstroke to butterfly. As Cathy entered her teen years, she proved especially adept in individual medley events.
At the age of 15, Cathy participated in the Olympic trials and made the 1968 Olympic team headed for Mexico City as an alternate in the 4×100 relay. Her time in 100 qualifying was fifth-best in the world that year, but it was also the fifth-best on the US team. Cathy was one of five 15-year-olds on Frank Elm’s US squad. Susan Pedersen, who also specialized in the individual medley, was just 14. They joined superstars Debbie Meyer, Jan Henne and Claudia Kolb on a team that would capture 25 medals, including 11 golds. Kolb, Pedersen and Henne finished 1-2-3 in Cathy’s best event, the 200 meter individual medley. Unfortunately, Cathy was not in the pool for any of the 4×100 qualifiers.
At the time, and to some extent this remains true, women in most swimming events tended to peak in terms of strength and speed in their late-teens. So after the 1968 Summer Games, Cathy’s options for remaining an elite-level swimmer seemed limited. That changed in 1969, when Princeton began accepting women as undergrads. The school had a sensational men’s swimming and diving program, first rate coaching and good facilities. Plus, it was just over an hour from home. Cathy, an excellent student, enrolled in the fall of 1970 at the age of 17. Before she arrived on campus, she received a note from all-time great Bob Clotworthy, who was quietly pushing to accelerate the women’s program at Princeton.
Cathy was part of an aquatic cadre that included Carol Brown, Jane Fremon, and Cece Herron. They trained with the men’s team at Dillon Pool when they could and occasionally competed (unofficially) in their meets. Merrily Dean, Princeton’s director of women’s athletics, was a driving force behind the women’s swimming and diving squads. The team won all of its dual meets in that first season and finished third in the Eastern championships. Cathy set new US records in the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke. Unfortunately, at the 1972 Olympic trials, she missed qualifying in the 100 freestyle by .2 seconds.
Cathy continued her twice-a-day training routine at Princeton. In the 1973 Eastern finals, she broke the meet record in the 100 freestyle. Cathy won gold in the 400 freestyle relay and silver in the 100 butterfly at the 1973 World University Games in Moscow, broke US records in the 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly, and was a member of a six-woman team that finished third at the 1973 national championships.
After just two years, with men’s coach Bill Farley running the team, the Princeton women already ranked among the best in the nation. In 1974, they dominated at the Easterns, with Cathy winning four individual events and both medley relays. At the national meet, under the auspices of the AIAW, Cathy shattered two US records, in the 100 and 200 individual medley.
Cathy graduated from Princeton in 1974 with a degree in Art History, which she put to work as an artist. Her love of the water and interest in Byzantine art is evident in much of her work. In 2008, Cathy was ranked by Sports Illustrated as the #7 greatest Princeton athlete of all time, with no women finishing in front of her. Her involvement in swimming continued as a coach at her old club, now called the Central Jersey Aquatic Club. Eventually, Cathy located her biological parents. Not surprisingly, there were accomplished athletes on both sides, although no Olympic swimmers.