Olympic Gold-Medal Swimmer Cullen Jones Visits Urbandale

Swimmer Cullen Jones won a gold medal and two silvers at the London 2012 Olympics -- a remarkable feat for anyone, but espeically for someone who almost drowned as a child.

Jones spoke to Urbandale Middle School students Monday about his near-drowning experience at a water park when he was 5 years old. After the incident, his mother enrolled him in swimming lessons. Jones decided at age 15 that he wanted to pursue the sport seriously, according to the Des Moines Register.

Jones is on a national tour with the USA Swimming Foundation promoting water safety.

Monday’s Urbandale visit ended with a private swimming lesson for a few students and a $5,000 donation from USA Swimming to the city of Urbandale and the YMCA of Greater Des Moines to provide swim lessons for children who otherwise would not have the opportunity to take them, the newspaper reported.

Jones has been working with the USA Swimming Foundation for four years, the Register said. In that time, the organization has provided lessons to 1.3 million youngsters.

The swimmer earned three medals on relay teams at the London 2012 games: a gold medal in the 4x100-meter medley, plus silver medals in the 4x50-meter relay and 4x100-meter relay.

To wrap up the visit, six students had a swimming lesson with Jones.

Blessing Gae, 13, of Urbandale has been trying to learn the freestyle stroke.

“I think I’ll move to a higher level of swimming,” Gae said to the Register.