30 Facts About Ian O'Brien

Ian O'Brien won five Commonwealth Games gold medals and claimed a total of nine individual and six relay titles at the Australian Championships, before retiring at the age of 21 due to financial pressures.

Ian O'Brien won both breaststroke events at the 1963 Australian Championships, repeating the feat for the next three years.

Ian O'Brien successfully defended both his breaststroke titles at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica before retiring to support his family.

Ian O'Brien then retired and went into the television industry.

Ian O'Brien grew up in the rural town of Wellington, 360 kilometres from Sydney.

Ian O'Brien's sister Ann was a talented swimmer in her childhood years, but she preferred horseback riding.

Aged four, Ian O'Brien got his first swimming lessons from the local Learn to Swim program.

At the age of 10, Ian O'Brien began competitive swimming under local coach Bert Eslick, and raced in regional country swimming carnivals at Dubbo, Bathurst and Orange.

Ian O'Brien only trained with Gathercole during holidays, when his father could take him to Sydney; Jim Wilkins, a Catholic priest in Bathurst, supervised him according to Gathercole's program while he was in the countryside.

Ian O'Brien's performances gained him selection for the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth.

In 1963, O'Brien captured the breaststroke double at the Australian Championships, setting personal bests in both events, and was a member of the New South Wales team that won the medley relay.

Ian O'Brien's performances earned him selection for an overseas tour to Europe with the Australian team, competing in the Soviet Union, Germany and England before visiting Japan and Hong Kong.

Ian O'Brien capped off his campaign as well as a third consecutive medley relay triumph for New South Wales.

Ian O'Brien joined the rest of the team for the national camp before the Olympics in Ayr in northern Queensland, where he trained under head coach Don Talbot.

Ian O'Brien described Talbot as a "slavedriver", but felt that the experience was invaluable.

Years after O'Brien retired, Harry Gallagher said that "Ian O'Brien has an almost faultless style and is a great example for Australian youngsters to copy".

Ian O'Brien was known for the strength that his torso generated, and his powerful kicks; sports science experiments showed that his vertical jump was especially strong.

Ian O'Brien was known for his efficient start off the block.

However, in the next heat, Egon Henninger of Germany immediately lowered the mark, and by the end of the heats, Ian O'Brien was the fourth fastest qualifier for the semifinals, with both Prokopenko and Jastremski posting faster times.

Ian O'Brien planned to swim the race at an even pace and record even splits for the first and second half of the race.

Ian O'Brien was mindful of not chasing Jastremski, who was known for an aggressive opening style, which resulted in a faster first half.

Ian O'Brien had reduced his personal best time by more than four seconds during the Olympics to claim an upset win.

Ian O'Brien completed a fourth consecutive medley relay win with New South Wales.

In 1967, O'Brien skipped the Australian Championships because he had no sponsorship and ran out of money, forcing him to seek full-time work.

Ian O'Brien admitted that his training had been insufficient for Olympic standards, noting that "I needed to put on another thousand kilometres in training".

Ian O'Brien rued the absence of Talbot to motivate him to work, and had a further accident at the Olympic Village when his fingers were slammed by a closing window.

At age 21, Ian O'Brien retired after the 1968 Olympics, so he could concentrate solely on making a living.

Ian O'Brien had been forced to leave high school before he had completed his leaving certificate, so that he could support the family's income by wrapping parcels.

Ian O'Brien then worked for Channel Ten for two years, before working for an independent production company for another two years.

Ian O'Brien was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1986.