Sydney 2000: Remembering the incredible swim of Equatorial Guinea's Eric 'The Eel' Moussambani at the Sydney Olympics

Lachlan McKirdy

Sydney 2000: Remembering the incredible swim of Equatorial Guinea's Eric 'The Eel' Moussambani at the Sydney Olympics image

Sporting News is going to look back on the 2000 Olympics and pick one moment from each day of competition to celebrate the 20th anniversary.

You can look back at yesterday's moment here, when 15-year-old Leisel Jones won her first Olympic medal.

While the likes of Ian Thorpe were grabbing all the headlines in the pool, the swim of Equatorial Guinea's Eric Moussambani at the Sydney 2000 Olympics would capture the world's attention and define exactly what it means to be an Olympian. 

The Men's 100m Freestyle is always a marquee event at the Olympic Games. 

It features the best sprinters of the sport, going at it for only two lengths of the pool. 

MORE: Remembering Michael Diamond's gold medal in the Shooting Trap final

Sydney 2000 was no different with some of the biggest names of swimming competing for gold. 

Australia's Michael Klim was the world record holder going into the event after his incredible split time during the 4x100m freestyle relay earlier in the week

There were plenty of massive international names in the event as well. 

The Netherlands' Pieter van den Hoogenband was one of the early favourites. 

The American 'villain' Gary Hall Jr had put down his guitars to compete in the event. 

And of course, you couldn't forget the Russian Alexander Popov who won gold at the event in Atlanta. 

It's less than a minute of fast-paced action that you can't take your eyes off, usually.

However, in the first heat of the event on Tuesday the 19th of September, a man from a small nation in the centre of Africa stole all the headlines. 

Eric Moussambani trained by himself in a pool that was no more than 15 metres in length. 

As a young man, in the early hours of the morning, he would use that pool and teach himself how to swim. 

He received a wildcard to compete at Sydney 2000. 

It took three days for Moussambani to travel from his homeland to Australia for the Olympics, the first time he had ever been to the country. 

When Moussambani arrived to the Sydney International Aquatic Centre, it was his first encounter with a 50-metre swimming pool. 

"I was so scared because they told me that was the swimming pool we were going to compete in," Moussambani told the Olympic Channel

"I told my people that it's going to be very difficult for me because the swimming pool was so big for me."

'Before the event, he would train at the same time as the American team and watch in awe as they glided across the pool. 

He learned how to dive into the pool from watching others practice. 

The unheralded swimmer was one of four athletes from Equitorial Guinea to compete at Sydney 2000. 

He was handed the honour of being the country's flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony.

On the day of his event, Moussambani was in the first heat with only two other swimmers, Niger's Karim Bare and Tajikistan's Farkhod Oripov.

"I was so scared of doing something that people would laugh about me," Moussambani said. 

In only a pair of light blue speedos, Moussambani stepped onto his block in lane five. 

Then all of a sudden, Bare and Oripov both enter the pool before the starter's siren had gone off. 

In the footage, you can see Moussambani so close to following them in only to grab the block and balance himself once again. 

The two other racers were disqualified, leaving Eric as the only man in heat one. 

Eric the Eel

All eyes were now on Moussambani. 

He entered the pool with a dive that didn't look too out of place in an Olympic swimming pool. Certainly better than this writer could ever achieve. 

In the first 25 metres, the pace of Moussambani was good but his swimming style was certainly unorthodox. 

With almost a butterfly kick, breathing from the front instead of the side and stroking with his arms way too quickly, it became clear that Moussambani was going to fade. 

By the time he hit the end of the first lap, Moussambani was gassed. He had spent all his energy and still had one lap to go. 

But the thought of his family and friends back home in Equatorial Guinea watching on made him determined to finish the race, whatever it took. 

"I didn't care about the time," Moussambani said. 

"I just had to complete the 100 metres."

The roar of the crowd at the Aquatic Centre kicked in when Moussambani had about 25 metres to go. 

His pace had slowed immensely but it was clear that the effort was still at 100 per cent. 

As the whole world seemingly willed him over the line, he touched the wall.

In the footage, you can see him put in an extra stroke to touch the wall again, almost in disbelief he had actually finished.

A sense of relief washed over Moussambani's face. 

He was exhausted, but he had achieved his dream.

He became the first swimmer from Equatorial Guinea to swim 100 metres at an international event. 

The crowd were brought to their feet after the incredible display of courage they had just witnessed. 

Here was a 22-year-old man who had travelled across the world to compete in an Olympic Games after teaching himself how to swim in a 15-metre pool. 

It was an incredible story that summed up the spirit of the Olympics. 

Moussambani finished with a time of 1:52.72. Pieter van den Hoogenband won the final in a time of 47.84.

While in the record books it will be remembered as the slowest Olympic time in history, that's not how most people remember it anymore. 

The focus is solely on the incredible story behind the swim and the determination he showed to finish the race. 

It's one of many lasting images of the Sydney Olympics that helped it earn the 'Best Games Ever' title. 

You can watch Moussambani's full story and highlights of the event here.

The swim also earned the attention of Roy and HG's The Dream, the duo recapping the race in the hilarious way only they could during the Games. 

In a revealing interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Moussambani spoke about the rockstar status he earned at the Olympic Village after his race. 

"When I went to the Olympic restaurant where the athletes eat, that’s when people started asking me for autographs and pictures," Moussambani said.

"That’s when I realised I became very famous."

Make sure to read that entire interview here.

In the years following the event, Moussambani worked on his technique and made huge improvements. 

At one point he says he got his 100-metre time as low as 52.18.

While the swim at Sydney 2000 is everyone's memory of Moussambani, it's not his legacy. 

His legacy is the fact that he is now a swimming coach in his home nation teaching kids how to swim. 

His legacy is the fact that there are now two Olympic-sized swimming pools in Equatorial Guinea, a luxury he could have only dreamed of growing up. 

"I am a national coach in the swimming federation of Equatorial Guinea," Moussambani told AFP recently.

"I work to ensure that our country has good swimmers, teaching them the fundamentals of swimming.

"I ask them to have a lot of courage, because I believe that, in life, when you have goals, you have to persevere to achieve them."

Courage and perseverance. Two words couldn't describe Moussambani any better. 

 

Lachlan McKirdy

Lachlan McKirdy Photo