Record for the Century

Of the 60 world's records that swimmers strive for, only one has defied a generation of speedsters: the 51 sec. for 100 yards (free style), set by Johnny Weissmuller in 1927. Last week, in Yale's Payne Whitney pool, that mark too was washed away--by a 19-year-old Yale freshman named Alan Ford.

Ford, a slinky five-foot-niner with a head as smart as his strokes are slick, is the fair-haired boy of Coach Bob Kiphuth's Yale team. Born in Balboa, Canal Zone, he was given swimming lessons at the age of three because his parents, transplanted Illinoisans, wanted him to be more amphibious than they. By the time he was 15 he was picked for a team to represent the Canal Zone in an international swimming meet in South America. Last year, as a student at Mercersburg Academy, he caused a sensation by equaling Weissmuller's record--a feat accomplished by only three other U.S. swimmers (Peter Fick, Bill Prew, Howard Johnson).

This year, under Coach Kiphuth, whose swimmers have been breaking records for 25 years, Ford set out to smash the classic 51. Last week, during a dual meet with Springfield College (which Yale won, 59-to-16), he did it -- by three-tenths of a second. "Some day he will do 100 under 50 flat," beamed Kiphuth.

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