Aggie Olympians

A record-breaking 23 Aggie-athletes and three Aggie-coaches participated in the 2012 Olympics, bringing home four medals from the 2012 Olympic Games in London. This is the largest group of Texas A&M Olympians in school history.

Representing 16 different countries, Aggies saw action in five different sports – swimming and diving (12), track and field (8), archery (2) and basketball (1). Current Aggie women’s swimming head coach Steve Bultman was on the Team USA staff, swimming letterman Rick Walker '83 was on the Egyptian swimming staff, and Robert Fausett '97 coached Brazil's taekwondo team.

Results courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics
At the swimming venue, sophomore Breeja Larson '14 earned the A&M’s program’s first-ever Olympic gold medal in the 4 x 100-meter medley relay. Larson swam the breaststroke leg for Team USA in the prelims to help the relay advance to the final. The 2012 NCAA and U.S. Olympic Team Trials Champion in the 100 breastroke also contributed a sixth-place finish in the race in London.

Texas A&M sprinters had three medalists in Olympic track and field, earning two gold medals and a bronze.

After placing seventh in the men’s 400-meter final, Demetrius Pinder '11 ran the second leg of the Bahamas’ winning effort in the 4 x 400 relay as they handed the United States its first loss in an Olympic final since 1952 in Helsinki. The national record of 2:56.72 for the Bahamas topped the Americans (2:57.05) and makes Bahamas the third fastest country ever behind the U.S. and Great Britain.

Trinidad & Tobago finished third in the men’s  4 x 400 relay as Aggie freshman Deon Lendore '15 ran the anchor leg and held off the British for the bronze medal position. With a time of 2:59.40 the Trinidad squad lowered its national record for the third time this season, running sub-three minutes for the first time.

Jeneba Tarmoh '12 ran in the prelims of the 4 x 100 for the United States and earned a gold medal after the American squad broke the world record with a winning time of 40.82 seconds in the final.

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The Association of Former Students is proud of each of the 23 Aggie-athletes and three Aggie-coaches who participated in the 2012 Olympics. They are:

Archery

Miranda Leek '16
Country: United States
Leek is joining the A&M archery club team this fall.

Jennifer Nichols '12
Country: United States
These are Nichols' third Olympics (2004, 2008). She is a member of A&M archery club team.

Men's Basketball

Antanas Kavaliauskas '07
Country: Lithuania
These are the first Olympics for Kavaliauskas.

Swimming and diving

Steve Bultman, coach
Country: United States
This is Bultman's second Appointment as U.S. Swim Team Coach. His first Olympic coaching experience was in 1998.

Rick Walker '83, coach
Country: Egypt
Walker left Texas A&M with several school records, including the 200, 500, 1,000 & 1,650 freestyles and the 400 IM. He is now the head swimming coach for Southern Illinois.

Cammile Adams '14
Country: United States
Adams swims the 200 butterfly. She is a current Aggie student-athlete.

Triin Aljand '10
Country: Estonia
Aljan's events are the 50 free and 100 fly. This is her third Olympics (2004, 2008).

Alia Atkinson '10
Country: Jamaica
Atkinson is swimming the 100 breast,, 50 free and 200 breast. This is her third Olympics (2004, 2008). She is the 2010 200 breast NCAA champion

Erica Dittmer '14
Country: Mexico
Dittmer is a current Texas A&M student-athlete. She is swimming the 200 IM. These are her first Olympics.

Amini Fonua '12
Country: Tonga
Fonua is swimming the 100 breast. He is the first Tongan to swim in Olympics.

Liliana Ibañez '14
Country: Mexico
Ibañez's events are the 100 free and the 200 free. She is a current TexasA&M student-athlete, and this is her first Olympics.

Breeja Larson '14
Country: United States
Larson is competing in the 100 breast, and 4X100 MR. This U.S. trials champion
is a current Aggie student-athlete, and this is her first Olympics.

Rita Medrano '12
Country: Mexico
Medrano is competing in the 200 butterfly during her first Olympics.

Jaele Patrick '12
Country: Australia
Patrick's event is the 3-meter springboard. She is the 2012 3-meter NCAA champion. This is her first Olympic experience.

Kim Pavlin '14
Country: Croatia
Pavlin is competing in the 200 IM and 200 back. She is a current Aggie student-athlete, and these are her first Olympics.

Eric Sehn '08
Country: Canada
Shen is diving the 10-meter platform event.

Julia Wilkinson '10
Country: Canada
Wilkinson is swimming the 100 back, 400 free relay, 400 medley relay, 100 free. These are her second Olympics (2008).

Taekwondo

Robert Fausett '97, coach
Fausett is the 2012 Taekwondo coach for Brazil after working with the USA team in the 2008 Olympics.

Track and field

Kanika Beckles '13
Country: Grenada
Beckles is competing in the 400 meters. She is a current Aggie student-athlete competing in her first Olympics.

Janeil Bellille '15
Country: Trinidad & Tobago
This 400-meter hurdles competitor is a future Texas A&M student-athlete. These are her first Olympics.

Wayne Davis II '14
Country: Trinidad & Tobago
Davis is competing in the 110-meter hurdles. He is the 110-meter world junior record holder and a current Aggie student-athlete.

Tabarie Henry '11
Country: U.S. Virgin Islands
Henry is racing the 400 meters. He carried his country's flag during the
opening ceremonies. These are his second Olympics (2008).

Deon Lendore '15
Country: Trinidad & Tobago
Lendore is a current Aggie student-athlete running the 400 meters and 1,600 relay. These are his first Olympics.

Demetrius Pinder '11
Country: Bahamas
Pinder is running the 400 meters and 1,600 relay in his first Olympics.

Gerald Phiri '11
Country: Zambia
Phiri is running the 100 meters and 200 meters in his first Olympics.

Jeneba Tarmoh '12
Country: United States
Tarmoh is running the 400-meter relay pool in her first Olympics.