| Name |
Mark Foster |
| Height |
6 ft 6 in |
| Naionality |
English |
| Date of Birth |
12-May-1970 |
| Place of Birth |
Billericay, Essex, UK |
| Famous for |
Swimmer |
Mark Foster is a retired British swimmer, specializing in butterfly and freestyle at 50 meters. He is a specialist short course (25 meter pool) swimmer. In terms of medals and longevity (1986–2008), Foster is amongst the most successful British swimmers of all-time. He made a comeback at the national championships in July 2007 winning both events he competed in after barely training.
He achieved the fifth best time in 2007 in the world at 50 meters freestyle and retired for the second time after the 2008 Olympics. First selected for the British team in 1985, the breakthrough came in 1990 when he won his first individual international medal - bronze - in the Commonwealth Games in Auckland. He finished the 50 meters freestyle with a time of 23.16 seconds. He had previously won bronze as part of the 100 meter freestyle relay in the Edinburgh games four years previous, but cites the 1990 medal as his first great sporting moment. Success followed rapidly, and in the next few years Foster broke the World Short Course freestyle record four times, the World Short Course butterfly record twice, and set the World Long Course butterfly record (in 1996) with a time of 24.07 seconds. Foster trained at The Race Club, a Florida swim camp founded by Olympic Swimmers Gary Hall, Jr. and his father, Gary Hall, Sr. The Race Club, originally known as "The World Team," was designed to serve as a training group for elite swimmers across the world in preparation for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. To be able to train with the Race Club, one must either have been ranked in the top 20 in the world the past 3 calendar years or top 3 in their nation in the past year. The Race Club included such well known swimmers as Foster, Roland Mark Schoeman, Ryk Neethling, and Therese Alshammar. Foster appeared on the ITV show Beat the Star first broadcasted on 4 April 2008 in which he won 18-3, appearing as the 'star' and as a guest home owner on BBC2's Through the Keyhole first broadcast on 28 May 2008.
During summer 2008, he appeared on the new series of Superstars broadcast on Five in the UK. He later appeared on a Strictly Come Dancing special of the Weakest Link in December 2008, and won £15,900 for charity, beating Anton du Beke in the final round. He had previously appeared on an Olympic special, but did not win.
