In 1971 Swenson only placed third in the AAU outdoor meet (behind Juris Luzins and Jamaica's Byron Dyce); however, he won gold at the Pan American Games in Cali, running 1:48.08.[3][6] At the 1972 Olympic Trials Swenson ran 1:45.1, his best time since 1970; he lost to Dave Wottle (who equaled the world record of 1:44.3) and Rick Wohlhuter, but took the third and final Olympic qualifying spot ahead of early leader Jim Ryun.[6][9] At the Olympics in Munich Swenson qualified from his heat, but was disqualified in the semi-finals.[1]
Swenson continued his career for several more years; in March 1975 he joined the International Track Association (ITA), a professional circuit.[10][note 2] Swenson set his personal best for the mile run, 3:59.1, in an ITA meet on May 3, 1975; he was the 75th American to run a four-minute mile.[11]
Notes
^The previous record was Jim Ryun's 1:44.9 from 1966. Ryun's time had been set at 880 yards (804.672 m), and was worth about 1:44.3 for 800 m.[7]
^At the time, track and field was primarily an amateur sport, and most athletes only received under-the-table money. Professional athletes were not allowed to compete in the Olympics or other amateur meetings.
