Mike Burton, 3-time Olympic swimming champion, dies at 79 after battle with Alzheimer's

Mike Burton, a three-time Olympic swimming champion and the first American to win gold in the 1,500-meter freestyle at consecutive Games, has died at 79, his son Eric Burton said on Friday. Burton’s major results included winning the 400 free in a tight race and the 1,500 free in 1968 Mexico City, finishing 18 seconds ahead of U.S. teammate John Kinsella. In Munich in 1972, he defended his 1,500 title in a world-record time of 15:52.58, though the triumph came with the shadow of teammate Mark Spitz’s record seven-gold feat and a terrorist attack on the athletes’ village the day after Burton’s race. Burton carried the U.S. flag at the closing ceremony. Born July 3, 1947, in Des Moines, Iowa, he was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1977 and joined UCLA’s Hall of Fame after five NCAA individual titles. His son said Burton’s death followed a prolonged battle with Alzheimer’s and dementia.