Kahanamoku was born on August 24, 1890, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Growing up, he spent his days at the beach, where he learned to surf. The sport had been a part of Native Hawaiian culture for centuries. Hawaiians called it he‘e nalu (HEH-eh NAH-loo), or wave sliding.
Spending so much time in the water helped Kahanamoku become a strong swimmer. He gained fame in Hawaii, which had become a U.S. territory when he was a boy. But he was unknown outside of the Hawaiian Islands.
That changed in August 1911, when the American Athletic Union (AAU) held a swim meet in Honolulu Harbor. Kahanamoku won the 100-yard freestyle. He shattered the world record by 4.6 seconds.
But AAU officials refused to recognize the record. They didn’t believe that anyone could swim that fast. Outraged, the people of Hawaii raised money to send Kahanamoku to prove himself against America’s best swimmers.
Kahanamoku did just that, qualifying for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team. He went on to win both a gold and a silver medal at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden.