American swimming legend Gary Hall jnr has detailed the moment he thought he might be burnt alive while escaping the devastating fires in Los Angeles that destroyed his home and everything he owns, including his 10 Olympic medals.
Australian swimming great Ian Thorpe and two-time Olympian Brett Hawke are among those who have offered Hall messages of support after his residence in the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood caught fire on Tuesday evening (Wednesday, AEDT).
Hall is remembered as the swimmer who declared the USA would “smash Australia like guitars” in the men’s 4x100m freestyle event at the Sydney 2000 Olympics.
Even though those comments were taken out of context, Hall became public enemy No.1 in Australia before Thorpe mowed down his rival in the final lap of one of the great Olympic races.
In an exclusive interview with this masthead from California, Hall said he was lucky to be alive.
“It was worse than any apocalypse movie you’ve ever seen and 1000 times worse,” he said.
Gary Hall Jnr at the Sydney 2000 Olympics.Credit: Rod Taylor
“I was on the phone with my daughter. I noticed a plume of smoke coming over the back side of my house. I saw the flames erupt and houses start popping. There were explosions. I didn’t have a lot of time. Sunset Boulevard was a complete logjam. People abandoned cars and were running for their lives. Police were telling them to do that. My girlfriend was trapped in her car around smoke.
“It’s mayhem in Los Angeles. We were surrounded by flames. The embers were raining down on me as I jumped into my car. I had time to grab my dog and just a couple of personal items. It’s just every person for themselves.
“It’s tough. It’s a big loss … and everything I own.”
The 50-year-old’s most prized possessions were the 10 Olympic medals – including five golds – he won across Games at Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004. It includes the silver medal for being part of the USA’s 4x100m freestyle relay team in Sydney.
All of Hall’s world championship medals and other swimming memorabilia are gone.
“I did think about the medals. I did not have time to get them,” Hall Jr said. “Everyone wants to know did the medals burn? Yeah, everything burnt. It’s something I can live without. I guess everything is just stuff. It’ll take some hard work to start over. What can you do?
“It’ll be a range of emotions, particularly when it’s time to go back to where the house stood. I’ll shift through the ash and see if the medals melted together. Will I be able to find anything worth saving? Probably not. I don’t know.
“There is no time to take photos or videos when running for your life.”
The pool at his home where he teaches swimming to kids was also destroyed.
“It’s not just about me. My home and my business burnt to the ground. Time to start a new chapter,” Hall said.
“I’m fortunate that in chaos I’m able to maintain calm. We were told to run for our lives.
“I got a text from Thorpey, which meant a lot. He was sending thoughts and best wishes. Brett [Hawke] called right as I was sitting down to dinner, so I appreciate that love.”
Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world. Sign up for our weekly What in the World newsletter.
