American swimmer Anthony Ervin earned the accolade for being the first Jewish gold medal.

Aged 35, Ervin made history by becoming the oldest American male swimmer to compete in an individual race at the summer Olympic Games since 1904.

Although a key part of the squad, Ervin did not feature in the 4x100m Men’s Freestyle Relay, but he helped the American team qualify from the heats on Saturday. He competed the anchor leg in 47.65 seconds, the fastest of the team's four legs, as USA won its heat in 3:12.38 seconds.

One of the team captains of the USA swimming squad, also won gold at the 2000 Olympics before selling his medal in support of Tsumani relief. He stopped swimming competitively for several years after complaining of burn-out before returning to action ahead of London 2012.