Louis Handley

Louis de Breda Handley or Luigi de Breda (February 14, 1874 – December 28, 1956) was an Italian-born American freestyle swimmer and water polo player who competed in the 1904 Summer Olympics.

He was the son of the American sculptor Francis Montague Handley and his Italian wife. He was registered in Rome as an Italian citizen with the baptismal name of Luigi and the surname of his mother, "de Breda".

In 1896 he fled to New York and added to his name the surname of his father. He worked in a small firm imports and devoted himself to his second passion after hunting, swimming. He was also a great water polo player (his style of shooting was called "jumping salmon").

In the 1904 Olympics he won a gold medal in the 4x50 yard freestyle relay, and was a member of New York Athletic Club water polo team, which won a gold medal. He also competed in the one-mile freestyle but did not finish.

As trainer he led Ethelda Bleibtrey to three gold medals in Antwerp 1920 and Gertrude Ederle the first female crossing the English Channel in 1926.

He wrote the entry dedicated to swimming on the Encyclopædia Britannica.

External links

profile
Handley, l' italiano d' America (Italian)

Persondata
Name	Handley, Louis
Alternative names	Handley, Louis de Breda; Handley, Louis D.; De Bread, Luigi
Short description	American swimmer, water polo player, Olympic gold medalist
Date of birth	February 14, 1874
Place of birth	Rome, Italy
Date of death	December 28, 1956
Place of death	New York, New York, United States

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Louis Handley

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