Rômulo Arantes

Rômulo Duncan Arantes Filho (usually Rômulo Arantes; June 12, 1957 – June 10, 2000) was a Brazilian swimmer and actor. He won a bronze medal in the 100-metre backstroke at the 1978 World Aquatics Championships and four medals at the Universiades (1977 and 1981) and Pan American Games (1979).[1] He also competed in eight events at the 1972, 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympics with the best achievement of fifth place in the 4×100-metre medley relay in 1972.[2]

In this Portuguese name, "Filho" is a generational suffix meaning "son", which is used for someone whose name is the same as their father, like "Jr." in English.
Rômulo Arantes
Personal information
Born(1957-06-12)June 12, 1957
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
DiedJune 10, 2000(2000-06-10) (aged 42)
Maripá de Minas, Brazil
Height1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight75 kg (165 lb)
Sport
SportSwimming
ClubClube de Regatas do Flamengo
Indiana Hoosiers
Medal record
Representing  Brazil
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1978 West Berlin 100 m backstroke
Pan American Games
Silver medal – second place 1979 San Juan 100 m backstroke
Bronze medal – third place 1975 Mexico City 100 m backstroke
Bronze medal – third place 1975 Mexico City 4x100 m medley
Bronze medal – third place 1975 Mexico City 4x200 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place 1979 San Juan 4×100 m free
Universiade
Gold medal – first place 1977 Sofia 100 m backstroke
Silver medal – second place 1979 Mexico City 100 m backstroke
Bronze medal – third place 1981 Bucharest100 m backstroke
Bronze medal – third place 1981 Bucharest4x100 m medley

He participated at the inaugural World Aquatics Championships in 1973 Belgrade, where he finished 7th in the 100-metre backstroke, breaking the South American record, with a time of 1:00.37.[3] In the 200-metre backstroke, he not qualified for the final, but also broke the South American record, with a time of 2:12.98.[4]

He competed in the 1975 World Aquatics Championships in Cali. In the 100-metre backstroke, he finished 10th, with a time of 1:00.30, far from his personal best at this moment, the South American record (58.61 seconds).[5] In the 4×100-metre medley, he finished 9th, with a time of 4:01.99, along with Sérgio Pinto Ribeiro, Heliani dos Santos and Ruy de Oliveira.[6] Arantes had contracted a virus that made him stop training for a month, which hurt his results in this World Championships.[7]

He was at the 1975 Pan American Games, in Mexico City. He won the bronze medal in the 100-metre backstroke, 4×100-metre medley and 4×200-metre freestyle.[8] He also finished 4th in the 200-metre backstroke.[9]

At the 1977 Summer Universiade, held in Sofia, Arantes won a gold medal in the 100-metre backstroke. At the 1979 Summer Universiade, held in Mexico City, Arantes won a silver medal in the 100-metre backstroke. At the 1981 Summer Universiade, held in Bucharest, Arantes won two bronze medals in the 100-metre backstroke and in the 4×100-metre medley relay.[10][11][12][13]

Around 1977–1981,[14] he studied business administration and trained at Indiana University Bloomington, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1981.[15] After retiring from swimming in the early 1980s, he became a notable national film and TV actor, and was a singer with his music band.[16]

Family and death

He was a son of Rômulo Duncan Arantes, thus his full name literally means Rômulo Duncan Arantes, Jr. (Portuguese: filho = son). In the 1990s, Arantes became an amateur pilot and even built a landing strip at his farm near Maripá de Minas. Two days before his 43 birthday, while his family was preparing for celebrations at the farm, he flew an ultralight plane Ultravia Pelican with 24-year-old friend Fábio Amorim Ribeiro Ruivo. Minutes after take-off, the plane crashed, just some 500 meters from the runway, instantly killing both men.[16]

His widow Valéria Braga (b. 1955) is a businesswoman.[16] His son Rômulo Neto (b. 1987) and daughter Cloé Schmidt Arantes are also actors and models.[17]

References
  1. Jean-Louis Meuret (2007), HistoFINA Volume IV – Tome IV Archived 2009-05-05 at WebCite. MEDALLISTS AND STATISTICS. Special FINA WORLD SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS (50 m.) Before Rome 2009.
  2. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Rômulo Arantes Filho". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 2020-04-18.
  3. O GLOBO News Archive - September 5, 1973, Morning, General, page 29
  4. O GLOBO News Archive - September 7, 1973, Morning, General, page 33
  5. O GLOBO News Archive - July 23, 1975, Morning, Sports, page 29
  6. O GLOBO News Archive - July 28, 1975, Morning, Sports, page 26
  7. O GLOBO News Archive - July 21, 1975, Morning, Sports, page 27
  8. "Brazil medals at 1975 Pan". UOL (in Portuguese). 2007. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  9. "O GLOBO News Archive - 22 October 1975, Morning, Sports, page 26". O GLOBO. Archived from the original on 31 August 2013. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
  10. "HISTORY OF BRAZIL'S MEDALS IN UNIVERSIADES". Best Swimming (in Portuguese). August 13, 2007. Archived from the original on November 8, 2013. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  11. "ISHOF list with all medalists in Universiade history" (PDF). ISHOF.org. International Swimming Hall of Fame. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-10.
  12. "1981 Summer Universiade results". Hutchinson News. July 29, 1981. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  13. "1981 Summer Universiade results 2". Hutchinson News. July 30, 1981. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  14. Indiana Hoosiers Archived 2014-04-07 at the Wayback Machine. grfx.cstv.com
  15. Romulo Arantes. Indiana University
  16. Rômulo Arantes morre em acidente de ultraleve. JC Online (June 11, 2000).
  17. Trip Editora e Propaganda SA (April 2009). "Sem Fantasia". TPM. Trip Editora e Propaganda SA. 86: 93 ff. ISSN 1519-4035. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
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