Mark Warkentin is an American swimmer who was born on November 14, 1979 in Santa Barbara, Calif. His dad John was a decathlete in 1960s and 70s, who is now a real-estate developer and also a manager. His mom Marjolein is a homemaker and he has two siblings, his elder sister Kara was an All-American tennis player and his younger brother Paul has also played tennis.
He attended San Marcos High School and then, he went to the University of Southern California, from where he graduated in 2003 with his major in communication. In the same year, Mark Warkentin got married to Diana, who is a Christian preschool teacher.
Mark Warkentin association with swimming began when he was two years hold, but took up the sport seriously when he was thirteen. Under the guidance of Larry Liebowitz, Mark Warkentin trained at Santa Barbara Swim Club in early stages of his career.
Mark Warkentin had a prolific run at the 1999 World University Games, where he won four gold medals. He also won a silver medal at the 2001 World University Games. A few years later, he won the 25K event at the 2006 Open Water World Championship. In the same tournament, he also finished third in the 5K and 10K events. With this successful run, Mark Warkentin began 2007 on a promising note by finishing fourth at the Open Water Swimming World Championship. Later, he followed it up by winning the 25K event at the Open Water World Championship and also won the bronze medal in the 10K event. After winning his second consecutive 25k Open Water National Championship title, Mark was selected for the 2008 World Championship Team to represent his country. In the same year, he won the 2007 U.S. Open Water Grand Prix Champion title for his remarkable talent in the sport.
In 2008, Mark Warkentin won a silver medal in the 25k event at the Open Water World Championship. With this victory, he became the first ever American to qualify for the Olympic team in open water swimming. He was also listed by the Time magazine as one of its "100 Olympic Athletes to Watch". Mark Warkentin placed eighth in the 2008 Beijing Olympic debut of the men’s 10k marathon swim held at the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park. He swam a strong race and was in the top 10 throughout the competition and finished the race in 1:52:13.
Mark Warkentin wants to become a swimming coach after retiring from the sport. During his spare time, he enjoys plating tress and his favorite trees are avocado and citrus. He is the official announcer of many popular club meets like UCSB and USC. His favorite movie is “Chariots of Fire” and his favorite music artists are Jeremy Camp, Newsboys and Audio Adrenaline. Mark Warkentin loves watching T.V. in his free time and his favorite T.V. show is “Lost”.
