What was the nationality of the 2000 Olympic swimmer nicknamed Eric the Eel?
Eric Moussambani Eric Moussambani Eric Moussambani Malonga (born May 31, 1978) is a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea. Nicknamed "Eric the Eel" by the media, Moussambani won brief international fame at the 2000 Summer Olympics for an extremely unlikely victory. Moussambani, who had never seen an Olympic-sized swimming pool before, swam his heat of the 100 m freestyle on September 19 in the unprecedentedly slow time of 1:52.72. This was the slowest time in Olympic history by far and Moussambani apparently had trouble finishing the race, but he won his heat after both his competitors were disqualified due to false starts. While Moussambani's
Eric Moussambani Lapenmal and Palestinian swimmer Hamza Abdu as "potential successors to Moussambani". During the Games, Cook Islands swimmer Petero Okotai compared himself to "Eric the Eel" upon recording a disappointing time in his event. In the 2016 Olympic Games, Ethiopian swimmer Robel Habte was dubbed "Robel the Whale" after finishing half a lap behind his competitors in the 100-meter freestyle. During the 2009 IAAF World Championships, various media around the world, including "La Nación" and the "Daily Telegraph", described American Samoan sprinter Savannah Sanitoa as "the new Eric 'the Eel' Moussambani". London 2012 Olympic rower Hamadou Djibo Issaka of Niger was