“I trained under Don Talbot with John and he succeeded in conditions that athletes would not put up with today,” the longtime Condell Park resident said.
“There were four coaches in the pool and diving boards up one end so you were dodging those and other swimmers; the pool was 100 years old and not heated but you trained all year round.
“John was so good that people used to come in off the street and just watch him train.
“He wasn’t just a talented swimmer, he was also a great person from a great family.”
Born in Riga, Latvia, Konrads emigrated with his family initially to Germany in 1944.
In 1949 their application to immigrate to the USA was refused and they were relocated to a camp in the Riverina region of NSW.
Konrads suffered polio as a child and his father thought swimming would be of therapeutic benefit.
He first caught the attention of famed Australian swim mentor Talbot, who was working as an assistant coach while teaching at Revesby Primary School where Konrads and his sister Ilsa attended.
The siblings were at their record-breaking best in 1958, the year Konrads won three gold medals at the Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff.
He dominated world swimming as a teenager in the late 1950s and early 1960s, winning the 1500m freestyle at the 1960 Rome Olympics among a haul of three medals.
Across a decorated career, he set 26 freestyle world records between the 200m and 1500m events before he turned 15.
Konrads, who died on Sunday at the age of 78, was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985.
After retirement, he entered the world of swim coaching before becoming the Australasian director of cosmetics giant L’Oreal.
He assisted with the bid for the 2000 Sydney Olympics, was a company director operating the Cook and Phillip Park Aquatic & Fitness Centre, as well as consulting in human resources.
Mayor Khal Asfour said “John Konrads’ passing is a great loss for our City. On behalf of Council and the community of Canterbury-Bankstown, I would like to express our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.
“John and his family arrived in Bankstown in 1953 after fleeing war torn Latvia. He attended Revesby Primary School where he was coached by the legendary Don Talbot at the Bankstown Baths – now the site of the Bankstown Arts Centre. He was then named Patron of the Arts Centre in 2015.”
