| Roles | Competed in Olympic Games |
|---|---|
| Sex | Male |
| Full name | John Maurer•Nelson |
| Used name | John•Nelson |
| Born | 8 June 1948 in Chicago, Illinois (USA) |
| Measurements | 178 cm / 66 kg |
| Affiliations | Yale Bulldogs, New Haven (USA) |
| NOC | United States |
| Medals | OG |
| Gold | 1 |
| Silver | 1 |
| Bronze | 1 |
| Total | 3 |
After winning his first Olympic medal in 1964, John Nelson of Yale won his only AAU title in 1965 and set a world record for the 400 metre freestyle the following year. Nelson recorded 4:11.8 for the 400 free on 18 August 1966, a record which was broken later in the day by Don Schollander, who recorded 4:11.6. Apart from his three Olympic medals, John Nelson was an Olympic finalist in the 400 freestyle in 1964 and 1968, and in 1968 he was a finalist in the 1,500 freestyle. He also won a gold in the 4×200 free relay at the 1967 Universiade.
| Games | Discipline (Sport) / Event | NOC / Team | Pos | Medal | As | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 Summer Olympics | Swimming (Aquatics) | USA |
John Nelson | |||
| 400 metres Freestyle, Men (Olympic) | 5 | |||||
| 1,500 metres Freestyle, Men (Olympic) | 2 | Silver | ||||
| 1968 Summer Olympics | Swimming (Aquatics) | USA |
John Nelson | |||
| 200 metres Freestyle, Men (Olympic) | 3 | Bronze | ||||
| 400 metres Freestyle, Men (Olympic) | 6 | |||||
| 1,500 metres Freestyle, Men (Olympic) | 8 | |||||
| 4 × 200 metres Freestyle Relay, Men (Olympic) | United States | 1 | Gold |
According to his teammate Mike Austin he attended Yale after the Olympics.