Michael Holtz has spent plenty of days wearing nothing but a Speedo.
He was a standout swimmer at Barron Collier High School, where he was the team captain and finalist in the breaststroke and individual medley at the Florida State Championships. And then he swam, on scholarship, at Fordham University in New York City.
Holtz's swimming career ultimately ended due to a shoulder injury, but he didn't truly hang up his goggles.
Instead, Holtz made the transition into a career, making an impact on the LGBT community through swimming.
Holtz swam the English Channel in 2008, despite being out of the pool for 10 months due to a torn rotator cuff, as part of a relay that was a fundraiser for Deutsche Bank, where he worked in London.
That led Holtz to create and organize the first Fire Island swim in New York City, which raised more than $100,000 for the Stonewall Community Foundation.
And this past September, he organized the inaugural Swim For Equality fundraiser to benefit Equality California, an event that attracted 52 swimmers from six States for a 1.7-mile swim off the coast of Malibu. The unique fundraiser drew swimmers ages 19 to 70, straight and gay—and raised $148,000 for Equality California.
Olympic diver Greg Louganis even completed the Swim For Equality.
"Since I came out, one of my missions has been to instill a positive impact on the LGBT community, and outside of it as well, because gay people are stereotyped to either not being successful or not being looked at as an equal individual in sports," Holtz said. "Hopefully my story helps inflict a positive influence on our community, [and shows] that gay people can be successful and can be successful in sports too.
"I've had a lot of people who have been inspirations to me, such as Greg Louganis and [former pro basketball player] John Amaechi, both of whom have overcome hurdles to be an LGBT person in sports."
Holtz's successful run, er, swim has landed him the prestigious Athlete of the Year honor from Phoenix-based Compete Magazine.
The three finalists were David Rae from Irvine, Calif.; Eddie Valentine from Washington, D.C.; and Wayne Knaub from Philadelphia.
"Our judges were impressed with Michael's ability to blend the love of his sport with fundraising for equality in California," said Buddy Early, managing editor for Compete Magazine. "Swim for Equality was Michael's brainchild from the beginning; he spearheaded this event and created a tremendous amount of buzz for the fight against Prop 8, coaxing 52 individuals to swim 1.7 miles, including Olympic gold medalist Greg Louganis. And it raised [about] $150,000 for Equality California.
"Like our previous Athlete of the Year honorees—Jeff Kagan of New York City and John Deffee of Phoenix—Michael has made a huge difference in both the gay sports community and the GLBT community at large. We couldn't be happier with the judges' choice."
Holtz, 26, who now lives in Los Angles, began swimming at age 6, when he followed his older brother into the pool in their hometown of Naples, Fla., yet he hated it at first.
That was until he realized he was pretty good at it—and by age 13 was part of the prestigious Florida Zone Team, which competed against other high-level swim teams from across the U.S.
"I think it's great," being named Athlete of the Year, Holtz said. "I'm grateful for this opportunity, honor."
Holtz is back on the fundraising trail as one of the co-producers for the first-ever gay night at a Los Angeles Clippers game—Feb. 2, when the Clippers play host to the Chicago Bulls at the Staples Center, to benefit Equality California.
"Mike deeply understands the power that sports have to change hearts and minds," said Cyd Zeigler of Los Angeles, the co-founder of Outsports.com . "For years, he has dedicated himself to forwarding gay equality by using sports events to raise both awareness and much-needed funds to fight for gay rights. His Swim For Equality events in New York and Los Angeles have both been huge successes, and the Equality Night with the Clippers will be a strong statement about the acceptance of gay people in sports.
"Equality Night with the Clippers was a brainstorm of Mike and me, and we both pushed hard to get the Clippers 100 percent on board with the event. So many other teams have been happy to take the money of gay fans, but they've been reticent to fully embrace events like these. The Clippers have been unabashed in their support of this night, which is still a bold statement for them in a league that has still yet to fully embrace their gay members and fans."
