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Accomplished entrepreneur and adventurer James Yount divides his time among several professional and recreational passions. A financial services executive since 1993, James Yount consults with portfolio advisors to help them find the most suitable solutions for their clients. James Yount currently applies his financial expertise to work with wire houses.
During his free time, Jim Yount takes advantage of his proximity to the desert by rock climbing and camping in Joshua Tree National Park with his family. Jim Yount has climbed with professionals such as Bob Gaines of Vertical Adventures and encourages his wife and sons to join him in pursuit of his passion. Committed to physical fitness, Jim Yount also enjoys running and weight lifting. As a student at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri, Jim Yount earned a position on the school’s swim team and was named captain in his sophomore year. Jim Yount became a 21-time All American swimmer with Drury University, setting the national record for the 200 yard freestyle swim, and his successes gave him the chance to meet childhood hero and Olympic gold medalist Mark Spitz. Jim Yount graduated from Drury University with a degree in Business Administration.
In addition to his athletic pursuits, James Yount is passionate about the arts. James Yount recently developed and co-produced a film entitled Warrior, starring Twilight actors Ashley Greene and Kellan Lutz, portraying the story of a high school lacrosse player who befriends a Marine that his father died to save in Iraq. James Yount is also an avid reader, listing Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand as his favorite book and its protagonist, John Galt, as his role model.
James Yount cherishes the memory of his mother, a Catholic grade school teacher who encouraged him to never give up in life. James Yount honors his mother by remaining a devoted family man and Born-again Christian and contributes to her legacy by preserving and using her holiday baking recipes.
James Yount's Publications
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Mark Spitz’ Swimming Achievements, James Yount
October, 2011
By James Yount
I have been an avid swimmer since the age of five, and I participated in competitive swimming at Drury College, achieving a national record for the 200-yard freestyle and earning a position as Captain of the swim team as a sophomore. My hero growing up was the Olympian Mark Spitz, who I had the privilege of meeting years later at a charity event.
Considered the all-around fastest swimmer of modern times, Mark Spitz trained with George Haines at the Santa Clara Swim Club from age 14, quickly mastering the sports’ most difficult stroke, the butterfly. He won the first of 24 National Amateur Athletic Union Championships at age 16, qualifying for the 1968 Mexico City Olympics with 10 world records already to his credit, and a goal of bringing home 6 gold medals. Spitz disappointed a nation’s high expectations in that Olympics, taking only a silver and bronze in individual events, and participating in two team-relay gold medal efforts. As with many great athletes, this setback only gave the legendary swimmer renewed purpose. Training with Doc Counsilman over the next four years, Spitz also took up pre-dental studies at college and achieved eight individual NCAA titles during this time. At the 1972 Munich Olympics, he achieved an unprecedented gold medal sweep, setting a new world record in each of seven individual events. Only hours after Spitz’s final medal win, the unthinkable happened, with terrorists killing two members of the Israeli Olympic delegation and holding other team members hostage. While this tragedy overshadowed the athletic accomplishments of the 1972 Olympics for many years, it in no way diminishes the significance of Spitz’s achievement. He remains one of only five athletes to have won nine or more career gold medals, with Carl Lewis, Paavo Nurmi, and Larisa Latynina also having nine. Only swimmer Michael Phelps has more career gold medals, with 14 total. What inspires me most about Mark Spitz is not only his accomplishments as a young man, but his lifelong dedication to competitive swimming. In 1992 at age 41, Spitz came out of retirement to vie for a spot on the U.S. Swimming Team. Swimming fans will always wonder about what could have been, as Spitz fell two seconds short of the required qualifying time for the Barcelona Games.
About the Author: Jim Yount is an experienced financial consultant who holds Series 63, Series 7, and Series 24 securities licenses and regularly advises clients in California and New York.
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