Dara Torres to host this year's Gator Growl

October 24, 2012

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Gator Growl 2012 will feature 12-time Olympic medalist and Gators alumna Dara Torres as the host for this year’s event, starting at 7 p.m. Nov. 9 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

Torres has won four gold, four silver and four bronze medals in Olympic swimming. She has competed in five Olympic Games and most recently won three silver medals in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing at the age of 41.

As a Gator, Torres won nine Southeastern Conference individual championships, three individual NCAA national championships, and earned 28 All-American honors.

Torres graduated from the University of Florida in 1990 with a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications and was inducted as a Gator Great into the University of Florida Hall of Fame in 1999.

Torres will join Emmy-nominated comedian Tracy Morgan and country music superstar Josh Turner as the featured performers for this year’s event.

This year’s event will also feature fireworks, the Para-Commandos skydiving team, as well as the Dazzlers, UF cheerleaders and the Gator football team’s senior members.

The theme of Gator Growl 2012 is “United We Growl” and the show will be honoring both the Florida Gators and the United States military on the eve of Veterans Day Weekend.

Tickets for Gator Growl 2012 are $15 for students, $20 for UF faculty and staff, and $25 for alumni and guests. They can be purchased through Ticketmaster or www.gatorgrowl.org.

To purchase a $25 tax-deductible ticket for a wounded veteran and their family through the Wounded Warrior Project you can also visit www.gatorgrowl.org

Gator Growl marks the culmination of UF’s homecoming festivities and brings together students, alumni, staff and faculty. The theme of Gator Growl 2012 is “United We Growl” and the show will be honoring both the Florida Gators and the United States military on the eve of Veterans Day Weekend.