Facts:   - nicknames: `` tony ''    - weight: 170 lb kg on    - caption: morozov and ervin in kazan 2015    - height: 6 ft 3 in m on      - strokes: freestyle    - fullname: anthony lee ervin    - birth date: 26 may 1981    - name: anthony ervin    - image: kazan . jpg 2015 - morozov and ervin 50m freestyle swim-off    - birth place: valencia , california    - collegeteam: university of california , berkeley   Based on these bullet points, write a short biography describing the life of anthony ervin .
Answer:
anthony lee ervin -lrb- born may 26 , 1981 -rrb- is an american competition swimmer who has won two olympic medals and two world championship golds .at the 2000 summer olympics , he won a gold medal in the men 's 50-meter freestyle , and earned a silver medal as a member of the second-place u.s. relay team in the 4 × 100-meter freestyle event .he is the first swimmer of african american descent to medal in olympic swimming .ervin stopped swimming competitively at the age of 22 in 2003 , auctioned off his 2000 olympic gold medal on ebay to aid survivors of the 2004 tsunami , but he began to train again in 2011 .ervin competed in the 50-meter freestyle event at the 2012 summer olympics where he placed fifth .