 He participated in the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, where he swam for the gold medal-winning U.S. team in the preliminary heats of the men's 4×200-meter freestyle relay.Under the 1964 Olympic swimming rules, he was ineligible for a medal, however, because he did not swim in the relay final.Townsend attended Yale University, where he was a standout swimmer for coach Phil Moriarty's Yale Bulldogs swimming and diving team from 1963 to 1965.