Kellogg Company

Type	Public
Traded as	NYSE: K S&P 500 Component
Industry	Food processing
Founded	February 19, 1906
Founder(s)	Will Keith Kellogg
Headquarters	Battle Creek, Michigan, United States
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	James M. Jenness (Chairman) John A. Bryant (President and CEO)
Products	Cereals Cookies Crackers Toaster pastries Cereal bars Fruit-flavored snacks Frozen waffles Veggie foods
Revenue	US$ 12.397 billion (2010)[1]
Operating income	US$ 1.990 billion (2010)[1]
Net income	US$ 1.240 billion (2010)[1]
Total assets	US$ 11.847 billion (2010)[1]
Total equity	US$ 2.154 billion (2010)[1]
Employees	30,600 (2010)[1]
Website	www.kelloggs.com www.kelloggcompany.com

The Kellogg Company (often referred to as Kellogg or Kellogg's in its corporate logo, or even more formally as Kellogg's of Battle Creek), is a producer of cereal and convenience foods, including cookies, crackers, toaster pastries, cereal bars, fruit-flavored snacks, frozen waffles, and vegetarian foods. The company's brands include Corn Flakes, Keebler, Pop-Tarts, Eggo, Yogo Bits, Cheez-It, Nutri-Grain, Rice Krispies, Bear Naked, Morningstar Farms, Famous Amos, Special K, All-Bran, Frosted Mini-Wheats, Club Crackers and Kashi. Kellogg products are manufactured in 18 countries and marketed in more than 180 countries around the world.^[2]

Its global headquarters are in Battle Creek, Michigan, USA. Its largest factory is Trafford Park in Manchester, UK which is Kellogg's European headquarters.^[3] Kellogg trades under the ticker symbol NYSE: K. The Kellogg Company also holds a Royal Warrant from HM Queen Elizabeth II and the Prince of Wales.

History[link]

First Kellogg's package

Kellogg's was founded as the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company on February 19, 1906, by Will Keith Kellogg as an outgrowth of his work with his brother John Harvey Kellogg at the Battle Creek Sanitarium following practices based on the Seventh-day Adventist Christian denomination. The company produced and marketed the hugely successful Kellogg's Toasted Corn Flakes and was renamed the Kellogg Company in 1922.

In 1930, the Kellogg Company announced that most of its factories would shift towards 30 hour work weeks, from the usual 40. This practice remained until World War II, and continued briefly after the war, although some departments and factories remained locked into 90 hour work weeks until 1980.^[4] From 1969 to 1977, Kellogg's acquired various small businesses including Salad Foods, Fearn International, Mrs. Smith's Pies, Eggo, and Pure Packed Foods;^[5] however, it was later criticized for not diversifying further like General Mills and Quaker Oats were.

Kellogg Company headquarters

After underspending its competition in marketing and product development, Kellogg's U.S. market share hit a low 36.7% in 1983. A prominent Wall Street analyst called it "a fine company that's past its prime" and the cereal market was being regarded as "mature". Such comments invigorated Kellogg chairman William E. LaMothe to improve, which primarily involved approaching the demographic of 80 million baby boomers rather than marketing children-oriented cereals. In emphasizing cereal's convenience and nutritional value, Kellogg helped persuade U.S. consumers age 25 to 49 to eat 26% more cereal than people that age ate five years prior. The U.S. ready-to-eat cereal market, worth $3.7 billion at retail in 1983, totaled $5.4 billion by 1988, and had expanded three times as fast as the average grocery category. Kellogg's also introduced new products including Crispix, Raisin Squares, and Nutri-Grain Biscuits and reached out internationally with Just Right aimed at Australians and Genmai Flakes for Japan. During this time, the company maintained success over its top competitors: General Mills, who largely marketed children's cereals, and Post, who had difficulty in the adult cereal market.^[6]

In March 2001, Kellogg made its largest acquisition, the Keebler Company. Over the years it has also gone on to acquire Morningstar Farms and Kashi divisions or subsidiaries. Kellogg also owns the Bear Naked, Natural Touch, Cheez-It, Murray, Austin, Famous Amos, Gardenburger (acquired 2007) and Plantation brands.

In 2012, Kellogg's elevated themselves to be the second largest snack food company after Pepsico by acquiring the Pringles potato crisps business from Procter & Gamble for $2.7 billion in a cash deal.^[7]

Corporate governance[link]

Current members of Kellogg Company's board of directors include: James M. Jenness, chairman; David Mackay; Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, Sr.; John T. Dillon; Gordon Gund; Dorothy A. Johnson; Donald R. Knauss; Ann McLaughlin Korologos; Rogelio M. Rebolledo; Sterling K. Speirn; Robert A. Steele and Dr. John L. Zabriskie.

On January 24, 2005, the former CEO (since April 1999) and chairman of the board of directors (since April 2000), Carlos Gutierrez became U.S. Secretary of Commerce in the second term of former President George W. Bush. Kellogg's board of directors named James M. Jenness as chairman and CEO to replace Gutierrez.

On October 23, 2006, Kellogg's announced that president and chief operating officer David Mackay would become the chief executive officer, effective December 31, 2006. Jenness will continue to serve as chairman of the Board of Directors.^[8]

In June 2007, Kellogg announced that by the end of 2008 it would stop advertising to children under twelve those cereals and snacks that do not meet specific nutrient guidelines.^[9]

January 2, 2011, John A. Bryant succeeded David McKay (retired effective January 1, 2011) as CEO.

Products[link]

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Cereal[link]

Advertisement, 1910s

A list of cereal products produced by Kellogg's, with available varieties:

• All-Bran: All-Bran Original, All-Bran Bran Buds, All-Bran Bran Flakes (UK), All-Bran Extra Fiber, All-Bran Guardian (Canada)
• Apple Jacks
• Bran Buds
• Bran Flakes

• Choco Krispis (Latin America)
• Chocos (India, Europe)
• Chocolate Corn Flakes : A chocolate version of Corn Flakes. First sold in the UK in 1998, but discontinued a few years later. It was finally brought back in 2011.
• Cinnabon
• Coco Pops (Europe, Australia)
• Coco Pops Coco Rocks
• Coco Pops Crunchers
• Coco Pops Mega Munchers
• Coco Pops Moons and Stars
• Cocoa Hoots
• Cocoa Krispies
• Corn Flakes
• Complete Wheat Bran Flakes/Bran Flakes
• Corn Pops
• Country Store
• Crispix
• Crunch: Caramel Nut Crunch, Cran-Vanilla Crunch, Toasted Honey Crunch
• Crunchy Nut Cornflakes
• Cruncheroos (current only available through food service sales and not retail)
• Disney cereals: Disney Hunny B's Honey-Graham, Disney Mickey's Magix, Disney Mud & Bugs, Pirates of the Caribbean, Disney Princess Cereal
• Eggo
• Extra( Muesli): Fruit and Nut, Fruit Magic, Nut Delight
• Froot Loops: Froot Loops, Froot Loops 1/3 Less Sugar, Marshmallow Froot Loops
• Frosted Flakes (Frosties outside of the US/Canada): Kellogg's Frosted Flakes, Kellogg's Frosted Flakes 1/3 Less Sugar, Tony's Cinnamon Krunchers
• Frosted Mini-Wheats (known in the UK as Toppas until the early 1990s, when the name was changed to Frosted Wheats. The name Toppas is still applied to this product in other parts of Europe, as in Germany and Austria)
• Fruit Harvest: Fruit Harvest Apple Cinnamon, Fruit Harvest Peach Strawberry, Fruit Harvest Strawberry Blueberry
• Fruit 'n Fibre (not available in US; not related to the Post cereal of the same name sold in the US)
• Fruit Winders (UK)
• Genmai Flakes (Japan)
• Guardian (Australia/NZ), Canada
• Honey Loops
• Honey Smacks (US)/Smacks (other markets)
• Just Right: Just Right Original, Just Right Fruit & Nut, Just Right Just Grains, Just Right Tropical, Just Right Berry & Apple, Just Right Crunchy Blends – Cranberry, Almond & Sultana (Australia/NZ), Just Right Crunchy Blends – Apple, Date & Saltana (Australia/NZ)
• Kombos (no longer available in US)
• Krave (UK, US)
• Komplete (Australia)
• Low-Fat Granola: Low-Fat Granola, Low-Fat Granola with Raisins
• Mini Max
• Mini Swirlz
• Mini-Wheats: Mini-Wheats Frosted Original, Mini-Wheats Frosted Bite Size, Mini-Wheats Frosted Maple & Brown Sugar, Mini-Wheats Raisin, Mini-Wheats Strawberry, Mini-Wheats Vanilla Creme, Mini-Wheats Strawberry Delight, Mini-Wheats Blackcurrent
• Mueslix: Mueslix with Raisins, Dates & Almonds
• Nutri-Grain
• Nut Feast
• Oat Bran: Cracklin' Oat Bran
• Optivita
• Pops
• Raisin Bran/Sultana Bran: Raisin Bran, Raisin Bran Crunch, Sultana Bran (Australia/NZ), Sultana Bran Crunch (Australia/NZ)
• Raisin Wheats
• Rice Krispies/Rice Bubbles: Rice Krispies, Rice Krispies Treats, Frosted Rice Krispies, Cocoa Rice Krispies, Rice Bubbles, LCMs, Rice Crispies Multi-Grain Shapes
• Ricicles: Like Rice Krispies, but with the addition of a frosted sugar coating.
• Scooby-Doo cereal: Cinnamon Marshmallow Scooby-Doo! Cereal
• Smart Start: Smart Start, Smart Start Soy Protein Cereal
• Smorz
• Special K: Special K, Special K low carb lifestyle, Special K Red Berries, Special K Vanilla Almond, Special K Honey & Almond (Australia), Special K Forest Berries (Australia), Special K Light Muesli Mixed Berries & Apple (Australia/NZ), Special K Light Muesli Peach & Mango flavour (Australia/NZ), Special K Dark Chocolate (Belgium), Special K Milk Chocolate (Belgium), Special K Sustain (UK)
• Spider-Man cereal: Spider-Man Spidey-Berry
• SpongeBob SquarePants cereal
• Start UK
• Strawberry Pops (South Africa)
• Sustain: Sustain, Sustain Selection
• Tresor (Sold throughout Europe)
• Variety
• Vector (Canada only)
• Yeast bites with honey
• Yogos
• Kringelz, (formerly known as ZimZ!) mini cinnamon-flavored spirals, sold only in Germany and Austria^[10][11]

2010 Cereal Recall[link]

On June 25, the company voluntarily began to recall about 28 million boxes of Apple Jacks, Corn Pops, Froot Loops and Honey Smacks because of an unusual smell and flavor from the packages' liners that could make people ill. Kellogg's said about 20 people complained about the cereals, including five who reported nausea and vomiting. Consumers reported the cereal smelled or tasted waxy or like metal or soap. Company spokeswoman J. Adaire Putnam said some described it as tasting stale. However, no serious health problems have been reported.^[12]

The suspected chemical that caused the illnesses was 2-methylnaphthalene, used in the cereal packaging process. Little is known about 2-methylnaphthalene's impact on human health as the Food and Drug Administration has no scientific data on its impact on humans, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also does not have health and safety data. This is despite the EPA having sought information on it from the chemical industry for 16 years. 2-Methylnaphthalene is a component of crude oil, and is "structurally related to naphthalene, an ingredient in mothballs and toilet-deodorant blocks" that the EPA considers a possible human carcinogen.^[13][14]

Kellogg's offered consumers refunds in the meantime.^{[citation needed]} Only products with the letters "KN" following the use-by date are included in the recall. The products were distributed throughout the U.S. and began arriving in stores in late March 2010. Products in Canada were not affected.^{[citation needed]}

Discontinued cereals and foods[link]

Kellogg provides an online list of discontinued products.

• Banana Bubbles

A banana-flavoured variation of Rice Krispies. First appeared in the UK in 1995, but discontinued shortly thereafter.

• Bart Simpson's No ProblemO's & Bart Simpson's Eat My Shorts

Sold in the UK for a limited period

• Bigg Mixx cereal
• C-3PO's cereal

Introduced in 1984 and inspired by the multi-lingual droid from Star Wars, the cereal called itself "a New (crunchy) Force at Breakfast" and was composed of "twin rings phased together for two crunches in every double-O". In other words, they were shaped like the number 8.

• Cinnamon Crunch Crispix
• Cinnamon Mini-Buns
• Concentrate
• Complete Oat Bran Flakes
• Corn Soya cereal
• Coco Pops Strawss
• Double Dip Crunch
• Frosted Krispies
• Frosted Rice

This was a combination of Frosted Flakes and Rice Krispies, using Rice Krispies with frosting on them. Tony Jr. was the brand's mascot.

• Golden Crackles
• Golden Oatmeal Crunch (later revised to Golden Crunch)
• Kenmei Rice Bran cereal
• Kream Krunch
• Krumbles cereal

Manufactured approximately from the 1920s to the 1950s; based on shreds of wheat but different from shredded wheat in texture. Unlike the latter, it tended to remain crisp in milk. In the Chicago area, Krumbles was available into the late 1960s. It was also high in fiber, although that attribute was not in vogue at the time.

• Marshmallow Krispies (later revised to Fruity Marshmallow Krispies)
• Mr. T's Muscle Crunch (1983–1985)
• OKs cereal (early 1960s)

Oat-based cereal physically resembling the competing brand Cheerios, with half the OKs shaped like letter O's and the other half shaped like K's, but did not taste like Cheerios. OKs originally featured a Scottish bagpiper on the box; this was replaced by the more familiar Yogi Bear.

• Pep

Best remembered as the sponsor of the Superman radio serial.

• Pokémon Cereal

A limited edition cereal that contained marshmallow shapes in the forms of Gen I Pokémon Pikachu, Oddish, Poliwhirl and Ditto.

• Powerpuff Girls Cereal
• Puffa Puffa Rice (late 1960s–early 1970s)
• Raisins Rice and Rye
• Razzle Dazzle Rice Krispies
• Stars/All-Stars cereal
• Strawberry Splitz

Kellogg's International[link]

The Trafford Park factory in Greater Manchester, England—Kellogg's European base since 1938.^[3] The factory produces more cornflakes than any other Kellogg's factory in the world.^[15]

•  Australia: Pagewood^[16]
•  Brazil: São Paulo
•  Canada: London, Ontario
•  France: Rosny-sous-Bois^[17]
•  Germany: Bremen^[18]
•  India: Mumbai
•  Republic of Ireland: Kellogg Europe Trading, Swords, Dublin^[18]
•  Italy: Rome
•  Japan: Shinjuku, Tokyo^[19]
•  Mexico: Querétaro
•  Netherlands: Den Bosch^[20][21]
•  Philippines: Alaska Milk Corporation^[22]
•  Portugal: Lisbon
•  Russia: United Bakers^[18]
•  South Africa: Springs^[23]
•  South Korea: Seoul
•  Spain: Valls^[18]
•  Sri Lanka: Colombo; Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte
•  Thailand: Bangkok
•  United Kingdom:
  •  England: Manchester^[18]
  •  Scotland: Portable Foods Manufacturing Livingston^[18]
  •  Wales: Wrexham including Portable Foods Manufacturing ^[18]
•  United States: Battle Creek, Michigan
•  Venezuela: Maracay, Aragua

Marketing[link]

Various methods have been used in the company's history to promote the company and its brands.

Some of Kellogg's marketing has been questioned in the press, prompted by an in increase in consumer awareness of the a miss-match between the marketing messages and the products themselves. ^[24]

Food bloggers are also questioning the marketing methods used by cereal manufacturing companies such as Kelloggs due to their high sugar content and use of ingredients like High-fructose corn syrup ^[25]

Premiums and Prizes[link]

W.K. Kellogg was the first to introduce prizes in boxes of cereal. The marketing strategy that he established has produced thousands of different cereal box prizes that have been distributed by the tens of billions.^[26]

Childrens premiums[link]

Kellogg's Corn Flakes had the first cereal premium with The Funny Jungleland Moving Pictures Book. The book was originally available as a prize that was given to the customer in the store with the purchase two packages of the cereal.^[27] But in 1909, Kellogg's changed the book give-away to a premium mail-in offer for the cost of a dime. Over 2.5 million copies of the book were distributed in different editions over a period of 23 years.^[28]

Cereal box prizes[link]

In 1945, Kellogg inserted a prize in the form of pin-back buttons into each box of Pep cereal. Pep pins have included U.S. Army squadrons as well as characters from newspaper comics and were available through 1947. There were five series of comic characters and 18 different buttons in each set, with a total of 90 in the collection.^[29] Other manufacturers of major brands of cereal (including General Mills, Malt-O-Meal, Nestlé, Post Foods, and Quaker Oats) followed suit and inserted prizes into boxes of cereal to promote sales and brand loyalty.

Mascots[link]

Licensed brands have been omitted since the corresponding mascots would be obvious (e.g. Spider-Man is the mascot for Spider-Man Spidey-Berry).

• Cocoa Krispies cereal (Known as Choco Krispis in Latin America, Choco Krispies in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Chocos in India; and Coco Pops in Australia, the UK and Europe): Jose (monkey), Coco (monkey), Melvin (elephant), Snagglepuss (Hanna-Barbera character), Ogg (caveman), Tusk (elephant) & Snap, Crackle and Pop.
• Corn Flakes cereal: Cornelius (rooster)
• Frosted Flakes (known as Frosties outside the US/Canada, Zucaritas in Latin America and Sucrilhos in Brazil) cereal: Tony the Tiger
• Froot Loops cereal: Toucan Sam
• Honey Smacks (US)/Smacks (other markets) cereal: Dig 'Em Frog
• Raisin Bran cereal: Sunny the Sun
• Rice Krispies (known as Rice Bubbles in Australia) cereal: Snap, Crackle and Pop
• Ricicles (UK Only) cereal: Captain Rik
• Apple Jacks cereal: CinnaMon and Bad Apple
• Honey Loops cereal: Loopy (bumblebee)
• Keebler Cookies and Crackers : Ernie & the Elves

Motorsports[link]

Kellogg's made its first foray into auto racing in 1991–92, when the company sponsored the #41 Chevrolets fielded by Larry Hedrick Motorsports in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series and driven by Phil Parsons, Dave Marcis, Greg Sacks Hut Stricklin and Richard Petty. But they gained greater prominence for their sponsorship of two time NASCAR Winston Cup Champion Terry Labonte from 1993 (at Billy Hagan Racing) until his retirement in 2006, and Hendrick Motorsports from 1994 until the end of 2006, initially with Labonte with both their Corn Flakes and Frosted Flakes brands, including Labonte's second NASCAR Championship (1996), and his second win in a major (the 2003 Southern 500). After Labonte's retirement, the sponsor stayed when Hendrick with new driver Kyle Busch. Kellogg's placed Dale Earnhardt on Kellogg's Corn Flakes boxes for 1993 six-time Winston Cup champ and 1994 seven-time Winston Cup champ as well as Jeff Gordon on the Mini Wheats box for the 1993 rookie of the year, 1995 Brickyard 400 inaugural race, 1997 Champion and 1998 three-time Champ, and a special three-pack racing box set with Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Terry Labonte, and Dale Jarrett in 1996. The company has consistently reduced its sponsorship, where since 2007 it shares only the hood or the sides of the cars with co-primary sponsor Carquest Auto Parts, now driven by Mark Martin. Kellogg's will move to Roush Fenway Racing with driver Carl Edwards in 2010.

Merchandising[link]

Kellogg's has used some merchandising for their products. Kellogg's once released Mission Nutrition, a PC game that came free with special packs of cereal. It played in a similar fashion as Donkey Kong Country; users could play as Tony the Tiger, Coco the Monkey, or Snap, Crackle, and Pop. Kellogg's has also released "Talking" games. The two current versions are Talking Tony and Talking Sam. In these games, a user uses a microphone to play games and create voice commands for their computer. In Talking Tony, Tony the Tiger, one of Kellogg's most famous mascots, would be the main and only character in the game. In Talking Sam, Toucan Sam, another famous mascot, would be in the game instead. Some toy cars have the Kellogg's logo on them, and occasionally their mascots.

Advertising claims[link]

This section requires expansion.

On June 3, 2010, Kellogg's was found to be making unsubstantiated and misleading claims in advertising their cereal products by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).^[30][31][32]

Kellogg's responded by stating "We stand behind the validity of our product claims and research, so we agreed to an order that covers those claims. We believe that the revisions to the existing consent agreement satisfied any remaining concerns."^[32]

The FTC had previously found fault with Kellogg's claims that Frosted Mini-Wheats cereal improved kids' attentiveness by nearly 20%.^[33]

The Children's Advertising Review Unit of the Council of Better Business Bureaus has also suggested that the language on Kellogg Pop-Tarts packages saying the pastries are "Made with Real Fruit" should be taken off the products.^[34]

See also[link]

Companies portal

• Will Keith Kellogg—the company's founder
• W. K. Kellogg Foundation
• Toucan Sam#Maya Archaeology Initiative for a tradename dispute in year 2011 about the Toucan Sam trademark

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kellogg Company

• Corporate website
• Corporate Responsibility report
• Nutrition site
• Kellogg's Cereal City USA closes in Battle Creek
• Directory of consumer sites
  • U.S. consumer site
  • Australian consumer site
  • UK consumer site
  • Greek consumer site
• Old Kellogg's adverts (UK only)
  • Venezuelan consumer site
• Merchandise website
• http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/6169998-kelloggs-recalls-28-million-boxes-of-cereal

Rebecca Soni

Rebecca Soni
Personal information
Full name	Rebecca Soni
Nickname(s)	Reb
Nationality	USA
Born	(1987-03-18) March 18, 1987 (age 25) Freehold Borough, New Jersey
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Weight	140 lb (64 kg)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Stroke(s)	Breaststroke
Club	Trojan Swim Club
College team	USC Trojans
Medal record Women's swimming Competitor for the  United States Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing 200 m breaststroke Silver 2008 Beijing 100 m breaststroke Silver 2008 Beijing 4×100 m medley World Championships (LC) Gold 2009 Rome 100 m breaststroke Gold 2011 Shanghai 100 m breaststroke Gold 2011 Shanghai 200 m breaststroke Gold 2011 Shanghai 4×100 m medley Silver 2009 Rome 50 m breaststroke Bronze 2011 Shanghai 50 m breaststroke World Championships (SC) Gold 2010 Dubai 50 m breaststroke Gold 2010 Dubai 100 m breaststroke Gold 2010 Dubai 200 m breaststroke Silver 2010 Dubai 4×100 m medley Pan Pacific Championships Gold 2010 Irvine 100 m breaststroke Gold 2010 Irvine 200 m breaststroke Gold 2010 Irvine 4×100 m medley Summer Universiade Gold 2005 Izmir 4x100 m medley Silver 2005 Izmir 100 m breaststroke Silver 2005 Izmir 200 m breaststroke

Rebecca Soni (born March 18, 1987) is an American breaststroke swimmer and three-time (one gold, two silver) Olympic medalist. She currently holds the world record in the 100 and 200 m breaststroke (short course) and is a former world-record holder in the 100 and 200 m breaststroke (long course).

Soni has won a total of nineteen medals in major international competition, twelve gold, six silver, and one bronze spanning the Olympics, the World, the Universiade, and the Pan Pacific Championships. She burst onto the international scene at the 2008 Summer Olympics where she won two silver medals and one gold. In the 200 m breaststroke at the Olympics, she set the world record en route to winning gold, shocking Australian favourite Leisel Jones.^[1] She won Swimming World's World Swimmer of the Year award in 2010 and 2011, and the American Swimmer of the Year award in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

Personal[link]

Soni was born in Freehold, New Jersey in 1987, the daughter of Péter and Kinga Sőni.^[2] Soni's parents are of Hungarian descent; they emigrated from Cluj-Napoca, Romania in the 1980s. Her father works in real estate and her mother is a nurse.^[3] Besides English, Soni also speaks Hungarian.^[4] Soni has one older sister, Rita, who is also a swimmer.^[5] Originally a gymnast, Soni began swimming at the age of ten.^[6] Soni is a 2005 graduate of West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North in Plainsboro Township, New Jersey.^[7] Soni attended the University of Southern California and graduated in 2009. She majored in Communication at the Annenberg School for Communication. At USC, Soni was a six-time NCAA Champion, having won the 200-yard breaststroke in 2006 through 2009 and the 100-yard breastroke in 2008 and 2009.^[8][9] Soni currently swims for the Trojan Swim Club in Los Angeles with coach Dave Salo, who also coaches breaststroke world-record holder Jessica Hardy. In August 2010, Soni became a spokeswoman for the United Nations Foundation's Girl Up campaign. The organization focuses on improving the lives of the world’s adolescent girls.^[10]

Career[link]

Early career[link]

As a 17-year-old at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, Soni finished 15th overall in the 100 m breaststroke and 11th overall in the 200 m breaststroke.^[11][12] The following year, at the 2005 World Championship Trials, Soni just missed a spot on the 2005 World Aquatic team after finishing third in the 200 m breaststroke behind Tara Kirk and Kristen Caverly.^[13] Soni also placed 4th in the 100 m breaststroke.^[14] At the 2005 Summer Universiade, Soni earned her first international medals by winning silver in the 100 and 200 m breaststroke and gold in the 4×100 m medley relay.^[15] At the 2006 FINA World Swimming Championships, Soni finished in 4th place in the 200 m breaststroke.^[16] Just a fews weeks before the 2006 National Championships, Soni underwent a procedure called radiofrequency ablation to help regulate her heartbeat. Although it was not health-threatening, Soni would sometimes experience a high heart rate which sometimes interfered with her training.^[17][18] At the 2006 National Championships, the selection meet for the 2006 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships and the 2007 World Aquatics Championships, Soni finished 10th overall in both the 100 and 200 m breaststroke.^[19][20]

2008 Summer Olympics[link]

At the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, Soni competed in two events, the 100 m and 200 m breaststroke. In the 100 m breaststroke, Soni finished fourth in a time of 1:07.80.^[21] Usually, the top two finishers would qualify for the Olympics. However, after second-place finisher Jessica Hardy withdrew from the team and third-place finisher Tara Kirk missed the entry deadline, Soni was chosen to swim the event.^[22][23] Soni earned her berth by being the swimmer already on the team with the fastest time in the event since January 1, 2006.^[24] In the 200 m breaststroke, Soni won with a time of 2:22.60, the third-fastest finish as of that date.^[25]

At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Soni won a silver medal in the 100 m breaststroke, finishing behind world record holder Leisel Jones of Australia 1:06.73 to 1:05.17.^[26][27] In the 200 m breaststroke, Soni upset the heavily favored Jones, winning the gold medal and breaking Jones's world record with a time of 2:20.22. Jones finished second with a time of 2:22.05.^[28] After the race, Soni said, "It's been a long road to get here, I can't believe what just happened."^[17] Soni then combined with Natalie Coughlin, Christine Magnuson, and Dara Torres in the 4×100 m medley relay to finish second behind Australia. Soni had the second best split time in the field (1:05.95) behind Jones (1:04.58).^[29][30]

2009[link]

At the 2009 National Championships Soni competed in two events, the 100 and 200 m breaststroke. In the 100 m breaststroke, Soni easily won with a time of 1:05.34.^[31] In the 200 m breaststroke, Soni again exhibited dominance by finishing first with a time of 2:20.38, just off her world record pace.^[32]

At the 2009 World Aquatics Championships, held in Rome, Soni set a meet record in the heats of the 100 m breaststroke, with a time of 1:05.66.^[33] In the semifinal, Soni recorded a time of 1:04.84 to set a new world record and become the first female to finish under 1:05 for the event.^[34][35] In the final of the 100 m breaststroke, Soni won the gold with a time of 1:04.93.^[36][37] Despite being the favorite in the 200 m breaststroke, Soni went out too fast in the first half of the race and faded in the final meters, ultimately placing fourth.^[38] In the 50 m breaststroke, Soni was narrowly beaten for the gold and the world record by 2/100 of a second by Russian swimmer Yuliya Yefimova.^[39]

Soni then competed at the 2009 Duel in the Pool, a short course meet held in December at Manchester. In the 200 m breaststroke, Soni broke Leisel Jones' world record with a time of 2:14.57.^[40] One day later, Soni swam a 1:02.70 in the 100 m breaststroke to break Jones' world record of 1:03.00.^[41]

For her performance in 2009, she was named the American Swimmer of the Year by Swimming World Magazine.^[42]

2010[link]

At the 2010 National Championships, Soni qualified to compete at the 2010 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in the 100 and 200 m breaststroke. In the 100 m breaststroke, Soni won in a time of 1:05.73.^[43][44] In the 200 m breaststroke, Soni easily won with a time of 2:21.60, almost five seconds ahead of second place finisher Amanda Beard.^[45]

At the 2010 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, Soni won a total of three gold medals. In the 100 m breaststroke, Soni recorded the third fastest time in history with a 1:04.93 to win the gold medal ahead of Australians Leisel Jones and Sarah Katsoulis. Her time was also the fastest ever recorded in a textile swimsuit.^[46] Two days after the 100 m breaststroke, Soni then competed in the 200 m breaststroke and the 4×100 m medley relay. In the 200 m breaststroke, Soni dominated the field with a time of 2:20.69. Leisel Jones came in second in 2:23.23 and world record holder Annamay Pierse came in third with a time of 2:23.65.^[47] Less than an hour after the event, Soni competed in the 4×100 m medley relay with Natalie Coughlin, Dana Vollmer and Jessica Hardy. Performing the breastroke leg, Soni recorded a time of 1:05.35, the fastest in the field; the American team went on to win the gold in a time of 3:55.23.^[48]

At the end of 2010, Soni competed at the 2010 FINA Short Course World Championships in Dubai, where she won three gold medals and one silver. Soni swept all the breaststroke events and individually set four championship records.^[49]

At year's end, Soni was named the World Swimmer of the Year and American Swimmer of the Year by Swimming World Magazine.^[50]

2011 World Championships[link]

Soni won her first gold medal in the 100 m breaststroke. After posting the top times times in the heats (1:05.54) and semifinals (1:04.91), Soni recorded a time of 1:05.05 in the final for the win. Her winning time was over a second ahead of second place finisher Leisel Jones.^[51] In her second event, the 200 m breaststroke, Soni won with a time of 2:21.47, her first gold medal in the event at a long course World Championships. However, her time in the final was slightly slower than her semifinal time of 2:21.03.^[52] In the 4×100 m medley relay, Soni won gold with Natalie Coughlin, Dana Vollmer, and Missy Franklin with a time of 3:52.36, over three seconds ahead of second-place finisher China. Swimming the breaststroke leg, Soni had a split of 1:04.71. The final time of 3:52.36 for the medley relay was the second-fastest effort of all time, just behind the Chinese-owned world record of 3:52.19.^[53] In her last event, the 50 m breaststroke, Soni finished in third place behind Jessica Hardy and Yuliya Yefimova.^[54]

At year's end, Soni was named the World Swimmer of the Year and American Swimmer of the Year by Swimming World Magazine, and defended her titles from 2010.^[55]

Personal bests[link]

As of December 17, 2010.

Key: WR = World record

World records[link]

^a Record set in a short course pool.

^b Short course record with Natalie Coughlin, Dana Vollmer, and Missy Franklin.

See also[link]

• List of world records in swimming
• List of United States records in swimming

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• USA Swimming athlete bio: Rebecca Soni
• Rebecca Soni at the United States Olympic Committee
• USC profile for Rebecca Soni
• Arena Swimming profile for Rebecca Soni
• Rebecca Soni on Twitter

Records
Preceded by Leisel Jones	Women's 200 metre breaststroke world record holder (long course) August 15, 2008 – July 30, 2009	Succeeded by Annamay Pierse
Preceded by Leisel Jones	Women's 100 metre breaststroke world record holder (long course) July 27, 2009 – August 7, 2009	Succeeded by Jessica Hardy
Preceded by Leisel Jones	Women's 200 metre breaststroke world record holder (short course) December 18, 2009 – present	Succeeded by Incumbent
Preceded by Leisel Jones	Women's 100 metre breaststroke world record holder (short course) December 19, 2009 – present	Succeeded by Incumbent
Awards
Preceded by Federica Pellegrini	World Swimmer of the Year 2010–2011	Succeeded by Incumbent
Preceded by Natalie Coughlin	American Swimmer of the Year 2009–2011 (Shared with Kukors in 2009)	Succeeded by Incumbent
Sporting positions
Preceded by Anastasia Zuyeva	Mare Nostrum Tour Overall Winner 2010	Succeeded by Incumbent

Rebecca Soni – Navigation templates v t e 2008 USA Olympic Swimming Team Men's Team Nathan Adrian Ricky Berens Ian Crocker Mark Gangloff Matt Grevers Brendan Hansen Larsen Jensen Cullen Jones Klete Keller Jason Lezak Ryan Lochte Aaron Peirsol Michael Phelps Eric Shanteau Scott Spann Gil Stovall Peter Vanderkaay Erik Vendt David Walters Mark Warkentin Garrett Weber-Gale Benjamin Wildman-Tobriner Women's Team Amanda Beard Elizabeth Beisel Elaine Breeden Caroline Burckle Natalie Coughlin (Jessica Hardy) Kathleen Hersey Margaret Hoelzer Katie Hoff Megan Jendrick Kara Lynn Joyce Christine Magnuson Christine Marshall Lacey Nymeyer Allison Schmitt Emily Silver Julia Smit Rebecca Soni Chloe Sutton Dara Torres Kim Vandenberg Kate Ziegler Coaches Jack Bauerle (Women's Head Coach) Ray Benecki Bob Bowman Frank Busch Sean Hutchison Teri McKeever Eddie Reese (Men's Head Coach) Mark Schubert (National Team Head Coach) Gregg Troy Jon Urbanchek Paul Yetter v t e Olympic Champions in Women's 200 m Breaststroke 1924: Lucy Morton 1928: Hilde Schrader 1932: Clare Dennis 1936: Hideko Maehata 1948: Nel van Vliet 1952: Éva Székely 1956: Ursula Happe 1960: Anita Lonsbrough 1964: Galina Prozumenshchikova 1968: Sharon Wichman 1972: Beverley Whitfield 1976: Marina Kosheveya 1980: Lina Kačiušytė 1984: Anne Ottenbrite 1988: Silke Hörner 1992: Kyoko Iwasaki 1996: Penny Heyns 2000: Ágnes Kovács 2004: Amanda Beard 2008: Rebecca Soni v t e World Long Course Champions in Women's 100 m Breaststroke 1973: Renate Vogel (GDR) 1975: Hannelore Anke (GDR) 1978: Yuliya Bogdanova (URS) 1982: Ute Geweniger (GDR) 1986: Sylvia Gerasch (GDR) 1991: Linley Frame (AUS) 1994: Samantha Riley (AUS) 1998: Kristy Kowal (USA) 2001: Luo Xuejuan (CHN) 2003: Luo Xuejuan (CHN) 2005: Leisel Jones (AUS) 2007: Leisel Jones (AUS) 2009: Rebecca Soni (USA) 2011: Rebecca Soni (USA) v t e World Long Course Champions in Women's 200 m Breaststroke 1973: Renate Vogel (GDR) 1975: Hannelore Anke (GDR) 1978: Lina Kačiušytė (URS) 1982: Svetlana Varganova (URS) 1986: Silke Hörner (GDR) 1991: Elena Volkova (URS) 1994: Samantha Riley (AUS) 1998: Ágnes Kovács (HUN) 2001: Ágnes Kovács (HUN) 2003: Amanda Beard (USA) 2005: Leisel Jones (AUS) 2007: Leisel Jones (AUS) 2009: Nađa Higl (SRB) 2011: Rebecca Soni (USA) v t e World Long Course Champions in Women's 4×100 m Medley Relay 1973: East Germany (Richter, Vogel, Kother, Ender) 1975: East Germany (Richter, Anke, Kother, Ender) 1978: United States (Jasek, Caulkins, Pennington, Woodhead) 1982: East Germany (Otto, Geweniger, Geißler, Meineke) 1986: East Germany (Zimmermann, Gerasch, Gressler, Otto) 1991: United States (Wagstaff, McFarlane, Leighton, Haislett) 1994: China (He, Dai, Liu, Le) 1998: United States (Maurer, Kowal, Thompson, Van Dyken) 2001: Australia (Calub, Jones, Thomas, Ryan) 2003: China (Shu, Luo, Yafei, Yang) 2005: Australia (Edington, Jones, Schipper, Lenton) 2007: Australia (Seebohm, Jones, Schipper, Lenton) 2009: China (Zhao, Chen, Jiao, Li) 2011: United States (Coughlin, Soni, Vollmer, Franklin) v t e World Short Course Champions in Women's 50 m Breaststroke 1999: Masami Tanaka (JPN) 2000: Sarah Poewe (RSA) 2002: Emma Igelström (SWE) 2004: Brooke Hanson (AUS) 2006: Jade Edmistone (AUS) 2008: Jessica Hardy (USA) 2010: Rebecca Soni (USA) v t e World Short Course Champions in Women's 100 m Breaststroke 1993: Dai Guohong (CHN) 1995: Samantha Riley (AUS) 1997: Kristy Ellem (AUS) 1999: Masami Tanaka (JPN) 2000: Sarah Poewe (RSA) 2002: Emma Igelström (SWE) 2004: Brooke Hanson (AUS) 2006: Tara Kirk (USA) 2008: Jessica Hardy (USA) 2010: Rebecca Soni (USA) v t e World Short Course Champions in Women's 200 m Breaststroke 1993: Dai Guohong (CHN) 1995: Samantha Riley (AUS) 1997: Kristy Ellem (AUS) 1999: Masami Tanaka (JPN) 2000: Rebecca Brown (AUS) 2002: Qi Hui (CHN) 2004: Brooke Hanson (AUS) 2006: Qi Hui (CHN) 2008: Suzaan van Biljon (RSA) 2010: Rebecca Soni (USA) v t e Pan Pacific Champions in Women's 100 m Breaststroke 1985: Cindy Ounpuu (CAN)  1987: Allison Higson (CAN)  1989: Keltie Duggan (CAN)  1991: Linley Frame (AUS)  1993: Anita Nall (USA)  1995: Penelope Heyns (RSA)  1997: Samantha Riley (AUS)  1999: Penelope Heyns (RSA)  2002: Amanda Beard (USA)  2006: Tara Kirk (USA)  2010: Rebecca Soni (USA) v t e Pan Pacific Champions in Women's 200 m Breaststroke 1985: Hiroko Nagasaki (JPN) 1987: Amy Shaw (USA) 1989: Mary Ellen Blanchard (USA) 1991: Kristine Quance (USA) 1993: Anita Nall (USA) 1995: Samantha Riley (AUS) 1997: Samantha Riley (AUS) 1999: Penelope Heyns (RSA) 2002: Amanda Beard (USA) 2006: Suzaan van Biljon (RSA) 2010: Rebecca Soni (USA) v t e Pan Pacific Champions in Women's 4×100 m Medley Relay 1985: CAN 1987: USA (Linehan, Johnson, Myers, Torres) 1989: USA (Loveless, McFarlane, Johnson, Fetter) 1991: USA (Wagstaff, King, Ahmann-Leighton, Haislett) 1993: USA (Loveless, Nall, Thompson, Martino) 1995: AUS (Stevenson, Riley, O'Neill, Ryan) 1997: USA (Maurer, Kowal, Fox, Thompson) 1999: USA (Bedford, Quann, Thompson, Kolbisen) 2002: AUS (Calub, Jones, Thomas, Henry) 2006: USA (Coughlin, Hardy, Komisarz, Weir) 2010: USA (Coughlin, Soni, Vollmer, Hardy)