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Swimming

A swimmer performing freestyle
Highest governing body	Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA)
Characteristics
Categorization	aquatics
Olympic	Since 1896

Swimming is a water based sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA).

History[link]

Swimming has been recorded since prehistoric times; the earliest recording of swimming dates back to Stone Age paintings from around 7,000 years ago. Written references date from 2000 BC. Some of the earliest references to swimming include the Gilgamesh, the Iliad, the Odyssey, the Bible, Beowulf, and other sagas. In 1578, Nikolaus Wynmann, a German professor of languages, wrote the first swimming book, The Swimmer or A Dialogue on the Art of Swimming (Der Schwimmer oder ein Zweigespräch über die Schwimmkunst). Competitive swimming in Europe started around 1800, mostly using breaststroke. In 1873, John Arthur Trudgen introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native Americans. Due to a British dislike of splashing, Trudgen employed a scissor kick instead of the front crawl's flutter kick. Swimming was part of the first modern Olympic games in 1896 in Athens. In 1902 Richmond Cavill introduced the front crawl to the Western world. In 1908, the world swimming association, Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA), was formed. Butterfly was developed in the 1930s and was at first a variant of breaststroke, until it was accepted as a separate style in 1952.

Physics of swimming[link]

The basic principle of swimming is buoyancy. The human body has a high water content and its density is close to the density of water. Due to its cavities (most prominently the lungs), the average density of the human body is lower than that of water, so it naturally floats. Terry Laughlin has summarized the relevant physical principles for effective and efficient swimming in his book Total Immersion^[1] in 1996.

In addition, hydrodynamics are an important factor in stroke technique in terms of swimming faster. In the same way that racing cars aim are made to be as streamlined as possible, swimmers are encouraged to try and streamline the body and decrease the drag caused by the surface area exposed at the head and shoulders. Improvements in this area can often mean significant gains in speed

There are two ways to swim faster:

• increase power
• reduce water resistance

Because the power needed to overcome resistance increases with the third power of the velocity, the first option is not really effective. To increase velocity by 10%, one would need to increase the power by more than 30%.

Laughlin gives three physical principles to reduce drag in swimming:

Balance: How to have a horizontal water position[link]

Due to the lungs, the center of buoyancy and the center of gravity of the human body are not the same. Therefore the lower body has a tendency to sink. If the body is not horizontal but even slightly inclined, the area it offers to drag is much higher, leading to higher resistance. An easy way to stay horizontal is to lean forward and position the head straight in the extension of the spine. In this position the eyes are directed straight downward and the head is more immersed (therefore total immersion).

At the water surface, resistance is proportional to the breadth of a boat. Lying flat on the chest in freestyle or on the back in backstroke exposes the breadth of the body to the water. Rolling on the side reduces the breadth and the resistance. In freestyle and backstroke, one should roll from one side to the other in the stroke and glide on the side as much as possible. When taking breaths, one should take them as little as possible; for beginners it is good to breathe every three strokes and the more trained you are the more strokes in between each breath.

Extended arm[link]

Sailboats are categorized according to boat length. This is due to the wave resistance at the surface. According to Froude, a naval architect in the 19th century, a body moving at the surface of the water creates a wave. The length of the wave depends on the speed. The faster the boat, the longer the wave. Froude found that resistance goes up dramatically when the wave length reaches the length of the boat. There is a simple formula connecting wave velocity to wave length (dispersion equation, metric):

Failed to parse (Missing texvc executable; please see math/README to configure.): c^2 = \frac{g l}{2\pi}

Here c is the velocity of the wave in m/s, g is the gravitational acceleration (9.81 m/s²), and l is the wave length in m. If the maximum swimming speed of c=2.1 m/s is entered, one gets a length of l=2.82 m. This is about the length of a 2 m swimmer with extended arms. So the longer you can glide with the extended arm the less wave resistance. This is also called quadrant front swimming.

Competition[link]

Competitive swimming became popular in the nineteenth century. The goal of competitive swimming is to constantly improve upon one's time(s), or to beat the competitors in any given event. However, some professional swimmers who do not hold a national or world ranking are considered the best in regard to their technical skills. Typically, an athlete goes through a cycle of training in which the body is overloaded with work in the beginning and middle segments of the cycle, and then the workload is decreased in the final stage as the swimmer approaches the competition in which he or she is to compete in. This final stage is often referred to as "shave and taper"; the swimmer tapering down his or her workload to be able to perform at their optimal level. At the very end of this stage, before competition, the swimmer shaves off all exposed hair for the sake of reducing drag and having a sleeker and more hydrodynamic feel in the water.^[2]

Swimming is an event at the Summer Olympic Games, where male and female athletes compete in 16 of the recognized events each. Olympic events are held in a 50-meter pool, called a long course pool.

There are forty officially recognized individual swimming events in the pool; however the International Olympic Committee only recognizes 32 of them. The international governing body for competitive swimming is the Fédération Internationale de Natation ("International Swimming Federation"), better known as FINA.

Open water[link]

In open water swimming, where the events are swum in a body of open water (lake or sea), there are also 5 km, 10 km and 25 km events for men and women. However, only the 10 km event is included in the Olympic schedule, again for both men and women. Open-water competitions are typically separate to other swimming competitions with the exception of the World Championships and the Olympics.

Swim styles[link]

In competitive swimming, four major styles have been established. These have been relatively stable over the last 30–40 years with minor improvements. The four main strokes in swimming are:

• Freestyle
• Breaststroke
• Backstroke
• Butterfly

Dolphin kick[link]

In the past two decades, the most drastic change in swimming has been the addition of the underwater dolphin kick. This is used to maximize the speed at the start and after the turns. The first successful use of it was by David Berkoff at the 1988 Olympics, where he swam most of the 100 m backstroke race underwater and broke the world record on the distance during the preliminaries. Another swimmer to use the technique was Denis Pankratov at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where he completed almost half of the 100 m butterfly underwater to win the gold medal. In the past few years,^[when?] American competitive swimmers have shown the most use of the underwater dolphin kick to gain advantage, most notably Olympic and World medal winners Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte.

While the dolphin kick is mostly seen in middle-distance freestyle events and in all distances of backstroke and butterfly, it is not usually used to the same effect in freestyle sprinting. That changed with the addition of the so-called sharkskin suits around the European Short Course Championships in Rijeka, Croatia in December 2008. There, Amaury Leveaux set new world records of 44.94 seconds in the 100 m freestyle, 20.48 seconds in the 50 m freestyle and 22.18 in the 50 m butterfly. Unlike the rest of the competitors in these events, he spent at least half of each race underwater using the dolphin kick.^[3]

While underwater dolphin kicking is allowed in freestyle, backstroke and butterfly, its use is not permitted in the same way in the breaststroke. In 2005, a new rule was formed stating that an optional downward dolphin kick may be used off the start and each turn, and it must occur during the breaststroke pullout. Any other dolphin kick will result in disqualification.

New rules were established to curtail excessive use of underwater dolphin kicks in freestyle, backstroke and butterfly. Currently, performing the dolphin kick past 15 meters results in a disqualification.

Competition pools[link]

Most swimming sport events are held in special competition swimming pools, which are either long course pools such as those used in the Olympic Games (50 m) or short course pools such as those used in the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 yards or 25 m but generally 25m). Competition pools have starting blocks from which the competitor can dive in, and possibly also touch-sensitive pads to electronically record the swimming time of each competitor.

Seasons[link]

Club swimming in the US has two major seasons. During the short-course season, swimmers swim in 25-yard pools. This season lasts from September to the end of March. The long-course season is swum in 50-meter Olympic pools and lasts from April to the end of August.

The longer freestyle events are actually different lengths in each season. In the short course season, the 500 yard, 1000 yard, and 1650-yard freestyle events are swum, while during the long course season the 400 meter, 800 meter, and 1500-meter freestyle events are swum instead. However, this difference in distance holds true for all meter pools, i.e. short course meter pools also swim the 400 meter, 800 meter, and 1500 meter freestyle events instead of their yard counterparts.

Officials[link]

There are several types of officials,^[4] which are needed to manage the competition.^[5]

Referee: The referee has full control and authority over all officials. The referee will enforce all rules and decisions of FINA and shall decide all questions relating to the actual conduct of the meet, and event or the competition, the final settlement of which is not otherwise covered by the rules. The referee takes overall responsibility for running the race and makes the final decisions as to who wins the competition. Referees call swimmers to the blocks with short blasts of his or her whistle. This is the signal for the swimmers to stand next to their blocks. Starters call missing swimmers if necessary. Then the referee will blow a long whistle that will tell the swimmers to step on the block. For backstroke otherwise known as backcrawl events, the long whistle is the signal for the swimmers to step in the water. The referee will then blow another long whistle, signaling the swimmers to grab the gutter or the provided block handle (for backstoke/backcrawl events only). The referee will then hand over control to the starter.

Starter: The starter has full control of the swimmers from the time the referee turns the swimmers over to him or /her until the race commences. A starter sends the swimmers off the blocks and may call a false start if a swimmer leaves the block before the starter sends them.

Clerk of course: The clerk of course assembles swimmers prior to each event, and is responsible for organizing ("seeding") swimmers into heats based on their times. Heats are generally seeded from slowest to fastest, where swimmers with no previous time for an event are assumed to be the slowest.

Timekeepers: There are three timekeepers for each lane. Each timekeeper takes the time of the swimmers in the lane assigned to him/her. Unless a video backup system is used, it may be necessary to use the full complement of timekeepers even when automatic officiating equipment is used. A chief timekeeper assigns the seating positions for all timekeepers and the lanes for which they are responsible. The chief timekeeper collects from the timekeepers in each lane a card showing the times recorded and, if necessary, inspect their watches. One timer will be timing with a stopwatch, another recording it down, and one making sure everything is valid.

Inspectors of turns: One inspector of turns is assigned to each lane at each end of the pool. Each inspector of turns ensures that swimmers comply with the relevant rules for turning as well as the relevant rules for start and finish of the race. Inspectors of turns shall report any violation on disqualification reports detailing the event, lane number, and the infringement delivered to the chief inspector of turns who will immediately convey the report to the referee.

Judges of Stroke: Judges of stroke are located on each side of the pool. They ensure that the rules related to the style of swimming designated for the event are being observed, and observe the turns and the finishes to assist the inspectors of turns.

Finish judges Finish judges determine the order of finish and make sure the swimmers finish in accordance with the rules (two hands simultaneously for breaststroke and butterfly, on the back for backstroke, etc.)

If an official catches a swimmer breaking a rule concerning the stroke he or she is swimming, that swimmer is said to be disqualified (commonly referred to as a "DQ") and the swim is not considered valid. The referee can disqualify any swimmer for any violation of the rules that he personally observes. The referee may also disqualify any swimmer for any violation reported to him by other authorised officials. All disqualifications are subject to the decision of the referee.

Swimwear[link]

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Swimsuit

The suit covers the skin for modesty. Competitive swimwear seeks to improve upon bare human skin for a speed advantage. For extra speed, a swimmer wears a body suit, which has rubber or plastic bumps that break up the water close to the body and provides a small amount of thrust—just barely enough to help a swimmer swim faster. However, competitive swimming limits the type of suit a swimmer can wear.

Swim cap

A swim cap (a.k.a. cap) keeps the swimmer's hair out of the way to reduce drag. Caps may be made of latex, silicone or spandex.

Goggles

Goggles keep water and chlorine out of swimmers' eyes. Goggles may be tinted to counteract glare at outdoor pools. Prescription goggles may be used by swimmers who wear corrective lenses.

Swimfins

Rubber fins are used to help kick faster. They also improve technique by keeping the feet in the proper position while kicking.

Drag suit

Swimmers use drag suits to make weight to pull them back, to get more training.

Paddles

Swimmers use these plastic devices to build arm and shoulder strength and refine pulling technique. Hand paddles attach to the hand with rubber surgical tubing or another type of elastic material. They come in many different shapes and sizes.

Kickboard

A kickboard is a foam flotation device that swimmers use to support the weight of the upper body while they focus on kicking.

Pull buoy

Generally used at the same time as hand paddles, pull buoys support swimmers' legs (and keep them from kicking) while they focus on pulling. Pull buoys are made of foam so they float in the water. Swimmers hold them in between the thighs.

Snorkel

A standard snorkel looks like a capital letter J. Swimmers use them to breathe while their mouths and noses are underwater, so that they can focus on keeping their heads in proper position while swimming. Snorkels are generally made out of a combination of plastic and rubber.

Regular practice and competition swimwear[link]

Men[link]

Men's most used practice swimwear include briefs and jammers. Males generally swim barechested.

There has been much controversy after the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, when many Olympic swimmers broke records an unprecedented number of times using revolutionary swimsuits. To highlight the issue, note that it is rare to break world records, but in 2008, 70 world records were broken in one year, and 66 Olympic records were broken in one Olympic Games (there were races in Beijing where the first five finishers were swimming faster than the old world record). Despite many of his records having been won in these suits, Michael Phelps stated that he might boycott the competition after his record was beaten by another swimmer with a more advanced suit.

As of New Year's Day 2010, men are only allowed to wear suits from the waist to above the knees.^[6] They are also only permitted to wear one piece of swimwear; they cannot wear speedos underneath jammers. This rule was enacted after the controversy in the Beijing Olympics and Rome World Championships.

Women[link]

Women wear one-piece suits with different backs for competition, though there are two-piece suits that can be worn to compete as well. Backs vary mainly in strap thickness and geometric design. Most common styles include: racerback, axel back, corset, diamondback, and butterfly-back/Fly-Back. There are also different style lengths: three-quarter length (reaches the knees), regular length (shoulders to hips), and bikini style (two-piece). Also as of New Year's 2010, in competition, women are only allowed to wear suits that do not go past the knees or shoulders.

Use of Drag[link]

Drag suits are used for increasing the resistance against the swimmer in order to help adjust the swimmer to drag. This way, when swimmers switch back to normal practice suits they swim faster as a result of feeling less resistance. They are not normally worn during competitions.

Drag shorts like drag suits are worn in training and are also used to increase drag so that when taken off in racing it feels easier and the wearer feels less resistance. Other forms of drag wear include nylons, old suits, and T-shirts; the point is to increase friction in the water to build strength during training, and increase speed once drag items are removed for competition.

Swimmers also shave areas of exposed skin before end-of-season competitions to reduce friction in the water. It is especially common for women to discontinue the traditional removal of leg hair at least a month before end-of-season competitions. This can be viewed as an additional form of drag because drag is most importantly about mental training and how one feels in the water. Freshly shaven skin feels much smoother and less resistant in comparison when in water. The presence of leg and arm hair will make very little difference physically in a swimmer’s overall performance, but mentally it has been known to have a very large effect.

The mental aspect of wearing drag is critical because the goal is to feel your best in the water on race day. Drag makes a swimmer feel slower and more resistant during training with the added friction. Then on the day of the competition, a shaven swimmer wearing only a fast competition suit will feel a drastic and noticeable improvement in how fast and smooth they feel in the water. As in every other sport, mental training is just as important as physical training.

Open-water swimming[link]

Open water swimming is swimming outside of a regular pool, usually in a lake, or sometimes ocean. Popularity of the sport has grown in recent years, particularly since the 10km open water event was added as an Olympic event in 2005, contested for the first time in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

New recent technology has developed much faster swimsuits. Full body suits have been banned, but swimmers at the very top levels still wear suits that have been lasered together because stitching creates drag. The downfall of these suits: they are sometimes uncomfortable and tight.

Changes to the sport[link]

Swimming times have dropped over the years due to better training techniques and to new developments.

The first four Olympics competitions were not held in pools, but in open water (1896 – The Mediterranean, 1900 – The Seine River, 1904 – an artificial lake, 1906 – The Mediterranean). The 1904 Olympics' freestyle race was the only one ever measured at 100 yards, instead of the usual 100 meters. A 100-meter pool was built for the 1908 Olympics and sat in the center of the main stadium's track and field oval. The 1912 Olympics, held in the Stockholm harbor, marked the beginning of electronic timing.

Male swimmers wore full-body suits until the 1940s, which caused more drag in the water than their modern swimwear counterparts did. Competition suits now include engineered fabric and designs to reduce swimmers' drag in the water and prevent athlete fatigue. In addition, over the years, pool designs have lessened the drag. Some design considerations allow for the reduction of swimming resistance, making the pool faster. Namely, proper pool depth, elimination of currents, increased lane width, energy absorbing racing lane lines and gutters, and the use of other innovative hydraulic, acoustic, and illumination designs.

The 1924 Summer Olympics were the first to use the standard 50-meter pool with marked lanes. In the freestyle, swimmers originally dove from the pool walls, but diving blocks were incorporated at the 1936 Summer Olympics. The flip turn was developed by the 1950s and goggles were first used in the 1976 Olympics.

There were also changes in the late 20th century in terms of technique. Breaststrokers are now allowed to dip their heads completely under water, which allows for a longer stroke and faster time. However, the breaststrokers must bring their heads up at the completion of each cycle. In addition, a split stroke in the breaststroke start and turns has been added to help speed up the stroke. There have been some other changes added recently^[when?] as well. Now off the start and turns, breaststrokers are allowed one butterfly kick to help increase their speed. Backstrokers are now allowed to turn on their stomachs before the wall in order to perform a "flip-turn". Previously, they had to reach and flip backwards and a variation of it, known as a "bucket turn" or a "suicide turn", is sometimes used in individual medley events to transition from backstroke to breaststroke.

Records[link]

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The foundation of FINA in 1908 signalled the commencement of recording the first official world records in swimming.^[7] At that time records could be established in any swimming pool of length not less than 25 yards, and records were also accepted for intermediate distance split times from longer distance events. Today World Records will only be accepted when times are reported by Automatic Officiating Equipment, or Semi-Automatic Officiating Equipment in the case of Automatic Officiating Equipment system malfunction.^[8]

Records in events such as 300 yd, 300 m, 1000 yd, and 1000 m freestyle, 400 m backstroke, and 400 m and 500 m breaststroke were no longer ratified from 1948. A further removal of the 500 yd and 500 m freestyle, 150 m backstroke, and 3×100 m medley relay from the record listings occurred in 1952.

In 1952, the national federations of the United States and Japan proposed at the FINA Congress the separation of records achieved in long-course and short-course pools, however it was four more years before action to came into effect with Congress deciding to retain only records held in 50 m pools as the official world record listings.

By 1969 there were thirty-one events in which FINA recognised official world records – 16 for men, 15 for women – closely resembling the event schedule that was in use at the Olympic Games.

The increase in accuracy and reliability of electronic timing equipment led to the introduction of hundredths of a second to the time records from 21 August 1972.

Records in short course (25 m) pools began to be officially approved as "short course world records" from 3 March 1991. Prior to this date, times in short course (25 m) pools were not officially recognised, but were regarded a "world best time" (WBT). From 31 October 1994 times in 50 m backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly were added to the official record listings.

FINA currently recognises world records in the following events for both men and women.^[9]

• Freestyle: 50 m, 100 m, 200 m, 400 m, 800 m, 1500 m
• Backstroke: 50 m, 100 m, 200 m
• Breaststroke: 50 m, 100 m, 200 m
• Butterfly: 50 m, 100 m, 200 m
• Individual medley: 100 m (short course only), 200 m, 400 m
• Relays: 4×100 m freestyle, 4×200 m freestyle, 4×100 m medley

Health and skin care[link]

It is recommended that swimmers wear waterproof sunscreen to meets and daytime swim practices that are outside to prevent sunburns. It is also recommended that swimmers dry off well between events at meets and change into dry clothes as soon as possible after swimming to prevent rashes and skin infections.

It also is important for pool water to be properly maintained to avoid rashes and skin infections.^[10]

Swimmers should shower with mild soap after swimming to remove pool chemicals such as chlorine and salt. Swimmers should use goggles to protect the eyes from pool water and improve underwater vision.^[11][12][13]

See also[link]

Swimming portal

• Aquatic timing system
• FINA
• FINA World Aquatics Championships
• List of swimming styles
• List of world records in swimming
• Paralympic swimming
• Sports nutrition
• Swimming at the Summer Olympics
• Swimwear and hygiene
• United States Masters Swimming

References[link]

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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)