The great Italian swimmer Federica Pellegrini has announced that she is ending her racing career.
The 200-meter freestyle world record holder finished seventh in the final of the Tokyo Games today and announced after the race that this was her last competition.
“I’ve been swimming for so many years and I’ve enjoyed it from start to finish. I’m turning 33 in a few days, now is the time to stop. Thanks to everyone who got up so early in Italy to support me”, said Federica Pellegrini after the race.
Federica Pellegrini is a native of Mirano, in the province of Venice. She holds the women’s 200 m freestyle world record (long course) and won a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. At the 2009 World Championships in Rome, Pellegrini became the first woman ever to break the 4-minute barrier in the 400 m freestyle with a time of 3:59.15.
Federica Pellegrini is the only swimmer − male or female − to have won eight medals in a row in the same event (200 meters freestyle) at the World Championships. She is also the first female Olympic champion in the history of Italian swimming and the only Italian swimmer to have set world records in more than one event. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, she became the first female swimmer to qualify for five consecutive Olympic finals in the same specialty (200m freestyle).
