The International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) announced that Australia’s Leisel Jones will join 17 others as honorees who will enter the International Swimming Hall of Fame as the Class of 2017. Jones is the fifteenth member of the class to be named for ceremonies to be held August 25-27, in Fort Lauderdale.
Previously, Open water swimmer Maarten Van Der Weijden, swimmers Wu Chuanyu (CHN) and Takeshi “Halo” Hirose (USA) Georges Vallerey, Jr. (FRA), Alain Bernard (FRA), diver Zhang Xiuwei(CHN) and Laura Wilkinson (USA), long distance swimmer Walter Poenisch (USA), water polo players Osvaldo Codaro (ARG), András Bodnár (HUN), and Bridgette Gusterson (AUS), synchronized swimmer Anastasia Davydova (RUS), coach Dick Jochums (USA) and photojournalist Heinz Kluetmeier have been announced.
When Leisel Jones qualified for the London Olympic Games in 2012, she became the first Australian swimmer to compete in four Olympic Games. Along with Ian Thorpe, she holds the record for the most Olympic medals (9) won by any Australian, in addition to winning seven FINA world championships.
Leisel Marie Jones was born on August 30, 1985. As a ten year-old Brisbane school girl, she watched Samantha Riley win the bronze medal in the 100 breaststroke at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Less than four years later, she ousted her idol from the Australian Team by winning the 100 breaststroke at the 2000 Australian Olympic trials at the age of 14. Shortly after her fifteenth birthday, she swam the race of her life to win claim the silver medal in the 100 breaststroke and added another silver in the 400 medley relay at the Sydney Olympic Games.
Photo Courtesy: ISHOF
For the next eight years, Leisel was the most dominating female breaststroker in the world, setting 6 world records, 3 in the 100m and 3 at 200. Named world swimmer of the year in 2005 & 2006, the pinnacle of her career came with her individual gold medal in the 100 breaststroke, silver medal in the 200 and a second gold medal in the 400 medley relay at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
Nicknamed “Diesel”and “Lethal Leisel,” she candidly recounts in her 2015 autobiography, Body Lengths, that her achievements were not without their challenges. In her book she tells what it was like to be thrust into the limelight so young and under constant pressure from an early age to be perfect — from coaches, from the media and from herself. Despite the highs of her swimming stardom, she suffered depression, and at one time planned to take her own life.
In London, she was criticized in the media for her weight, but she handled herself with great composure. She has emerged with maturity and good humor, having finally learnt how to be herself and live with confidence. She also hopes that by telling her story, other female athletes will understand they are not alone.
Photo Courtesy: ISHOF
ABOUT ISHOF
The International Hall of Fame, established in 1965, is a not-for-profit educational organization located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Its mission is to promote the benefits and importance of swimming as a key to fitness, good health, quality of life, and the water safety of all adults and children. It accomplishes this through operation of the International Swimming Hall of Fame, a dynamic shrine dedicated to preserving the history of swimming, the memory and recognition of the famous swimmers, divers, water polo players, synchronized swimmers and people involved in life saving activities and education whose lives and accomplishments inspire, educate, and provide role models for people around the world. For more information contact Bruce Wigo at 954-462-6536 ext. 201, or by email bwigo@ishof.org.
Press release courtesy of ISHOF.
