2017 Swammy Awards: European Female Swimmer of the Year Sarah Sjöström

To see all of our 2017 Swammy Awards presented by TYR, click here. 

2017 EUROPEAN FEMALE SWIMMER OF THE YEAR: SARAH SJÖSTRÖM

Sarah Sjostrom wins the 50 freestyle at the 2017 World Championships Budapest, Hungary (photo: Mike Lewis)

She’s made us type out a bunch of ‘ö’s this year, but darn it, it’s been worth it.

Sarah Sjöström is our European Female Swimmer of the Year, and if you’re tired of hearing about her, too bad. We’re not done talking about her. She threw down big swim after big swim, never needing the spotlight of a major international championship meet to produce electrifying performances. Take a quick look back through some of her highlights this year:

• Look through her six sub-24 long course 50 free’s of 2017 … BEFORE the World Champs
• Narrowly misses 100 LC free WR at the Mare Nostrum – Canet stop
• SCM 50 Free World Record in August (later taken down by Ranomi Kromowidjojo)
• SCM 100 Free World Record in August (breaks Cate Campbells)
• SCM 100 Free World Record in August (breaks her own record, is later taken down by Cate Campbell)
• SCM 200 Free World Record in August (still stands!)
• Drops a 51.71 to break Cate Campbell’s WR by over three tenths
• See some data analysis on just how GOOD her World Records are
• FINA Swimmer of the Year
• You all told us that her 100 Free WR was more impressive than Peaty’s 50 Breast
• Wins 2017 World Cup overall title
• Wins over $100,000 after just the first World Cup cluster
• After all is said and done, her total winnings for three months of racing comes to $371K, over $40K more than the male WC champion, Chad Le Clos

Sjöström finishes 2017 with 5 new European Records (7 total) and 3 new World Records (6 total). She won three golds and a silver at the 2017 World Championships, and won two golds and two silvers at the 2017 European Championships, in addition to an evasive relay gold in the 4×50 medley relay and a silver in the 4×50 free relay. She’s the fastest sprinter ever, and her versatility in both freestyle and butterfly make her a deadly force.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

In no particular order

• Katinka Hosszu, HUN: The Iron Lady was a bit lackluster this year in the IM’s, but it’s a testament to her greatness that she was still able to crush a whopping six gold medals at the 2017 European Short Course Championships. She also collected a hefty $276K for her World Cup performances, the most-paid athlete behind winners Sjöström and Le Clos at the end.
• Ranomi Kromowidjojo, NED: Though a bit overshadowed by Sjöström, the Dutch sprint star had plenty to brag about in 2017, including a 50 free world record in short course and two individual gold medals from the 2017 European SC Champs– including a 50 fly win, while Sjöström watched from the sidelines as she finished 9th in the semifinals.