According to a February 18th post on the Rio 2016 official website, which listed 10 athletes planning to retire post-Olympics, Italian world record-holder and Olympic gold medalist Federica Pellegrini will hang up her suit and goggles following the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Pellegrini has been an international powerhouse since she broke through in 2004, when she won the silver medal in the 200 meter freestyle, becoming the youngest Italian athlete to earn an Olympic medal in history. She still holds the world record in that event (she’s broken it six times in total), and was the first woman to break the 4-minute barrier in the 400 meter freestyle, holding the world record from 2009 until this past August, when Katie Ledecky broke through that record more than once.
The freestyler has had plenty of international success, with one Olympic gold and one Olympic silver as well as four World Championships golds and six European Championship golds, to name a few of her accolades.
The first Italian female champion in swimming, Pellegrini “…has confirmed she will retreat from the pool after Rio 2016 to focus on her family life,” said the Rio 2016 site in a recent post. This will thus mark her 4th and final Olympic Games, where she will face stark competition from a number of swimmers if she wants to return to her 2008 form, where she won 200 free Olympic gold.
Breaking her super suit record in the 200 free will be tough, but Ledecky looks to be the one to do it. Frederica is a true champion, and her 11 world records are a testament to how much she moved the sport forward. Good luck in Kazan and Rio, and enjoy your retirement. Italy is proud of you.
Just in time to see ledecky break her last Supersuit record.