33 Facts About Rebecca Adlington

1.

Rebecca Adlington was born on 17 February 1989 and is a British former competitive swimmer who specialised in freestyle events in international competition.

2.

Rebecca Adlington won two gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in the 400-metre freestyle and 800-metre freestyle, breaking the 19-year-old world record of Janet Evans in the 800-metre final.

3.

Rebecca Adlington is one of the few people to have won Olympic Games, World Championships, continental championships and Commonwealth Games gold medals, although she did not win a set in any one event.

4.

Rebecca Adlington is one of a number of former sports stars behind a commercial group dedicated to providing coaching and leisure outlets.

5.

Rebecca Adlington was born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, where she attended The Brunts School.

6.

Rebecca Adlington started swimming with Sherwood Colliery Swimming Club, and was selected for the Nottinghamshire County Elite Squad.

7.

Rebecca Adlington's great-uncle was Terry Rebecca Adlington, former goalkeeper with Derby County.

8.

Together with former sports personalities Steve Parry and Adrian Turner, Rebecca Adlington is part of Total Swimming Group, a commercial group dedicated to providing coaching and leisure outlets.

9.

In 2005, Rebecca Adlington's sister was affected by encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain.

10.

Rebecca Adlington became an Ambassador of the Encephalitis Society in 2009, to help raise awareness of the illness.

11.

Rebecca Adlington's mother criticised the BBC for making the ruling public, which had caused her daughter more distress.

12.

Rebecca Adlington announced on 5 September 2021 that the couple had married.

13.

Rebecca Adlington represented Great Britain in the 2008 Summer Olympics, competing in the 400-metre freestyle and 800-metre freestyle events.

14.

Rebecca Adlington was the first woman to win swimming gold for Great Britain since Anita Lonsbrough in 1960.

15.

Rebecca Adlington was the first British swimmer to win more than one gold medal at a single Olympic Games since Henry Taylor won three in 1908.

16.

In 2009, Rebecca Adlington said she suffered with the expectation placed on her ahead of the World Aquatics Championships in Rome, and although she swam a personal best she won only bronze in the 400-metre freestyle.

17.

In 2010, Rebecca Adlington won the 400-metre freestyle at the European Swimming Championships in Budapest but again failed to win a medal in her favoured 800-metre freestyle, finishing seventh.

18.

Rebecca Adlington ended the season ranked No 2 in the 400-metre freestyle and No 1 in the 800-metre freestyle.

19.

At the 2011 World Aquatics Championships, Rebecca Adlington won the 800-metre freestyle gold medal, beating Lotte Friis over the final 50 metres, and silver in the 400-metre freestyle behind world record-holder Federica Pellegrini of Italy.

20.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Rebecca Adlington won bronze in the 400-metre freestyle in a time of 4:03.01.

21.

Rebecca Adlington set a new British, Commonwealth, European and Olympic record of 8:18.06 in the preliminary heats of the women's 800-metre freestyle on 14 August 2008.

22.

Rebecca Adlington went on to win the Olympic 800-metre freestyle final on 16 August 2008 in a world record time of 8:14.10, her second gold of the tournament, a full six seconds ahead of the silver medallist, and two seconds ahead of the former world record which had been set by Janet Evans when Adlington was 6 months old.

23.

Rebecca Adlington was welcomed home to Mansfield in August 2008 by thousands of people who lined the streets to applaud as she passed by in an open top bus and then appeared at a ceremony at Mansfield Town Hall.

24.

In 2008 after her post-Olympic homecoming, in a special ceremony at Mansfield's Civic Centre headquarters, Rebecca Adlington was presented with a pair of gold-coloured Jimmy Choo shoes by Tony Egginton, then the executive mayor.

25.

In November 2008, Rebecca Adlington was named as the Sports Journalists' Association's Sportswoman of the Year, receiving her trophy at a ceremony in the City of London from the Princess Royal, herself a former winner of that award.

26.

Rebecca Adlington was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2009 New Year Honours list, followed in December 2009 by an honorary degree as Master of Arts from the University of Nottingham in recognition of her outstanding contribution to British sport.

27.

In 2013 soon after her retirement from competition, Rebecca Adlington was named as the inaugural inductee into Nottinghamshire County Council's Roll of Honour.

28.

Rebecca Adlington was a guest panellist on the ITV lunchtime chat show Loose Women on 25 March, 17 April and 22 May 2014.

29.

Rebecca Adlington was a contestant in Series 3 of The Jump, but withdrew on 7 February 2016 having dislocated her shoulder during training.

30.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Rebecca Adlington formed part of the BBC presenting team for the swimming events, along with Helen Skelton and Mark Foster.

31.

Rebecca Adlington repeated this role at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships, the 2018 European Championships, and the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo among others.

32.

Rebecca Adlington participated in the thirteenth series of I'm a Celebrity.

33.

Rebecca Adlington finished in 6th place, being voted out by the public on 6 December 2013.