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Amanda Beard
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 Amanda Beard (right) with Nastia Liukin backstage at the 2009 Heart Truth fashion show |
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| Full name | Amanda Beard | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stroke(s) | Breaststroke, Individual Medley | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | October 29, 1981 (1981-10-29) (age 28) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Newport Beach, California, United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 7â2 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Amanda Ray Beard (born October 29, 1981 in Newport Beach, California), is an American Olympic-level swimmer and model. Beard participated in the 1996 Summer Olympics, 2000 Summer Olympics, 2004 Summer Olympics, and 2008 Summer Olympics, capturing a total of seven medals, the most recent in the 2004 games. She held the world number one ranking of 200 meter breaststrokers in 2003. In U.S. competition, Beard won three 200 meter breaststroke, three 100 meter breaststroke, and two 200 meter individual medley US National titles.
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Career
1996 Summer Olympic Games
Beard made her first Olympic appearance at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games at the age of 14, while still a student at Irvine High School in Irvine, California. Her youth and shy manner captured the attention of the media, and she was often photographed clutching her teddy bear, even on the medal stand. Beard became the second-youngest Olympic medalist in American swimming history when she won three medals in Atlanta. 1 gold and 2 silver.
2000-2003
At the 2000 Summer Olympics, Beard disappointed many when she only won a bronze a medal in the 200 m breaststroke.
Beard attended the University of Arizona where she won an individual NCAA Division I championship in 2001. In 2003, she became the world champion and American record holder in the 200-meter breaststroke.
2004 Summer Olympic Games
Beard made a good showing at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Swim Trials, qualifying to participate in four events at the Athens games. Beard went on to win the gold medal in the 200 m breaststroke. Beard also won silver in both the 200 m individual medley and the 4x100 m medley relay.
2008 Summer Olympic Games
At the 2008 US Olympic Swim Trials, Beard finished second in the 200 meter breaststroke event, and she qualified for her fourth consecutive Olympics. On 30 July 2008, at the US swimming team's final training in Singapore, Beard, together with Dara Torres and Natalie Coughlin, were elected co-captains of the US Olympic womenâs swimming team.
In Beijing, Beard failed to reach the semifinals in the 200 meter breaststroke, placing 18th in the preliminaries.
2010 USA Swimming Nationals
In August, 2010, she came out of retirement to compete at the 2010 Conoco Phillips National Championships. She finished second in the 200 breast finals at 2:26.50, qualifying her for the Pan Pac Team to represent the USA later in the month.
In the 100 breast, Amanda Beard swam a 1:08.72 in prelims and 1:09.12 in finals, finishing 6th.
Modeling and Advertising
Her modeling work has included appearances in FHM, the 2006 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, and she posed nude for the July 2007 issue of Playboy magazine.
She is a spokeswoman for Defenders of Wildlife, and enjoys interior decorating. Both of her sisters, Leah and Taryn, are swimmers. Amanda placed eighth in the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Celebrity car race in 2006.
In November 2007, Beard made her first television commercial for GoDaddy entitled "Shock". It featured her "flashing" the seven Olympic medals she won from 1996-2004. Mark Spitz made a cameo appearance.
In April 2008, she joined Fox Network's popular sports talk program, The Best Damn Sports Show Period as a correspondent, covering major sporting events.
In 2008, Beard participated in an anti-fur campaign for the organization PETA. She was photographed nude in front of an American Flag. The flag in that photograph is hung incorrectly according the United States Flag Code with the blue field to the upper right. Shortly after the PETA campaign was released, accusations of hypocrisy surfaced where Beard told a fashion blogger the year before that her favorite shoes were leather sandals and that she would never buy a low-quality jacket during an interview with SmartMoney magazine.
Personal life
Beard is a vegetarian. She is married to photographer Sacha Brown. On September 15, 2009, the couple welcomed their first child, a boy named Blaise Ray Brown.
Personal bests
Beard's personal bests in long-course meters are:
- 100 m breaststroke: 1:07.42
- 200 m breaststroke: 2:22.44
- 200 m individual medley: 2:11.70
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Amanda Beard |
- Official website
- USA Swimming athlete bio: Amanda Beard
- Amanda Beard Official Bio
- Interview in May 2007 about her return to competitive swimming and her training for the upcoming Olympic Games.
- Photo gallery.
- PETA Anti-Fur Campaign.
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
Preceded by Qi Hui |
Women's 200 m breaststroke world record holder (equalled) July 25, 2003 â July 10, 2004 |
Succeeded by Leisel Jones |
| Preceded by Leisel Jones |
Women's 200 m breaststroke world record holder July 12, 2004 â July 29, 2005 |
Succeeded by Leisel Jones |
| Awards | ||
Preceded by Natalie Coughlin |
Swimming World American Swimmer of the Year 2003 â 2004 |
Succeeded by Katie Hoff |
| Preceded by Heather Mitts |
ESPN Hottest Female Athlete 2005 |
Succeeded by Tanith Belbin |
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