Home > Ian Thorpe

Thorpe was born in Milperra , in the western suburbs of Sydney, and was educated at East Hills High School. Although Thorpe's father, Ken, excelled as a cricketer, Ian did not have the same ability. Instead, he followed his sister, Christina, into competitive swimming. Thorpe made his first impact in 1997, when he was selected at 14 for the Australian team at the Pan Pacific competition in Fukuoka, Japan. He came second to another Australian teenager, Grant Hackett, in the 400 metre freestyle, beginning a rivalry which has continued ever since. He also excelled in the 200 metre freestyle and the 200 metre butterfly.

Since 1998 Thorpe has completely dominated the 400 metre freestyle event, winning the event at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games, the 2001 Fukuoka World Championships (at which he won a total of six gold medals), and again in Athens. His dominance has broadened to include the 200 and 400 metre freestyle (at which he holds the world record), and he is one of the fastest 100 metre freestylers in the world. He has been nicknamed "Thorpedo" by the Australian press for his swimming prowess.

Thorpe has also pushed Australian relay teams to unprecedented success, anchoring the winning 4x100 and 4x200 freestyle relay teams in Sydney, the first time the United States had ever been beaten in the events. In total, he has broken world records (either individually or as part of a relay team) 22 times.

Thorpe's success is based on a strong work ethic, attention to detail, flawless technique, mental strength, and a physiology suited to swimming. At 195 cm (6'5") and 105 kg (231 lbs), he is very large for a swimmer (indeed, many thought that as he matured and continued to grow he would be unable to maintain his performance as a teenager), able to maintain a trademark six-beat kick to power away to victory in the closing stages of races. There have been doping-related accusations against Mr. Thorpe by experts, who consider his feet size as unnaturally large.

Thorpe's preparations for the Athens Olympics were clouded by controversy. In late March 20042004 is a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 2004 calendar), and has also been designated the: International Year of Rice International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition Elections are to be held in 73 co Thorpe competed in the qualification events. He was disqualified from the 400 m freestyle (his best event) after making a false start. Australia's Olympic selection rules allow for a qualifier to stand down, and for another swimmer to be selected in their place. After some deliberation, the second qualifier, Craig Stevens , withdrew from the event, and Thorpe accepted the offered place.

Away from the poolA swimming pool swimming bath or wading pool is an artificially enclosed body of water intended for recreational or competitive swimming, or for other bathing activities that do not involve swimming, i. for soaking, wading, water exercise, floating around, Thorpe in many ways defies the stereotype of Australian sportspeople. He is quiet, mild-mannered, thoughtful, articulate, but extremely guarded in his statements, and he reportedly makes considerable efforts to insulate himself from the media when preparing for and during important events. His lack of interest in (and aptitude for) other sports is well-known. Instead, his other enthusiasm appears to be fashion, as an ambassador for Armani clothing and his own range of designer jewellery.

Thorpe's performances in Sydney and Athens have made him a national hero in Australia, a country which reveres sporting stars. His victory in the 200 metres at Athens pitted him against American swimming phenomenon Michael PhelpsMichael Phelps (born June 30, 1985 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American swimmer and world-record holder ( as of 2004). Michael Phelps appeared at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney as the youngest American male swimmer at an Olympic Games in 68 years at, Sydney gold medallist Pieter van den HoogenbandPieter Cornelis Martijn van den Hoogenband (born March 14, 1978) is a Dutch swimmer, and a double Olympic champion. Born in Maastricht to Cees-Rijn van den Hoogenband and Astrid Verver, a former Dutch 800m freestyler silver medalist at the European Champi of the NetherlandsDutch redirects here. For other uses, see Dutch (disambiguation). The Netherlands ( Dutch: Nederland is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, a constitutional monarchy. It is located in northwestern Europe and borders the North Sea, Belgium and his fellow Australian Grant Hackett. The race attracted unprecedented media attention in Australia, and Thorpe's victory made him one of the most celebrated Australian athletes of all time. He has recently bought a $2.9 million house in CaringbahSuburbs of Sydney Caringbah is a suburb of Sydney, Australia. It is adjacent to Miranda and Woolooware. Caringbah features a strong commercial district, made up mostly of small businesses specialising in professional services. It is one of the central sub, a southern suburb of Sydney.