Sarah Michelle Ryan,OAM[1] (born 20 February 1977) is an Australian former sprintfreestyle swimmer, who won relay medals at three consecutive Olympics from the1996 Summer Olympics to the2004 Summer Olympics.[2]
Coming fromAdelaide, South Australia, Ryan attended the CatholicMount Carmel College[citation needed], before moving to theAustralian Institute of Sport, Canberra, in 1993 after being awarded a scholarship.[3]
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She gained selection for Australia the following year at the1994 Commonwealth Games inVictoria, British Columbia.
In 1996, at theAtlanta Olympics, she came sixth in the 100-metre freestyle, and was a member of the 4×100-metre medley relay along withSusie O'Neill,Samantha Riley andNicole Stevenson, which claimed silver behind the United States team. At the1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, she was a part of the team which won the 4×100-metre freestyle relay only days after the death of her father.[citation needed]
In 2000, at theSydney Olympics, Ryan failed to qualify for the finals of either the 50- or 100-metre freestyle.[citation needed] She was a member of the 4×100-metre freestyle relay which placed sixth and collected a silver for swimming in the heats of the 4×100-metre medley relay, being replaced by O'Neill in the final, again second to the Americans.
In 2001, possibly her most savoured moment came at the FINA World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, when she anchored the 4×100-metre medley relay team withDyana Calub,Leisel Jones andPetria Thomas to a long-awaited win over the American team.[citation needed] It was the first time that Australia had defeated the Americans at either Olympic or World level in the event. The year 2002 broke another drought, with Ryan being part of a 4×100-metre freestyle team alongsideJodie Henry,Alice Mills and Thomas, which defeated the Americans for the first time since 1956.[citation needed]
In 2003, Ryan took time away from swimming and commenced a job as a breakfast radio presenter, as well as an occasional swimming analyst onSBS'Toyota World Sports andChannel Nine'sWide World of Sports.[citation needed] However, with Australia's young sprinting talent on the rise, she made a comeback to qualify for the 4×100-metre freestyle relay team for the2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Ryan swam in the heats, but was replaced in the final by Thomas, who combined with Henry, Mills andLibby Lenton to claim gold in a world record time of 3min 35.94 seconds. Ryan retired after the games.
In 2006, to supportmultiple sclerosis research, Ryan teamed up with 2003Australian Idol winner and award-winning recording artistGuy Sebastian in 7 Network'sIt Takes Two, in which famous accomplished Australians from their different fields, and not known to be singers, performed duets with professional vocalists to support their chosen charity.[citation needed] Ryan and Sebastian were the last team to be eliminated, making them the runners-up in the competition.[citation needed]
As of May 2009, Sarah Ryan started working for the YMCA of Sydney at Mount Annan Leisure Centre as a Learn-to-swim teacher and swim coach.[citation needed]
Ryan now works for Mater Dei, an organization that provides early intervention therapy services and education for babies, children and young people with an intellectual disability or developmental delay.[citation needed]
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