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| Full name | Sheila Christine Taormina | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team |  United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1969-03-18)March 18, 1969 (age 56) Livonia, Michigan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 119 lb (54 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Freestyle | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | University of Georgia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Sheila Christine Taormina (born March 18, 1969)[1] is an American former athlete who competed at four Olympics (1996, 2000, 2004, 2008), and was the first woman to qualify for the Olympics in three different sports (swimming, triathlon andmodern pentathlon).[2] At the1996 Summer Olympics, she earned a gold medal as a member of the winning U.S. team in thewomen's 4×200-meter freestyle relay. She was inducted in 2009 into theUSA Triathlon Hall of Fame,[3] and in 2015 into theMichigan Sports Hall of Fame.
Born in 1969, Taormina is one of eight children, and is a twin. For a year in 2002-2003 she was subject to stalking resulting in five years' probation for the stalker then, after he violated probation by the continued stalking of Taormina, up to five years in prison.[4]
While swimming for theGeorgia Bulldogs swimming and diving team, Taormina earned aBachelor of Business Administration in 1992 and aMaster of Business Administration in 1994 from theUniversity of Georgia (UGA). She captained Georgia's 1991 team, won All-America honors all four years of her collegiate career and won theSoutheastern Conference (SEC) title in the 400-meter individual medley as a senior. She was the first UGA swimmer to win an Olympic gold medal and the first UGA athlete to make the Olympic team in multiple sports.[5]
Taormina competed at the first Olympic triathlon at the2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. She took sixth place with a total time of 2:02:45.91. Her split times were 19:02.78 for the swim, 1:06:24.30 for the cycling, and 0:37:18.83 for the run.
In 2004, Taormina won theITU Triathlon World Championship title while residing in Clermont, Florida. In the2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, she again competed in the triathlon. Her time was 2:09:21.08 as she finished in 23rd place.
After Athens, Taormina embarked on a new sport, themodern pentathlon, winning the women's senior division of the 2005 Pan American Championships. She was successful in qualifying in the modern pentathlon for the2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, making her the first female athlete to qualify for the Olympics in three different sports. Taormina finished 19th in the 2008 Olympic event.
Taormina has dedicated time to teaching, coaching and conducting seminars around the world and has authored three top-selling guides:Swim Speed Secrets,Swim Speed Workouts, andSwim Speed Strokes.[6]
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