Roland Mark Schoeman
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| Olympic medal record | |||
Competitor for  South Africa |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Men’s Swimming | |||
| Gold | 2004 Athens | 4 x 100 m Freestyle Medley | |
| Silver | 2004 Athens | 100 m Freestyle | |
| Bronze | 2004 Athens | 50 m Freestyle | |
Roland Mark Schoeman (born July 3, 1980) is a South African swimmer and a member of the 2004 Olympic Games swimming team for South Africa.
He is currently holder of three world records in swimming, where one record is shared with Ian Crocker.
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[edit] Career
Born in Pretoria, Schoeman first ventured seriously into a pool when he was 16, in order to show a girl how interested he was in her. Within a few months he was swimming competitively, beginning a career that would see him attain one gold medal, two silvers and a bronze at the Commonwealth Games and set new South African records in the 100 m Freestyle (48.69s), 50 m Freestyle (22.04s), 100 m Butterfly (52.73s) and 50 m Butterfly (23.65s) events.
His latest achievements have been winning a gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens in the 4 x 100 m freestyle, a silver medal in the 100 m freestyle event and a bronze in the 50 m freestyle. Schoeman was voted Africa's Male Athlete of the year in 2004.
At the 2005 LC World Championships in Montreal, Canada he won two gold medals [50 m Butterfly (in a world record time of 22.96s) and Freestyle (21.69s the second fastest time in history)]. He also claimed a silver in 100m freestyle.
In December 2005, Schoeman turned down a 40 Million Rand ($5.9 Million) contract to swim for Qatar. He stated reasons of national pride for turning down the offer. Saying that hearing the South African national anthem and sharing the joy of his victories with his fellow South Africans is what made winning Gold special.
On August 12, 2006, Schoeman broke the short course world record for 50 metres freestyle and became the first man to swim the distance under 21 seconds, with a time of 20.98 seconds. Schoeman lowered the previous mark by 0.12 seconds held for the last two years by Frédérick Bousquet of France. Schoeman was swimming in a specially built 25-metre pool at an invitational meeting in a Hamburg tennis stadium.
At the 2007 LC World Championships in Melbourne Australia he successfully defended his 50m butterfly title. He also made the final of the 50m and 100m freestyle and was part of the 4*100m freestyle relay team that finished 4th.
[edit] World records
[edit] Long course (50 m pool)
| Current WR | Event | Record | Date | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current WR | 50 m Butterfly | 22.96 s | July 25, 2005 | World Championship | Montreal, Canada |
| 4×100 m Freestyle | 3:13.17 s | August 15, 2004 | 2004 Summer Olympics | Athens, Greece |
[edit] Short course (25 m pool)
| Current WR | Event | Record | Date | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current WR | 50 m Freestyle | 20.98 s [1] | August 12, 2006 | invitational | Hamburg, Germany |
| Current WR | 100 m Freestyle | 46.25 s [2] | January 22, 2005 | World Cup series | Berlin, GER |
| 100 m Individual Medley[3] | 52.51 s | January 18, 2005 | World Cup series | Stockholm, Sweden |
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ First man under 21 seconds.
- ^ Equals record with Ian Crocker.
- ^ 100 m Individual Medley event is not recognized by FINA.
[edit] External links
Categories: 1980 births | Living people | Swimmers at the 2006 Commonwealth Games | Commonwealth Games competitors for South Africa | Olympic swimmers of South Africa | Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics | Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics | People from Pretoria | Swimming World African Swimmers of the Year | Olympic gold medalists for South Africa | Olympic silver medalists for South Africa | Olympic bronze medalists for South Africa | World record holders in swimming
