Giaan Rooney

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Women's Swimming
Olympic medal record
Silver	Sydney 2000	4x100m Medley Relay
Silver	Sydney 2000	4x200m Freestyle Relay
Gold	Athens 2004	4x100m Medley Relay

Giaan Leigh Rooney OAM (born November 15, 1982) is an Australian swimmer who won a gold medal in world record time with her teammates Leisel Jones, Petria Thomas, and Jodie Henry at the Athens Olympics in the Women's 4 x 100 metre Medley Relay.

Giaan swam a personal best and new Australian record time of 1:01.18 to help Australia to the Gold - the maiden victory by Australia in this event in Olympic history.

The 2004 Games were Rooney's second Olympics, having debuted at the Sydney Games.

Born in Brisbane, Queensland, Giaan made her international debut for Australia at the 1998 Commonwealth Games, where as a 15-year-old, she won Gold in the 100 m backstroke - despite being an unknown rookie and being up the night before, ill with a stomach bug. Rooney was also part of Australia's gold-medal winning 4 x 100 m medley relay team at the '98 Games.

Rooney trains at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre, in Victoria, Australia and is coached by Ian Pope. Training partners include Australian team members Matt Welsh, Michael Klim (who was also her boyfriend for two years) and Brett Hawke.

She has previously trained at the Miami club in Queensland, where she was coached by Denis Cotterell. Training partners there included Grant Hackett and Daniel Kowalski. Giaan swum with this club since she began swimming at the club from age 11 up until 2002 when she then moved to Melbourne.

She is the reigning (2005) world champion in the 50 m backstroke, contested in Montreal, Canada.

After the withdrawal of Grant Hackett from the 2006 Commonwealth Games due to injury, Rooney was appointed as the captain of the national swimming team. She won a silver medal behind teammate Sophie Edington in the 100 m backstroke, and qualified fastest for the 50 m backstroke. However, she was upset by Edington by 0.01s, again winning a silver medal. There is, however, conjecture about that official result.[1]

After an extended break following the Commonwealth Games, Rooney retired from competitive swimming to focus on a career in media. This resulted in some television appearances on Torvill and Dean's Dancing on Ice competition. Rooney can currently be seen presenting weather on Channel Nine's Today Show programme, replacing regular Steve Jacobs over the summer months.

Admitted on the now defunct television show Glasshouse that she was a committed Christian.

OTHER RESULTS:

2000 Olympics - SILVER - 4 x 200 m freestyle relay (team mates Kirsten Thomson, Susie O'Neill and Petria Thomas), SILVER - 4 x 100 m medley relay (swum in morning preliminary session).

Rooney is the former World Champion in the 200 m freestyle, winning the event at the 2001 Fukuoka World Swimming Championships in Japan. This event was also widely remembered for the disqualification of the Australian Women's team after the jumped in the water to celebrate victory in the 4 x 200 m freestyle relay, the team of Elka Graham, Petria Thomas and Linda Mackenzie joined anchor swimmer Rooney in the water to celebrate their win, but as it was before all competitors had finished the event, they were disqualified.

Rooney competed in her second 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, England. - SILVER - 4 x 200 m freestyle relay (Team: Elka Graham, Giaan Rooney, Rebecca Creedy and Petria Thomas).BRONZE - 100 m backstroke - Silver to Australian team mate Dyana Calub. Gold was won by Sarah Price of England.