Eamon Sullivan

Infobox Swimmer
swimmername = Eamon Sullivan


imagesize = 220px
caption =
fullname = Eamon Sullivan
nicknames = Sully, Eamon The Daemon, Nemo
nationality = AUS
stroke = freestyle
club = West Coast
collegeteam =
birthdate =birth date and age|df=yes|1985|08|30
birthplace =Perth, Australia
deathdate =
deathplace =
height = 189 cm
weight = 78 kg
medaltemplates =

Eamon Sullivan (born 30 August 1985 in Perth, Western Australia) is an Australian Sprint Swimmer. He is the current world record holder for the 50 m Freestyle and the 100m Freestyle.

Career

In April 2002 at Sydney Australian Age Championships, Sullivan won the 50 m freestyle and came second in 100 m in his age group, and swam for Australia at Trans Tasman series with no dramatic result.

In April 2003 at Brisbane in the Fisher & Paykel Australian Age Championships, he won gold in the 100 m freestyle in 51.34 s and a bronze in the in 4×100 m freestyle.

In April 2004 he stood 2nd for the semi-final of the 100 m freestyle at the 2004 Olympic Trials and then he was selected for the Australian Olympic Team by finishing fourth in the final. In April the same year he captured another gold in 100 m free and a silver in 50 m free at Perth Fisher & Paykel Australian Age Championships.

At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens Eamon as the youngest male in the Australian Olympic Team improved his PB (Personal Best) in the heat time that gained him a block in the final of the 4×100 m freestyle, in which Australia came sixth.

In July 2005 he was sidelined with a hip injury and missed the World Aquatics Championships in Canada.

In August 2005 at the Melbourne Australian Short Course Championships, he won his first national title in the 100 m Freestyle in 47.91 s scoring the fifth fastest time by an Australian and a bronze medal in the 50 m freestyle in 22.08 s, and was selected on to the Australian Team to compete at the World Short Course Championships in China in April 2006.

In March 2006 he won gold in 4×100 m medley and silver in 4×100 m freestyle at Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.

In December 2006 at the Brisbane Australian National Championships he broke the 50 m national record in 22.00 s and became the fastest swimmer Australia had ever seen.

In March 2007 at the 12th FINA World Championships in Melbourne he added up to his progress as a quality sprinter by gaining his first individual medal at a World Championship, placing third in 100 m free (only 0.04 s behind the two gold medalists who dead heated) and fifth in 50 m freestyle. He also showed a great freestyle performance in achievement of the Australia's ninth gold medal in 4×100 m Medley Relay in a time of 3:34.93 in front of Japan and Russia.

In July 2007 Sullivan had an alerting win in 50 m free at the Santa Clara International Invitational Grand Prix in California in 22.30 s. In the same month he clocked 21.62 s to slash 0.07 s off Brett Hawke's seven year old 50 m Short Course Australian record at Telstra Grand Prix2 in Canberra. He set another National Record at FINA/ARENA World Cup at SOPAC in the heats of the 100 m freestyle clocking a time of 47.29 s shaving 0.26 s of his previous best set in Canberra earlier that year.

In February 2008 he broke the 50 m Freestyle World Record and 100 m freestyle Commonwealth Record in NSW Open Championships in Sydney.

On 26 March 2008 he swam the second-fastest time in history with time of 47.52 in the men's 100 m Freestyle final at the 2008 Australian Olympic Trials at SOPAC.

On 27 March 2008, he broke the world record again, going 21.41 in the Men's 50 m Freestyle and a day later he even improved his record to 21.28s. [*cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/27/2201152.htm|title=Sullivan smashes 50m world record|publisher=ABC|date=27 March 2008|accessdate=2008-03-27]

Eamon has also sustained several injuries throughout his career. He has struggled with hip operations and shoulder sprain.

On 11 August 2008 at the Beijing 2008 Olympics, leading off Australia in the Men's 4 x 100 m Freestyle Relay final he set a new world record for the 100 m Freestyle with a time of 47.24 seconds. Australia ultimately claimed bronze in the Relay in what is largely quoted as the greatest swimming relay race in history [*cite web|url=http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/beijing/blog/fourth_place_medal/post/Oh-My-Phelps-Americans-stun-French-for-relay-g?urn=oly,99775|title=Oh My! Phelps, Americans stun French for relay gold|publisher=Yahoo|date=11 August 2008|accessdate=2008-08-11] [*cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/olympics/2008/08/phelps_on_course_after_greates.html|title=greatest relay race in history|publisher=BBC|date=11 August 2008|accessdate=2008-08-11] .

In the subsequent individual 100 m Freestyle event at the Olympics 2008, Sullivan emerged as the fastest swimmer from the heats with a time of 47.89 s. In the first semi-final, Alain Bernard of France re-claimed the World Record set by Sullivan in the relay with a time of 47.20 s. Five minutes later Sullivan reclaimed the 100 m Freestyle World Record in the second semi-final in time of 47.05 s.

In the finals Sullivan claimed the silver medal, edged out by Bernard by 0.11 s.

Eamon Sullivan is the current World Record Holder of the Men's 100 m Freestyle with a time of 47.05 s.

In the 50m final at the Olympics, Sullivan was a favorite to take home the gold but finished in a surprising 6th place after his goggles flooded during his dive. [ [http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/08/17/sports/OLYPHELPS.php] ]

World record

Australian Eamon Sullivan became the fastest swimmer in history after he broke the world 50 m freestyle record at the 2008 NSW Open Championships at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre. He timed 21.56 to slash 0.08 off the 21.64 set by the Russian Alexander Popov at Moscow in June 2000. However his time was beaten to 21.50 by French Alain Bernard on 23 March 2008, He significantly improved his last PB standing at 22.00 s. He declared he had had positive feelings of being in a good form for the race earlier on. Shortly after, he swam for West Coastdn club in the 4×100 m freestyle Relay and clocked 48.11 s, cutting 0.07 off Michael Klim record set for Australian relay at the 2000 Olympics. His time was also a Commonwealth record, knocking 0.06 s off the previous time gained by South African Roland Schoeman.

On 27 March 2008 at Australian Olympic Trials at the same venue he regained his shot as the 50 m freestyle world record holder with a time of 21.41 s, then broke his own record a day later with 21.28 s.

On 11 August 2008, he broke the 100 meter freestyle world record in the first leg of the 4x100 relay with a time of 47.24, [cite web|url=http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/beijing/swimming/results/SWM411/3;_ylt=AmU.0kNNKbRSC3RjOjf11ZsSv5V4#SWM411100 |title=Swimming Results - 4x100 Freestyle Relay|publisher=Yahoo! Olympics Results|date=11 August 2008|accessdate=2008-08-11] Australia finished under the previous world record, broke the Oceania record and finished third in the relay in a time of 3.09.91. [*cite web|url=http://www.swimming.org.au/News/Latest%20News.aspx?nwid={12F5C58E-7719-49E7-8344-E6D3AB588EF9} |title=Sullivan breaks 50m freestyle world record|publisher=Swimming Australia|date=17 February 2008|accessdate=2008-02-18] Before the Olympics, the Australian record was 3.13.67 in winning the event at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Personal life

Sullivan was romantically linked with fellow Australian swimmer and individual world record holder Stephanie Rice, however they ended their 2 year relationship in July 2008, just prior to the Beijing Olympics. [cite news | last = English | first = Ben | date = 30 July 2008 | title = Swim sweethearts split up `amicably' | work = The Mercury (Hobart) |accessdate=2008-08-13] The couple lived in separate states of Australia, (Sullivan in WA and Rice in Queensland) and said the stress of living so far apart and of course the impending Olympics caused the split of Australia's "Glamour Couple" who once posed together in highly publicised underwear advertisements.

References

External links

* Videos & Results on [http://www.swimpassion.net/Athletes/eamonsullivan.html SwimPassion.net]
* [http://results.beijing2008.cn/WRM/ENG/INF/SW/C73B1/SWM411101.shtml Beijing Olympics 2008 - World Record Result - 4 x 100 m Freestyle Relay Final Result]
* [http://results.beijing2008.cn/WRM/ENG/INF/SW/C73A1/SWM011202.shtml Beijing Olympics 2008 - World Record Result - Individual 100 m Freestyle Semi-Final Result]