Jose Guilherme Couto (born 27 February 1978) is a Portuguese swimmer. He competed at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

, the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

, and the 2004 Summer Olympics. In the short course, he was Vice-World champion in 2002, and Vice-European champion in

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

, as well as winning a bronze medal at the 1999 European Short Course Championships. Over the course of his career, he has won 108 medals, including one gold medal, and one bronze medal, at Swimming World Cup circuits.

Background

Couto was born 27 February 1978 in Lisbon, and emigrated to the United States."Jose Couto: Profile".
''

FINA FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...

''. Retrieved 9 February 2023. He has one brother. When he was seventeen years old, Couto began to win big titles and became one of the best Portuguese swimmer of all time in breaststroke. Once arriving in the United States, he attended

Florida Gators swimming and diving The Florida Gators swimming and diving program represents the University of Florida in the aquatics sports of swimming and diving. The program includes separate men's and women's teams, both of which compete in Division I of the National Coll ...

team and swam for coach

Gregg Troy Gregg Troy (born December 19, 1950) is an American professional and Olympic swimming coach. As of April 2021, he is the head coach for the Cali Condors, which is part of the International Swimming League. Until 2018, he was the head coach of the ...

, and with the second-most decorated swimmer in Olympic history, Ryan Lochte from 2002 to 2005.

International career

1996 Summer Olympics

At the

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, he swam a 2.17.28 in the prelims of the 200-metre breaststroke to set a new Portuguese record in the event but did not advance to the final.

1997 Swimming World Cup

Stop 1: Espoo On the first day of the short cours
1997 FINA Swimming World Cup
in

Espoo Espoo (, ; sv, Esbo) is a city and municipality in the region of Uusimaa in the Republic of Finland. It is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordering the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Nurmijärvi ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, Couto won a bronze medal in the 200-metre breaststroke, finishing in a time of 2.15.81 seconds with Polish Mark Krawczyk, gold medalist, and Raiko Pachel, silver medalist.

(7 February 2023)
"FINA Swimming World Cup 1997 Espoo (FIN): Men's 200m Breaststroke Final Results"
Retrieved 7 February 2023. Stop 2: Malmo At stop number two of the World Cup series, held in

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal pop ...

, Sweden, Couto improved upon his placement, this time winning the gold medal in the 200-metre breaststroke with a time of 2.14.98 seconds and sharing the podium with American Travis Myers, gold medalist, and Peter Aronsson, silver medalist.

1997 European Championships

At the 1997 European Championships held in December 1997 in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, Couto placed fifth in the final, breaking the Portuguese national record with a time of 2.14.90 seconds.

1998 World Championships

In the preliminary heats of the 200-metre breaststroke at the

1998 World Aquatics Championships The 8th FINA World Championships or the 1998 World Aquatics Championships were held from 8 to 17 January 1998 in Perth, Western Australia. The championships features competition in all five of FINA's disciplines: Swimming, Diving, Water Polo ...

on 8 January, Couto placed fourteenth in the preliminaries with a time of 2.17.51 seconds. He ranked sixth in the evening B final, swimming in a 2.18.37 seconds.

1999 Swimming World Cup

Starting out at the first short course 1999 FINA Swimming World Cup stop in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, Couto placed 4th in the final in the 100-metre breaststroke set at 1.01.28 seconds.

1999 World Short Course Championships

For the 1999 World Championships held 1–4 April at the Hong Kong Coliseum in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

, Couto placed 6th in the final in the 200-metre breaststroke, set at 2.09.56 seconds. Also, placed 7th in the final in the 200-metre breaststroke.

1999 European Championships

For the 1999 European Championships held in

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

from 26 July to 1 August, in the 50 m pool of the Ataköy Olympic Pool Stadium, Couto placed 7th in the final of the 200-metre ''breaststr''oke set at 2.16.05 seconds.

1999 European Short Course Championships

The 1999 European Short Course Championships held in Complexo Desportivo do Jamor in

Lisboa Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administrative limits w ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, from 9 to 11 December, Couto won a silver medal in the 200-metre breaststroke with a 2.09.98, finishing 2.16 seconds behind first-place finisher Stéphan Perrot of France, and 1 second ahead of third-place finisher Adam Whitehead, bronze medalist. In the final of the 100-metre breaststroke the following day, he won the bronze medal with a time of 59.70 seconds.

2000 European Championships

The 2000 European Championships held in 3 July to 9 July 2000 in Helsinki, Finland, Couto placed 7th in the final in the 200-metre breaststroke, in 2.16.59 seconds.

2000 Summer Olympics

At the

held from 15 September to 1 October 2000 in Sydney, Australia, he swam a 1.02.79 in the prelims of the 100-metre breaststroke finishing 18th, and the 200-metre breaststroke, finishing 26th.

2001 World Championships

At the 2001 World Championships held from 15 September to 1 October 2000 in

Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since anc ...

, Japan, Couto placed tenth in the evening semifinals of the 200-metre breaststroke, placed eleventh in the evening semifinals of the 100-metre breaststroke, and placed fifteen in the evening semifinals of the 50-metre breaststroke.

2002 World Short Course Championships

At the 2002 European Short Course Championships in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, Couto turned in his best performance in an international tournament, winning the silver medal in the 50-metre breaststroke finishing in a time of 27.22 seconds, which was 0.80 seconds slower than the gold medalist and world record holder in the event Oleg Lisogor. In his second event, he placed 6th in the 200-metre breaststroke, finishing in a time of 2.09.14 seconds.

2004 European Championships

The 2004 European Championships held in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

from 5–16 May, at the

M86 Swimming Center The Swimming Center M-86 is a complex of pools in southeast of Madrid, Spain. The official opening was on 14 May 1986. The complex was built to host the 5th World Aquatics Championships held in August 1986. The name of the swimming center is deri ...

, Couto split a 1.03.54 for the breaststroke leg of the 4×100 metre medley relay, placed ninth with a final relay time of 3:46.11 seconds.

2004 Summer Olympics

At the 2004 Summer Olympics held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

, he placed 33rd in the prelims heats of the 100-metre breaststroke with a final time of 1.03.72 seconds.

Personal best times

Long course metres (50 m pool)

Short course metres (25 m pool)

Swimming World Cup circuits

The following medals Couto has won at Swimming World Cup circuits."Jose Couto Medals"
''

''. Retrieved 7 February 2023.

Honours and awards

* Bordalo Press Award, distinguished in the category of sports on 4 June 2000, at the Culturgest Grand Auditorium * Stromp Award, distinguished three times with the Stromp Award in 1995, 96 and 97"Stromp Award attributed three times to Jose Couto in the category of Athlete of the Year".

Sporting Club de Portugal Sporting Clube de Portugal, founded Sporting Club de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP, often known abroad as Sporting Lisbon , is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Lisbon. It is best known for the professional fo ...

. Retrieved 7 February 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Couto, Jose 1978 births Living people Portuguese male breaststroke swimmers Swimmers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Swimmers from Lisbon Olympic swimmers for Portugal

External links

Jose Couto
at

Jose Couto
at Olympics.com
Jose Couto
a
Olympedia
Medalists at the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) European Short Course Swimming Championships