Loudy Wiggins (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Tourky) (born 7 July 1979) is a former

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n diver. She was born in

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

parents, but moved to Australia when she was 3 years old. Wiggins was a gymnast at the

Australian Institute of Sport The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is a high performance sports training institution in Australia. The Institute's headquarters were opened in 1981 and are situated in the northern suburb of Bruce, Canberra. The AIS is a division of the ...

, then began diving when she was 12 on suggestion from her physiotherapist. Wiggins competed at her first

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

for Diving when she was 17 years old 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, ...

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 ...

. She won bronze in the 10m synchronised platform event at 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 1 ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, becoming the first Australian to win an

Olympic medal An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games. There are three classes of medal to be won: gold, silver, and bronze, awarded to first, second, and third place, respectively. The granting of awards is laid o ...

in diving since

Dick Eve Richmond Cavill "Dick" Eve (19 March 1901 – 13 March 1970) was an Australian diver who competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics. He won the gold medal in the plain high diving and finished fifth in the 3 metre springboard event. He was the firs ...

in 1924 (with Rebecca Gilmore). She and Rebecca Gilmore were also the first Australian female Olympic diving medallists. She won bronze at the

2001 World Aquatics Championships right The 2001 World Aquatics Championships or the 9th FINA World Swimming Championships were held in Fukuoka, Japan between 16 July and 29 July 2001. The opening and closing ceremonies, as well as the swimming and synchronised swimming events, ...

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 ancie ...

after a successful year on the Diving Grand Prix circuit and was named Female Australian Diver of the Year. Loudy was known as being a powerful platform diver. After winning numerous National championships in both springboard and platform as well as many international medals, in 2002 she won gold in the 10m platform event at the

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...

in Manchester and backed this up in 2003 by winning first place at an unprecedented three successive CAN-AM-MEX

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 ...

Diving Grand Prix competitions coming home with 6 gold medals. She finished 2003 with a silver medal at the FINA Aquatic World Championships in the 10m synchronised diving event in Barcelona. In 2004, after finishing second in the 10m platform event at the Diving World Cup in Athens, Wiggins won bronze in the 10m event at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

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 ...

. She also won 2 silver medals the following year at the 2005 FINA World Aquatic Championships in Montreal in the 10m and 10m Synchro events and 2 gold medals at the same events at the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games. Wiggins trained for the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, but a calf injury suffered during the Olympic selection trials on 13 April 2008 prevented her from competing in the Games. After getting married and having her first child, Wiggins began a comeback, placing 14th at the Olympic Test Event in London. Returning to Australia, she partnered with Rachel Bugg and, after very limited preparation, defeated Melissa Wu and

Alexandra Croak Alexandra "Alex" Croak (born 9 July 1984) is an Australian diver and gymnast who is a dual Olympic representative. She represented Australia as a gymnast at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney and after a strong performance at the 2008 Australi ...

at the Australian Nomination Trials. and competed at her fourth Olympic Games at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where, at 33, she was the oldest diver in the field. Wiggins has a degree in media and communications, from the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

, was on the

Australian Olympic Committee Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

Athletes' Commission and the Board of Directors of Diving Victoria from 2012 - 2016.

Personal life

She was born in

and is of

background. She was born to Butros and Afaf Tourky, who moved to

when Loudy was three. Wiggins is married to former

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

player

Simon Wiggins Simon Wiggins (born 11 September 1982) is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was recruited as the number 15 draft pick in the 2000 AFL Draft from Glenorchy. He made his debut for the C ...

. They have a daughter born in 2010 and a son born in 2013.

References

External links

Athlete Interview: Diver Loudy Tourky (Video)Australian Olympic Team profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiggins, Loudy 1979 births Living people Australian Institute of Sport divers Australian people of Palestinian descent Australian female divers Sportspeople from Haifa Divers at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Divers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Divers at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Divers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Divers at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Divers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Israeli emigrants to Australia Olympic divers of Australia Olympic bronze medalists for Australia Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia Olympic medalists in diving Divers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics World Aquatics Championships medalists in diving Commonwealth Games medallists in diving University of Sydney alumni Diving coaches Australian sports coaches Medallists at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games People from Melton, Victoria