Rebecca Kate Brown (born 8 May 1977 in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

) 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 ...

breaststroke Breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso does not rotate. It is the most popular recreational style due to the swimmer's head being out of the water a large portion of the time, and that it can be s ...

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

. Brown gained national exposure in March 1994 when, at 16 years of age, she broke

Anita Nall Nadia Anita Louise Nall (born July 21, 1976), also known by her married name Anita Nall-Richesson, is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder. As a 16-year-old at the 1992 Summer Olympics, Nall w ...

's 200-metre breaststroke world record by 0.59 seconds in Brisbane. In the aftermath of that swim, she was feted as Australia's newest teen swimming sensation. However, at the

1994 Commonwealth Games The 1994 Commonwealth Games ( French: ''XVéme Jeux du Commonwealth'') were held in Victoria, British Columbia, from 18 to 28 August 1994. Ten types of sports were featured at the Victoria Games: athletics, aquatics, badminton, boxing, cycling, ...

in Victoria,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

she lost out to

Samantha Riley Samantha Linette Pearl Riley (born 13 November 1972) is an Australian breaststroke swimmer of Aboriginal descent who competed for Australia in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona and the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, winning three medals ...

in both the 100 and 200-metre breaststroke events. Failing to qualify for 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 ...

, Georgia and the

1998 Commonwealth Games The 1998 Commonwealth Games ''(Malay: Sukan Komanwel 1998)'', officially known as the XVI Commonwealth Games ''(Malay: Sukan Komanwel ke-16)'', was a multi-sport event held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This edition is marked by several unprecedent ...

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

, Brown announced her retirement from competitive swimming. However, the chance to swim at a home Olympic Games was too good an opportunity pass up. So, Brown made a pact with her then fiancé, now husband, medley swimmer

Zane King Zane Warren King is an Australian former swimmer of the 1990s who competed in medley events. King, a swimmer from Galston on the outskirts of Sydney, trained at the Australian Institute of Sport The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is ...

that they would put everything into making the team for

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 ...

. For Brown this meant moving to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

to link up with her former coach, Michael Piper leaving 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 ...

-based King behind. She was in good form leading up to the Olympics trails taking the gold in the 200-metre breaststroke at the

2000 FINA Short Course World Championships The 5th FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) were held at the Olympic Aquatic Centre in Athens, Greece from 16–19 March 2000. 15 world records were set. Men's events Legend: WR: World record; CR: World Championships record Women's eve ...

as well as 4th in the 100-metre breaststroke and 5th in the 50-metre breaststroke. In May 2000, she secured her place in the Olympic squad with a 2:28.98-minute second place in the 200-metre breaststroke trail final. At the Olympics itself she failed to make to the final, finishing 7th in her semi-final and 14th overall in a time of 2:29.90 mins. At the conclusion of the Games, she announced her retirement and in November 2005 she gave birth to her first child, Indiana Rose King.

References

External links

* *
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Rebecca 1977 births Living people Sportswomen from Queensland Australian female breaststroke swimmers Swimmers from Brisbane Swimmers at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Australia World record setters in swimming Medalists at the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) Olympic swimmers for Australia Commonwealth Games medallists in swimming 20th-century Australian sportswomen Medallists at the 1994 Commonwealth Games

See also

References

External links