Allison Schmitt facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Allison Schmitt

Schmitt at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Personal information
Nickname(s)	"Schmitty", "Al", "Allie", "Arschmitty"
Born	(1990-06-07) June 7, 1990 (age 35) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Height	6 ft 1 in
Weight	165 lbs
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Freestyle
Club	Plymouth Canton Cruisers North Baltimore Aquatic Club Club Wolverine
College team	University of Georgia
Medal record Women's swimming Representing the  United States Event 1st 2nd 3rd Summer Olympics 4 3 3 World Championships (LC) 1 4 0 World Championships (SC) 3 0 0 Pan Pacific Championships 2 1 0 Pan American Games 3 1 0 Olympic Games Gold 2012 London 200 m freestyle Gold 2012 London 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2012 London 4×100 m medley Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro 4×200 m freestyle Silver 2012 London 400 m freestyle Silver 2016 Rio de Janeiro 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2020 Tokyo 4×200 m freestyle Bronze 2008 Beijing 4×200 m freestyle Bronze 2012 London 4×100 m freestyle Bronze 2020 Tokyo 4×100 m freestyle World Championships (LC) Gold 2011 Shanghai 4×200 m freestyle Silver 2009 Rome 200 m freestyle Silver 2009 Rome 4×200 m freestyle Silver 2019 Gwangju 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2019 Gwangju 4×200 m freestyle World Championships (SC) Gold 2012 Istanbul 200 m freestyle Gold 2012 Istanbul 4×100 m freestyle Gold 2012 Istanbul 4×200 m freestyle Pan Pacific Championships Gold 2010 Irvine 200 m freestyle Gold 2010 Irvine 4×200 m freestyle Silver 2018 Tokyo 4×200 m freestyle Pan American Games Gold 2015 Toronto 200 m freestyle Gold 2015 Toronto 4×100 m medley Gold 2015 Toronto 4×200 m freestyle Silver 2015 Toronto 4×100 m freestyle

Allison Rodgers Schmitt (born June 7, 1990) is an American swimmer. She is known for her amazing skills in freestyle races. Allison has competed in four Olympic Games and has won ten Olympic medals!

At her first Olympics in Beijing (2008), Allison won a bronze medal. This was for the 4×200-meter freestyle relay race. Four years later, at the London Olympics (2012), she had an incredible performance. She won five medals, including three gold medals. She set a new Olympic record in the 200-meter freestyle. She also helped her team set a new world record in the 4×100-meter medley relay.

Allison continued her success at the Rio Olympics (2016). She won a gold medal in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. She also earned a silver medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. For the first time, she was chosen as a captain for the US Olympic swim team. She was also a captain for the US team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. There, she won a bronze medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. She also earned a silver medal in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.

In total, Allison Schmitt has won 25 medals in big international swimming events. These include the Summer Olympics, World Championships, Pan Pacific Championships, and Pan American Games. She won 13 gold, 9 silver, and 3 bronze medals. In college, she was a four-time national champion in freestyle swimming. She was also part of the Georgia Bulldogs team that won a major college title in 2013. In 2012, she was named Female Swimmer of the Year by SwimSwam.

About Allison Schmitt

Allison Schmitt was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1990. She grew up in Canton, Michigan, with her parents, Ralph and Gail, and four siblings. Her father works as a financial analyst, and her mother is a project manager. Allison says her parents have been the most helpful people in her life. They always supported her dreams.

Her Family

Allison has an older sister, Kirsten, who went to law school. Her older brother, Derek, was also a swimmer. He swam for the University of Pittsburgh and is now a swim coach. Allison also has younger twin sisters, Kari and Sara. They played hockey and swam in high school and college.

Starting to Swim

Allison started swimming when she was eight years old. She followed her older sister into the sport. She once thought about quitting, but decided to stay one more season. She ended up loving it! Before swimming, she tried many other sports. These included soccer, dance, basketball, volleyball, and softball.

Her Training Journey

From ages 10 to 13, Allison swam with the Ann Arbor Swim Club. Her coach at the time, Josh Morgan, said she didn't show her full potential until later. In high school, she started training with famous swimmer Michael Phelps. She also trained with his longtime coach, Bob Bowman.

After high school, Allison moved to Baltimore to train full-time. This was before the 2008 Olympics. After the Olympics, she went to the University of Georgia. She studied psychology and joined the Georgia Bulldogs swim team. She became a four-time national champion in college swimming.

Before the 2012 London Olympics, Allison took a year off from college. She moved back to Baltimore to train with Coach Bowman and Michael Phelps. This training involved at least four hours in the pool and one hour on land, six days a week.

Overcoming Challenges

After the 2012 Olympics, Allison returned to college. She received the Honda Sports Award for Swimming and Diving. This award recognized her as the best college female swimmer. After her return, Allison faced some personal challenges. She bravely sought help and later shared her experiences. She did this to help other people who might be going through similar struggles. She showed great courage by talking about her feelings, which inspired many.

Hobbies and Role Model

Allison enjoys scrapbooking, photography, and playing outdoor sports. She also likes board games. Her favorite way to relax is watching a movie or getting a massage. When she visits her hometown, she likes to meet young swimmers. She swims with them and talks about her experiences. She loves to motivate kids who are just starting their own paths in life.

Allison has said that swimming has shaped who she is. She feels lucky to have met so many amazing friends through the sport. She is also good friends with Michael Phelps.

Allison Schmitt's International Swimming Career

2008 Beijing Olympics

Allison Schmitt won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Allison won a bronze medal. This was in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. She swam the first part of the race. The American team set a new American record. Allison also competed in the 200-meter freestyle. She finished ninth, just missing the final.

2009 World Championships

At the 2009 World Aquatics Championships in Rome, Allison competed in three events. She swam in the 200-meter and 400-meter freestyle races. She also swam in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. In the 400-meter freestyle, she finished fourth. In the 200-meter freestyle, she won a silver medal. She set a new American record in that race. In the 4×200-meter freestyle relay, her team won a silver medal. They also set another American record.

2011 World Championships

At the 2011 World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, Allison won a gold medal. This was for the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. Her team finished ahead of Australia and China. Allison also swam in the individual 200-meter freestyle. She finished sixth in the final.

2012 London Olympics

Allison Schmitt holds up her silver medal at the 400m freestyle at the 2012 London Olympics.

Before the 2012 Olympics, Allison qualified for the U.S. Olympic team. She finished first in the 200-meter and 400-meter freestyle races. She also broke her own American record in the 200-meter freestyle.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Allison won five medals! She earned three gold, one silver, and one bronze.

• In her first event, the 4×100-meter freestyle relay, she won a bronze medal. The U.S. team finished third.
• She won her first individual Olympic medal, a silver, in the 400-meter freestyle. She set a new American record in this race.
• In the 200-meter freestyle, Allison won a gold medal. She set a new Olympic record in this race.
• In the 4×200-meter freestyle relay, Allison earned her second gold medal. She swam the final part of the race.
• In her last event, the 4×100-meter medley relay, Allison won another gold medal. Her team set a new world record in this race!

2015 Pan American Games

Allison missed some big competitions in 2013 and 2014. But her performance in 2014 helped her qualify for the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto. This was her first international event since 2012. Allison won gold in the 200-meter freestyle. She also helped her teams win gold in the 4×200-meter freestyle and 4×100-meter medley relays. All these wins set new competition records! She also won a silver medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay.

2016 Rio Olympics

At the 2016 Olympic Trials, Allison finished fourth in the 200m freestyle. This qualified her for the relay team. She became one of only a few American female swimmers to compete in three Olympics. She was also chosen as one of the captains for the U.S. Olympic Swim Team.

Allison earned her seventh Olympic medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. Her team won the silver medal. She then earned her fourth gold medal and eighth Olympic medal. This was in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.

Allison Schmitt (left) and Michael Phelps (right) at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

2018 Pan Pacific Championships

In August 2018, Allison won a silver medal. This was as part of the women's 4x200-meter relay team. The event took place at the 2018 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Tokyo, Japan.

2019 World Championships

In July 2019, Allison competed at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju, South Korea. She won two silver medals there. One was in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay. The other was in the 4x200-meter freestyle relay.

2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021)

First, Allison competed in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials in June 2021. She placed second in the 200m freestyle. This secured her spot on the Olympic team for the fourth time! She also qualified for the 4x100-meter freestyle relay team.

At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Allison was chosen as a USA swim team captain again. This was her second time being a captain. On the first day of the Olympics, Allison swam in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay. She helped her team reach the final. In the final, the relay team won a bronze medal.

Allison also competed in the 200-meter freestyle. She qualified for the semifinals but did not make it to the final. On the sixth day of competition, Allison swam the first part of the 4x200-meter freestyle relay. Her team set a new American record and won the silver medal. People magazine even wrote about her smart "slow lead-off tactic" in that race. This tactic means swimming a bit slower at the start to motivate the other swimmers to go even faster.

Allison Schmitt's Best Times

Here are some of Allison Schmitt's fastest times in long course swimming:

Awards and Honors

• 2012 Golden Goggle Award, Relay Performance of the Year (for the 4x100-meter freestyle relay)
• 2012 SwimSwam Swammy Award, Swimmer of the Year (female)
• 2013 Honda Sports Award (Swimming & Diving)
• 2015 Golden Goggle Award, Perseverance Award
• 2019 Michigan Sports Hall of Fame
• 2021 Golden Goggle Award nominee, Relay Performance of the Year (for the 4x200-meter freestyle relay)

See Also

In Spanish: Allison Schmitt para niños

• List of multiple Olympic gold medalists
• List of Olympic medalists in swimming (women)
• List of multiple Summer Olympic medalists
• List of United States records in swimming
• List of University of Georgia people
• List of World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming (women)
• List of world records in swimming
• World record progression 4 × 100 metres medley relay