Krisztina Egerszegi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Krisztina Egerszegi

Egerszegi in 1989
Personal information
Nickname(s)	Egérke (Little Mouse), Egér (Mouse), Queen Kristina (1992)
Nationality	Hungarian
Born	(1974-08-16) 16 August 1974 (age 50) Budapest, Hungary
Height	174 cm
Weight	57 kg
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Backstroke, individual medley, butterfly
Club	Budapest Spartacus SC
Coach	Miklós Kiss (1981–1982) György Turi (1982–1986) László Kiss (1986–1996)
Medal record International aquatics competitions Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 5 1 1 World Championships 2 1 0 European Championships (LC) 9 4 0 European Junior Championships (LC) 3 0 0 Goodwill Games 1 1 0 Total 20 7 1 Representing  Hungary Olympic Games Gold 1988 Seoul 200 m backstroke Gold 1992 Barcelona 100 m backstroke Gold 1992 Barcelona 200 m backstroke Gold 1992 Barcelona 400 m medley Gold 1996 Atlanta 200 m backstroke Silver 1988 Seoul 100 m backstroke Bronze 1996 Atlanta 400 m medley World Championships Gold 1991 Perth 100 m backstroke Gold 1991 Perth 200 m backstroke Silver 1994 Rome 200 m backstroke European Championships (LC) Gold 1991 Athens 100 m backstroke Gold 1991 Athens 200 m backstroke Gold 1991 Athens 400 m medley Gold 1993 Sheffield 100 m backstroke Gold 1993 Sheffield 200 m backstroke Gold 1993 Sheffield 200 m butterfly Gold 1993 Sheffield 400 m medley Gold 1995 Vienna 200 m backstroke Silver 1995 Vienna 400 m medley Silver 1989 Bonn 100 m backstroke Silver 1989 Bonn 200 m backstroke Silver 1989 Bonn 400 m medley Silver 1995 Vienna 4×100 m medley

Krisztina Egerszegi (born August 16, 1974) is a famous Hungarian swimmer. She is known as one of the greatest Olympic champions from Hungary. Krisztina competed in three Olympic Games: 1988, 1992, and 1996. She won five Olympic gold medals.

Krisztina is one of only four swimmers in history to win the same event at three Olympics in a row. The others are Dawn Fraser, Michael Phelps, and Katie Ledecky. She was also the first female swimmer to win five individual Olympic gold medals. Krisztina held the world record for the 200-meter backstroke for almost 17 years!

Krisztina's Swimming Journey

Early Career and First Olympics

Krisztina Egerszegi started her international swimming career very young. At just 13 years old, she competed in the 1987 European Aquatics Championships. She placed fourth in the 200-meter backstroke and fifth in the 100-meter backstroke.

At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, she won a silver medal in the 100-meter backstroke. She then became an Olympic champion in the 200-meter backstroke. At 14 years and 41 days old, she was the youngest female Olympic swimming champion ever! This record was later broken in 1992. By the end of 1988, she was the top 200-meter backstroke swimmer in the world. She was also named Swimmer of the Year and Best Female Athlete in Hungary.

European and World Success

In 1989, at the 1989 European Aquatics Championships, Krisztina won three silver medals. She competed in the 100-meter backstroke, 200-meter backstroke, and 400-meter individual medley. Even though she was not feeling well, she still performed amazingly. She was again ranked number one in the world for the 200-meter backstroke. She was also named Hungary's Best Female Athlete for the second time.

At the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle, she won Hungary's only gold medal in the 200-meter backstroke. She also got a silver in the 100-meter backstroke. In 1990, she won 12 gold medals at the Hungarian Championships. She was once again named Best Swimmer and Best Female Athlete in Hungary.

In 1991, Krisztina competed at the 1991 World Aquatics Championships in Australia. She won gold medals in both the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke events. This made her the first Hungarian female swimmer to win gold at the World Championships.

A few months later, at the 1991 European Aquatics Championships in Greece, she won three more gold medals. She also set new world records in the 100-meter (1:00.31 minutes) and 200-meter (2:06.62 minutes) backstroke events. She was the first female swimmer since 1980 to set world records in both backstroke distances at the same event. She continued her success at the Hungarian Championships, winning 10 more gold medals. For the fourth year in a row, she was named Best Swimmer and Best Athlete of the Year in Hungary.

Barcelona Olympics and Continued Dominance

In 1992, Krisztina took the official Olympic oath for the Hungarian team. She won 8 more gold medals at the Hungarian Championships. At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, she won three individual gold medals. She was the only female athlete at those Games to achieve this. At the end of 1992, she was again voted Best Swimmer and Best Athlete of the Year.

In 1993, she won 10 first-place finishes at the Hungarian Championships. Then, at the 1993 European Aquatics Championships in England, she tried the 200-meter butterfly for the first time and won! She also won gold in the 400-meter medley, 100-meter backstroke, and 200-meter backstroke. She was named Best Swimmer and Best Athlete of the Year in Hungary again.

Facing Challenges and Final Olympics

In 1994, Krisztina won 9 gold medals at the Hungarian Championships. She then planned to retire after the 1994 World Aquatics Championships in Rome. At this event, she lost the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke races. These defeats made her decide to keep swimming for two more years.

In 1995, she won 9 gold medals at the Hungarian Championship. At the 1995 European Aquatics Championships, she won her last two European titles in the 400-meter medley and 200-meter backstroke. She also competed in the 4x100-meter medley relay, where her team won a silver medal. She said this silver medal made her the happiest.

In 1996, she finished her Hungarian Championship appearances with 9 more gold medals. At the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, she won her first and only Olympic bronze medal in the 400-meter individual medley. Her final race was in her favorite event, the 200-meter backstroke. She won this race with a huge lead, earning her fifth individual gold medal. She also became one of the few swimmers to win the same event at three Olympics in a row.

Krisztina Egerszegi retired from swimming after the Atlanta Olympics at just 22 years old. She later became a board member of the Hungarian Swimming Association and the Hungarian Olympic Committee. She was named Best Swimmer of the Year nine times and Best Female Athlete of the Year seven times.

Amazing Records and Achievements

Krisztina Egerszegi set her first world record in the 100-meter backstroke at the 1991 European Aquatics Championships with a time of 1:00.31. Three days later, she broke the 200-meter backstroke world record with 2:06.62 minutes. She held this 200-meter backstroke world record for 16 and a half years! It was the oldest European record until 2009.

She also set Olympic records. In 1988, she set an Olympic record in the 200-meter backstroke (2:09.29). She improved this in 1992 (2:07.06). In 1992, she set an Olympic record in the 100-meter backstroke (1:00.68).

Her Hungarian records in the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke were the oldest on the list. The 100-meter record was broken 22 years later in 2013. The 200-meter record was broken in 2015. Both were broken by Katinka Hosszú.

The Greatest Winning Margin

At the 1996 Summer Olympics, Krisztina won the 200-meter backstroke with a time of 2:07.83. The swimmer who came in second, Whitney Hedgepeth, finished in 2:11.98. This means Krisztina won by 4.15 seconds! This was the biggest winning difference in any women's 200-meter swimming event in history.

Even though she didn't enter the 100-meter backstroke race in 1996, her time in the medley relay (1:01.15) was faster than the winning time in the 100-meter backstroke final.

Krisztina's five individual Olympic gold medals were a record for a swimmer for many years. This record was later broken by Michael Phelps, who won 13 individual gold medals. Katie Ledecky broke Krisztina's record for female swimmers in 2021.

Her Impact on Hungarian Culture

Krisztina Egerszegi's win in Seoul in 1988 was a huge moment for Hungary. The famous words "Come on Little Mouse! Come on little girl!" spoken by the TV commentator, Tamás Vitray, are still well-known in Hungary. Krisztina is still seen as a true "champion" and role model in her home country.

Her nickname was "Egérke" (meaning "Little Mouse") or "Egér" ("Mouse"). This was because she was so young and small when she started swimming. After the 1992 Summer Olympics, where she won three gold medals, people started calling her Krisztina Királynő ("Queen Kristina").

Her amazing career was written about in a 1993 book called Egerszegi. There was also a documentary film with the same title made in 2000.

Awards and Honors

Krisztina Egerszegi has received many awards for her incredible swimming career. In 2001, she was added to the International Swimming Hall of Fame. She was named Hungarian Sportswoman of the Year a record seven times (1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, and 1996). She was also named Female World Swimmer of the Year three times.

On June 23, 2001, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) gave her the Olympic Order. This is a very special award. On August 20, 2013, she received Hungary's highest state award, the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Medal.

Here are some of her other awards:

• Best Female Athlete of Europe (1992)
• Commander's Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit (1992)
• Olympic Golden Ring (1995)
• Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary (1996)
• Hungarian Heritage Award (1996)
• IOC Ethical Special Award (1999)
• The Hungarian Female Athlete of the Century (2001)
• Fair Play Award for Lifetime Achievement (2001)
• IOC Olympic Order of Merit grade silver (2001)
• Honorary Citizen of Budavar
• IOC President's Trophy (2005)
• Prima Primissima Award (2007)
• Honorary Citizen of Budapest (2011)
• Hall of Fame of the Hungarian Swimming Sports (2013)

Images for kids

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  Egerszegi in 1989

See also

In Spanish: Krisztina Egerszegi para niños