Simone Manuel facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Simone Manuel

Manuel in 2015
Personal information
Born	(1996-08-02) August 2, 1996 (age 28) Sugar Land, Texas, U.S.
Height	5 ft 10 in
Weight	148 lbs
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Freestyle
College team	Stanford University
Medal record Women's swimming Representing  United States Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 2 4 1 World Championships (LC) 11 3 2 Pan Pacific Championships 0 6 2 Olympic Games Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro 100 m freestyle Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro 4×100 m medley Silver 2016 Rio de Janeiro 50 m freestyle Silver 2016 Rio de Janeiro 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2024 Paris 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2024 Paris 4×200 m freestyle Bronze 2020 Tokyo 4×100 m freestyle World Championships (LC) Gold 2013 Barcelona 4×100 m freestyle Gold 2015 Kazan 4×100 m mixed freestyle Gold 2017 Budapest 100 m freestyle Gold 2017 Budapest 4×100 m freestyle Gold 2017 Budapest 4×100 m medley Gold 2017 Budapest 4×100 m mixed freestyle Gold 2017 Budapest 4×100 m mixed medley Gold 2019 Gwangju 50 m freestyle Gold 2019 Gwangju 100 m freestyle Gold 2019 Gwangju 4×100 m medley Gold 2019 Gwangju 4×100 m mixed freestyle Silver 2019 Gwangju 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2019 Gwangju 4×200 m freestyle Silver 2019 Gwangju 4×100 m mixed medley Bronze 2015 Kazan 4×100 m freestyle Bronze 2017 Budapest 50 m freestyle Pan Pacific Championships Silver 2014 Gold Coast 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2014 Gold Coast 4×100 m medley Silver 2018 Tokyo 50 m freestyle Silver 2018 Tokyo 100 m freestyle Silver 2018 Tokyo 4×100 m freestyle Silver 2018 Tokyo 4×100 m medley Bronze 2014 Gold Coast 100 m freestyle Bronze 2018 Tokyo 4×100 m mixed medley Junior Pan Pacific Championships Gold 2012 Honolulu 100 m freestyle Gold 2012 Honolulu 4×100 m freestyle Gold 2012 Honolulu 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2012 Honolulu 4×100 m medley

Watch Simone Manuel win Olympic gold! Official video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nwJLOV1LhY

Simone Ashley Manuel (born August 2, 1996) is an American professional swimmer. She is known for her amazing skills in freestyle events. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, she won two gold and two silver medals. She earned gold in the 100-meter freestyle and the 4×100-meter medley relay. She also won silver in the 50-meter freestyle and the 4×100-meter freestyle relay.

When she won the 100-meter freestyle, tying with Penny Oleksiak of Canada, Simone made history. She became the first Black American woman to win an individual Olympic gold medal in swimming. She also set a new Olympic record and an American record. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she added a bronze medal to her collection. This was for the 4×100-meter freestyle relay team.

Simone Manuel also holds three world records as part of a relay team. She has won six individual championships in college swimming (NCAA Division I). She was one of the first three African-American women to finish in the top three in the 100-yard freestyle at a Division I NCAA Swimming Championship. From 2014 to 2018, she studied at Stanford University. She swam for the Stanford Cardinal team. She helped Stanford win the NCAA team championship in women's swimming and diving in 2017 and 2018. She became a professional swimmer in July 2018.

When Simone started at Stanford in 2014, she joined the women's swimming team. In her first year, she broke school records in the 50-, 100-, and 200-yard freestyle events. She also set American and NCAA records for the 100-yard freestyle. Simone is a six-time individual NCAA champion. She won the 50- and 100-yard freestyle in 2015, 2017, and 2018. In her senior year, she won the Honda Sports Award as the best female swimmer in the country. She also received the Honda Cup for being the best overall female college athlete.

Simone Manuel's Swimming Career

Early Years: 2012-2014

Simone Manuel competed in the 2012 US Olympic Trials. She finished 20th in the 50-meter freestyle and 17th in the 100-meter freestyle. The next month, at just 16 years old, she swam in the 2012 Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Honolulu. There, she won four gold medals:

• 100-meter freestyle
• 4×100-meter freestyle relay
• 4×200-meter freestyle relay
• 4×100-meter medley relay

In 2013, Simone competed at the US National Championships. She placed third in the 100-meter freestyle and second in the 50-meter freestyle. She also qualified for the 2013 World Aquatics Championships in Barcelona. There, she won a gold medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. Later that year, she competed in the 2013 Duel in the Pool. She won the 100-meter freestyle and the 200-meter mixed medley relay.

In 2014, at the US National Championships, she won the 50-meter freestyle. She also earned silver medals in the 4×100-meter freestyle and 4×100 medley relays at the 2014 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships.

Making History: 2015-2016

Lochte, Adrian, Manuel, and Franklin (center, left to right) celebrating their mixed 4 × 100 m freestyle relay world record in 2015.

In 2015, Simone won her first two individual college championships (NCAA). She won the 50- and 100-yard freestyle events. She set many new records in the 100-yard freestyle. She was one of the first three African-American women to place in the top three in the 100-yard freestyle at a Division I NCAA Swimming Championship. She also competed in the 2015 World Aquatics Championships.

2016 Rio Summer Olympics

Simone swam in the 2016 US Olympic Trials. She finished second in both the 50- and 100-meter freestyle events. These results qualified her for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

At the Olympics, she won a silver medal with the 4×100-meter freestyle relay team. She then tied for the gold medal in the 100 m freestyle with Penny Oleksiak of Canada. They both set an Olympic record of 52.70 seconds. This made Simone the first African-American woman to win an individual gold medal in Olympic swimming. She later won a silver medal in the 50-meter freestyle and a gold medal in the 4×100-meter medley relay.

World Championship Success: 2017-2019

2017 World Championships

At the 2017 US Nationals, Simone won the 50-meter freestyle. She also placed second in the 100-meter freestyle. These results helped her qualify for the World Championships in Budapest.

At the World Championships, Simone helped the women's 4×100-meter freestyle relay team win a gold medal. She then won her second gold medal by anchoring the mixed 4×100-meter medley relay. This team broke the world record! Simone's first individual event was the 100-meter freestyle. She surprised everyone by winning the gold medal and setting a new American record. She then won her fourth gold medal in the mixed 4×100-meter freestyle relay, setting another world record. On the last night, she won a bronze medal in the 50-meter freestyle, setting an American record. She also helped the women's 4×100-meter medley relay team win gold, breaking a world record from 2012.

2019 World Championships

At the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, Simone made more history. She became the first American female swimmer to win both the 50-meter freestyle and 100-meter freestyle events at the same World Championships. She won a total of seven medals at this event: four gold and three silver. This was the most medals won by any female swimmer at a single FINA World Aquatics Championships.

For her amazing achievements, Simone was named "Female Athlete of the Year" at the 2019 Golden Goggles Awards.

Road to Tokyo: 2021 Olympics

2020 US Olympic Trials

At the 2020 US Olympic Trials, which were delayed to June 2021, Simone competed in the 100-meter and 50-meter freestyle. She did not qualify for the 100-meter final. She later shared that she was dealing with overtraining syndrome. However, she won the 50-meter freestyle final, which qualified her for the US Olympic swim team for the 2020 Summer Olympics.

2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics

The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, were Simone's second Olympic Games. She was chosen as one of the team captains for the US Olympic swim team.

Even though she didn't qualify for the 4×100-meter freestyle relay at the US Olympic Trials, the team coach decided to put her in the final at the Olympics. Simone swam the last part of the relay. She helped the team finish in third place, winning a bronze medal. This was her first medal of the 2020 Olympics.

In the 50-meter freestyle, Simone swam in the first rounds and made it to the semifinals. However, she did not advance to the final.

Sponsorships

In July 2018, Simone Manuel became a full-time professional swimmer. She signed a deal with TYR Sport, Inc., a swimwear company. She joined other famous swimmers like Katie Ledecky and Lia Neal who also work with TYR. Simone has also had other sponsors, such as the car company Toyota.

Activism and Helping Others

Increasing Diversity in Swimming

Simone Manuel works with different groups to help more people get involved in swimming. She wants to make swimming open to everyone.

Make A Splash Foundation

Simone is an ambassador for the Make A Splash organization. This group works with communities to teach kids about swimming and water safety. They give money to local swim lesson programs. This helps children from areas with fewer resources learn how to swim, often for free. Learning to swim is a very important life skill.

Inclusion Rider

When Simone signed her deal with TYR Sport, Inc. in 2018, she added something special to her contract called an "inclusion rider." This was the first time such a thing was used in professional sports. An inclusion rider makes sure that her partners (like TYR) offer good opportunities to groups of people who haven't always been included. It also means that the company's advertisements and creative projects should show diversity.

Promise School Partnership

In 2019, Simone worked with LeBron James' Promise School in Akron, Ohio. She helped create a four-week summer swim program for the students. The Akron YMCA provided the swim teachers and helped pay for the program. Many of the 140 students had never been in a pool before! Even though Simone was training for the Olympics and couldn't be there every day, she visited the school to introduce the program. She also sent videos with tips and encouragement to the students. Her sponsor, TYR, gave the children swimsuits and other gear for the camp.

Career Best Times

Here are Simone Manuel's fastest swimming times in different events:

NR – National Record (fastest time in the country)

AM – Americas Record (fastest time in the Americas)

World Records

Simone Manuel has been part of several relay teams that set new world records:

Awards and Honors

Simone Manuel has received many awards for her swimming achievements:

• Forbes, 30 Under 30 in sports: 2022
• Honda Sports Award (Swimming & Diving): 2017–2018
• Honda Cup, Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year (Swimming & Diving): 2017–2018
• Golden Goggle Award, Female Athlete of the Year: 2019
• SwimSwam Swammy Award, US Swimmer of the Year (female): 2019
• Golden Goggle Award, Female Race of the Year: 2016
• Golden Goggle Award, Relay Performance of the Year: 2017, 2019
• SwimSwam Top 100 (Women's): 2021 (#5)

See also