In the same event as fellow teenager Torri Huske (100 meter fly), Curzan qualified at the age of 16 and turned 17 on June 30. The last time the world looked at Amanda Beard, she was winning her first individual Olympic gold medal at the Athens Games. There is a lot more of Beard, the 25-year-old swimmer, on view in the July issue of Playboy, where a topless Beard is on the cover billed as “the world’s sexiest athlete nude.” They have two children. Beard arrived on the world sporting scene at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, a precocious 14-year-old who carried a teddy bear named Harold while winning two … The 15-year-old freestyle swimmer is the youngest U.S. Olympic swimmer since Amanda Beard, who made the 1996 team at age 14. The die was cast. Other career highlights: Was second-youngest American swimmer to win Olympic medals with two silvers and a gold in 1996 as a 14-year-old. Swimmer Amanda Beard, a teen sensation at the 1996 summer Olympics and a gold medalist in 1996 and 2004, is working on a memoir that will tell of … She made her first Olympic team at the 1996 Olympics as a 14-year old, winning two silvers in the breaststroke events and a gold in the medley relay. REUTERS/Aleksandra Szmigiel. Amanda Ray Beard (Irvine, California, October 29, 1981) is an American Olympic swimmer. Beard first broke the world record in 2003 for the 200-meter breaststroke and again in 2004 until 2005 . In 1996, a 14-year-old with a lucky teddy bear burst onto the Olympic scene in Atlanta. This is a copy of the July Issue of Playboy magazine showing the cover of showing Olympic swimmer Amanda Beard in Los Angeles Thursday, June 7, 2007. At the podium in … She is an American swimmer and a seven-time Olympic medalist (two gold, four silver, one bronze). 14-year-old Amanda Beard qualifies for Team USA at 1996 trials | NBC Sports - YouTube Amanda Beard kicked off a prestigious swimming career at the 1996 Olympic … Beard won the 100-meter breaststroke in … Amanda Beard regularly laid out on photos squeezing her teddy bear, even during her medal, But as Team USA noted, she’s the youngest American Olympic swimmer since Amanda Beard… Grimes, 15, became the youngest American swimmer to make the Olympic Games since Amanda Beard at 14 in 1996. The last time the world looked at Amanda Beard, she was winning her first individual Olympic gold medal at the Athens Games. Swimmer Amanda Beard, who has won seven Olympic medals and will compete at U.S. nationals this week, finally has found happiness away from the … Amanda Beard bravely speaks about her battles with clinical depression, bulimia and low self esteem in her book titled: “In the Water They Can’t See Me Cry”. She had breakfast with Dennis Rodman and appeared on the “Tonight Show” with Jay Leno. In the heats that day on 21 July 1996, Heyns lowered the world record to 1:07.02. Beard beat one of them, current world-record holder Penny Heyns of South Africa, in a pre-Olympic tuneup in Phoenix in May. 1996: Wins one gold and two silvers in Atlanta at age 14. Married Life With Husband, Children. The die was cast. She also acted in the TV series: The Real World (1992), The Girls Next Door (2005), and in the movie Todd's Coma (2005). While still a high school student, Amanda Beard won two Olympic silver medals in the individual breaststroke events, behind Penny Heyns. International Olympic Committee. She is a former world record holder in the 200-meter breaststroke (long course). She had breakfast with Dennis Rodman and appeared on the “Tonight Show” with Jay Leno. OLYMPIC GAMES ... Amanda BEARD. SPORT: Swimming. Amanda Beard marched to her swim station with her teddy bear in her arms in 1996. Grimes came second behind five-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledceky in the U.S. Olympics Swimming Trials last month, achieving a personal best of 8:20.36 in the 800-meter freestyle final. She won silver medals in the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststrokes, and a gold … Sport: Swimming Grimes finished second behind Katie Ledecky, who was also 15 during her London 2012 Olympic debut, at this year's U.S. swim trials in the 800 freestyle to make it … Olympics.com. She is the youngest American swimmer in the Olympics since Amanda Beard made the 1996 team at … Unfortunately, she also suffered from the post “Olympic blues.” Beard has the distinction of being the second-youngest American Olympic medalist when she won three medals—a gold and two silvers. ‘In the Water They Can’t See You Cry’ by Amanda Beard (Book Summary) Amanda Beard is a four-time Olympian, 7-time Olympic medalist, world champion and NCAA champion. Olympian. RG: Tell me a personal story from the Olympics that no one has heard. Stepping on the block at age 14, she stood tiny in comparison to the other Olympians. But as Team USA noted, she’s the youngest American Olympic swimmer since Amanda Beard… The complete list of Olympic winners in the Ladies' 4 x 100 m Medley Relay competitions in Atlanta. A lithe 14-year-old with a grin that seemed bigger than she was, Beard soaked up the atmosphere, teddy bear in tow. While still a high school student, Amanda Beard won two Olympic silver medals in the individual breaststroke events, behind Penny Heyns. Amanda Beard (born October 29, 1981) is a swimmer and model. Amanda Ray Beard was born on October 29, 1981. “I’d go to swim practice, put my face in the water, and I didn’t have to talk to anybody,” Beard said. In the heats that day on 21 July 1996, Heyns lowered the world record to 1:07.02 in the heats. In 2003 she became the American record holder and world champion in the 200m breast. Beard would break that record again at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials. She went on to win that same event at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. That efficiency put the 15-year-old Grimes in her first Olympics. Tatjana Schoenmaker of South Africa reacts after setting Olympic record. Amanda Beard, Olympic Gold Medalist for swimming during Amanda Beard Visits "The Howard Stern Show" - September 9, 2004 in New York City, New York,... Olympic gold medalist Amanda Beard arrives to host a pool party at Azure on April 16, 2011 in Las Vegas, Nevada. June 9, 2007. Amanda Beard was regularly posted in photographs clenching on to her teddy bear, even during her medal stand. American swimmer, Amanda Beard, is a seven times Olympic-medalist. Amanda was the second youngest olympic medalist in American swimming history when she won 3 medals in Atlanta (1996). Amanda would leave Atlanta with a second silver in the 200m breast and a gold medal for the 4x100 medley relay. SOUTH BEND — The first image most Americans have of Amanda Beard is that of a 14-year-old on the awards stand at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, clutching her teddy bear, Harold. At just 30 years old, Amanda Beard has accomplished a lot in life. At the age of 14, Beard made her inaugural Olympic appearance at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, when a student at Irvine High School in Irvine, California. Women's 200m Breaststroke Final - 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games featuring Penny Heyns (RSA) , and Australia's Samantha Riley and Nadine Neumann Unfortunately, she also suffered from the post “Olympic blues.” Wife, mother, model. She’s an Olympic … Background: She was the shock at the Olympic Trials after ending second in the 800-meter freestyle to star Katie Ledecky. She will swim in the 800 in Tokyo. Amanda Ray Beard (born 29 October 1981) is an American 7-time Olympic swimmer who earned two gold, four silver and one bronze medal over 3 Olympic Games. Amanda Beard before the start of the Women's 200 meter breaststroke semi-finals at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Long Beach, California. Soni won with a time of 2 minutes 22.60 seconds — just off Beard’s U.S. record of 2:22.44, which was set in 2004. Amanda would leave Atlanta with a second silver in the 200m breast and a gold medal for the 4x100 medley relay. Swimmer Amanda Beard, who has won seven Olympic medals and will compete at U.S. nationals this week, finally has found happiness away from the … In Atlanta (1996) Amanda won 1 gold and 2 silver medals. But it was 1996 and the ensuing five Olympics that pushed the bar higher, to where Team Arizona for the Tokyo Games — 80 strong across 17 (of 33) sports — carries its highest profile yet. Beard’s success have earned her the American Swimmer of the Year Award twice. Amanda Beard was just 14 years-old the first time she made an appearance in the Olympic Games and walked away as the second youngest swimmer in history to medal with one gold and two silvers. 1996 Summer Olympics Amanda Beard Byun Hye-young Maria Östling Anna Wilson (swimmer) Swimming at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Women's 200 metre breaststroke. She is a former world record holder in the 200-meter breaststroke (long course). In 2007 Amanda appeared in a Playboy issue. At the Tokyo Olympics this summer, Team USA has a 613-athlete roster, and their ages vary wildly. Amanda Ray Beard (born October 29, 1981), also known by her married name Amanda Brown, is an American swimmer and a seven-time Olympic medalist (two gold, four silver, one bronze). But even that wasn't much of a refuge after she burst on the international scene by winning two silver medals in the breaststroke events and gold in the relay at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. She will swim within the 800 in Tokyo. Amanda has been married to Sacha Brown since 2009. U.S. swimming legend Amanda Beard couldn't juggle motherhood, tweeting, writing a book and aging well enough to qualify for her fifth Olympic team. She is the youngest American swimmer in the Olympics since Amanda Beard made the 1996 staff at 14. When Amanda Beard was fourteen, she first appeared at the Olympics during the Atlanta Summer Olympics in 1996, as a consistent student at Irwin High School in Irvine, California . Up until that stage no woman had done the breaststroke double. United States at 1996 Olympics. She is a former world record holder in the 200-meter breaststroke and was named the American Swimmer of the Year Award twice. Over the next 12 years, she continued to earn four more Olympic medals, and serve as the captain of the USA Olympic swimming team twice. She became America's darling at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where the precocious 14 … This whole Tokyo Games reminds me of Atlanta 1996. There is a lot more of Beard… Amanda Beard is a retired American swimmer and 7-time Olympic medalist. Then South Africa’s Penny Heyns stepped on the blocks. She is the youngest Olympic team member since 1976 and the youngest to hold three medals. Atlanta, GA 7/23/1996 CREDIT: Walter Iooss, Jr. (Photo by Walter Iooss, Jr. /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images) (Set Number: X55110 TK3 R8 F16 ) The most dominant teams representing the US here in Tokyo are women’s teams. She’s also the youngest swim team member since Amanda Beard made the 1996 squad. Home » Olympics » United States. Beard's couldn't have had a more innocuous start to her career. Amanda Beard was born on October 29, 1981 in Irvine, California, USA as Amanda Ray Beard. Swimming at the 1996 Summer Olympics. Ledecky known as Grimes “the future” and “the now.” Up until that stage no woman had done the breaststroke double. She was 14 years old at … Amanda Beard. During the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Beard did more than live her Olympic dream: she became an icon. She won silver medals in the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststrokes, and gold in the medley relay. On Saturday in Tokyo, she swam a 57.49 to finish 10th in the preliminaries and qualify for semifinals Sunday. Amanda Beard made her first Olympic appearance at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games at the age of 14, while a student at Irvine High School in Irvine, California. There, the American teenager Amanda Beard was being touted as a potential double breaststroke gold medallist. Amanda Beard: Full name; Amanda Ray Beard Born October 29, 1981. She is the youngest US Olympic swimmer since Amanda Beard, at 14, competed in Atlanta in 1996. Amanda Beard was just 14 years-old the first time she made an appearance in the Olympic Games and walked away as the second youngest swimmer in history to medal with one gold and two silvers. 1996 Olympic Games - Women - Meet Results. Rebecca Soni won the 200-meter breaststroke a few minutes ago at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials in Omaha, but Lisa Dillman reports that gold medalist Amanda Beard is going to Beijing too. At the age of 14, Amanda Beard made her first Olympic appearance at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, taking home one gold and two silver medals. Beard entered her Olympics at age 14 and has competed in four consecutive Olympics from 1996 to 2008. Beard’s success has earned her the American Swimmer of the Year Award twice. There, the American teenager Amanda Beard was being touted as a potential double breaststroke gold medallist. Over the past 50 years, Irvine has sent 57 athletes to the Olympics, including swimmers Jason Lezak and Amanda Beard. In the heats that day on 21 July 1996, Heyns lowered the world record to 1:07.02 in the heats. Beard’s parents, Dan and Gayle, divorced in 1996, and Beard, the youngest of their three daughters, was distraught. 2006: Seven medals later, appears in Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition. She has been married to Sacha Brown since May 1, 2009. Grimes, 15, turned the youngest American swimmer to make the Olympic Games since Amanda Beard at 14 in 1996. Amanda Ray Beard (born October 29, 1981 in Newport Beach, California), is an Olympic-level swimmer and model from the United States of America. The last time the world looked at Amanda Beard, she was winning her first individual Olympic gold medal at the Athens Games. When Amanda Beard was fourteen-year-old, she first appeared at Olympics during the Atlanta Summer Olympics in 1996, while at Irvine High School in Irvine, California, she was a student consecutively. LONDON (AP) — Step aside, Carl Lewis. Amanda Beard, a child prodigy in the swimming world who first competed in the 1996 Olympics at the age of 14, is a seven-time Olympic medalist who secretly struggled with bulimia nervosa for 12 years. EVENT: 100m, 200m BR. At the podium in Atlanta, the 14-year-old was seen holding her teddy bear. This page was last edited on 23 April 2021, at 07:43 (UTC). Once a 14-year-old scene-stealer at the 1996 Olympics, swimmer Amanda Beard now is a mother of … Now, Amanda Beard can also call herself an author. Beard appeared on the cover of the July 2007 issue of Playboy. Amanda does everything in her power to improve on a daily basis towards her ultimate goal of competing for medals in 5 consecutive Olympics. USA. Beard, who first gained fameas a 14-year-old gold-medal winning swimmer in the 1996 Olympic … It is a reminder of Atlanta 1996. NAME: Amanda Beard. Up until that stage no woman had done the breaststroke double. Up until that stage no woman had done the breaststroke double. It will be Beard's fourth Summer Games. Category – Memoir Most of us remember Amanda Beard from the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. After the 1996 Atlanta Games, Amanda became a darling of the media. Tonight we can watch the Opening Ceremony for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics! 10. Amanda Beard of Tuscon Ford Dealers Aquatics, competes and wins in the 200 LC Meter IM at the … She has a total of seven medals earned from the 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympic games. You have permission to edit this article. There, the American teenager Amanda Beard was being touted as a potential double breaststroke gold medallist. List of Gold, Silver & Bronze medals won by United States in 1996 Olympic games. NEW YORK (Reuters) - When Amanda Beard climbed the podium at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, clutching her teddy bear as she collected her first … Beard was barely 5 … Just at the age of 14 Amanda made her first appearance to the 1996 Atlanta olympics. Amanda Beard. Amanda does everything in her power to improve on a daily basis towards her ultimate goal of competing for medals in 5 consecutive Olympics. Olympic medalist Amanda Beard struggled with self-image, depression. Amanda Beard during NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Awards Ceremony - December 2, 2005 at The Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, New York, United States. 1996 U.S. Olympic Team First Name Last (During Olympics) Age U.S. Club/Team Amanda Ray Beard 14 Irvine Novas Brooke Marie Bennett 15 Brandon Blue Wave Ryan Thomas Berube 22 Dallas Mustangs/SMU Beth Anne Botsford 14 North Baltimore Brad Michael Bridgewater 22 USC Thomas "Carlton" Bruner 24 Club Wolverine Gregory Stewart Burgess 24 Bolles Sharks Raymond E. Carey 22 Stanford That performance put the 15-year-old Grimes in her first Olympics. Beard has since settled into a new identity — wife and mother — that fits her much more comfortably. “in the water they can’t see you cry” by Amanda Beard with Rebecca Paley, published by Touchstone Books. “I definitely learned patience because it took a lot of time to accept where I was and learn how to get out of … Amanda Beard: The Complete Interview We spoke to 25-year-old, seven-time Olympic medalist Amanda Beard about her progression from 14-year … Results: Amanda Beard Place Interview with Amanda Beard begins at the 27:17 mark Beard, 39, was a key member of the United States swimming teams in the 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games. She’s also the youngest swim team member since Amanda Beard made the 1996 squad. Recovering addict. Olympic swimmer Amanda Beard poses during an autograph session for the July issue of Playboy in New York June 14, 2007. Then Penny Heyns stepped on the blocks. GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Once a 14-year-old scene-stealer at the 1996 Olympics, swimmer Amanda Beard now is a mother of two with a message for young athletes: Have fun. Beard made her first Olympic appearance at the 1996 games at the age of 14. Then Penny Heyns stepped on the blocks. Grimes is the youngest U.S. Olympic swimmer since Amanda Beard who made the 1996 team at age 14. Then, American teenager Amanda Beard was being touted as a potential double breaststroke gold medallist. The teddy bear's owner, Amanda Beard, won the silver medal. Amanda Ray Beard is an American swimmer and a seven-time Olympic medalist (two gold, four silver, one bronze). 1996 Summer Olympics Jilen Siroky Amanda Beard Nadine Neumann Roh Joo-hee. Beth Botsford, Amanda Beard and Angel Martino (left to right) watch on as Amy Van Dyken swims the anchor leg to clinch gold for the United States in the women's 400-meter medley relay at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta on July 24, 1996. image credit: pinterest. 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