No swimmer was busier than Michael Phelps over the last three Olympics. Now that Phelps has pared his schedule to three individual events, somebody else has to set the standard for splashes in Rio.
That somebody is actually two people — Hungarian Katinka Hosszu, nicknamed the Iron Lady for her penchant for entering several events in meets local and global, and Spain’s Mireia Belmonte.
They’re both entered in a meet-high five individual events in Rio, according to lists published by FINA on Wednesday.
Olympic Swimming Entries: Men | Women
Hosszu, 27, will compete in her fourth Olympics, seeking her first medal. Read more about Hosszu’s emotional swimming career here.
Belmonte, 25, is going to her third Olympics. The Spanish star took silver in the 800m freestyle and the 200m butterfly in 2012, when she also swam five individual events (more than Phelps’ four, but she swam one relay to Phelps’ three).
Hosszu is the favorite in the 200m and 400m individual medleys, having swept them at the 2013 and 2015 World Championships. She is also entered in the 100m and 200m backstrokes and the 200m butterfly. Hosszu decided not to swim the 200m freestyle, despite finishing fifth in that event at the 2015 World Championships.
Belmonte is also entered in both medleys and the 200m butterfly; she earned medals in all three at the 2013 Worlds. Rather than Hosszu’s backstrokes, she is entered in the 400m and 800m frees, events dominated by American Katie Ledecky. Belmonte missed the 2015 World Championships due to a shoulder injury.
Also of note, South Korea’s Park Tae-hwan is entered in the 100m, 200m, 400m and 1500m freestyles.
MORE: Rio Olympics schedule, day-by-day highlights
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