Leila Vaziri
Vaziri at 2007 world championships
Personal information
Full nameLeila Vaziri
Nickname"Lei"
National team United States
Born (1985-06-06) June 6, 1985
New York, New York
Height5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBackstroke
ClubCoral Springs Swim Club
College teamIndiana University
Medal record
Women's swimming
Representing the United States
World Championships (LC)
Gold medal – first place 2007 Melbourne 50 m backstroke
Silver medal – second place 2007 Melbourne 4×100 m medley

Leila Vaziri (Persian: لیلا وزیری, born June 6, 1985) is an American competition swimmer, the 2007 world champion, and a former world record-holder in the 50-meter backstroke.

Swimming career

Collegiate career

Vaziri attended Indiana University, where she majored in communication and culture, and competed for the Indiana Hoosiers swimming and diving team. She was 2005 Big Ten Champion in the 100-yard backstroke and the 2007 NCAA bronze medalist in the 100-yard backstroke. Vaziri earned 15 All-America certificates during her Hoosier career, the most in school history, and was the 2007 Indiana University Female Athlete of the Year.[1]

Leila won the 100-meter backstroke at the US National Championships in 2006, earning a spot at the Pan Pacific Championships in Victoria, British Columbia. After turning in the second-fastest time in the nation, she earning a spot on the U.S. World Championship Team.

Professional career

At the 2007 World Aquatics Championships held in Melbourne, Vaziri won a gold medal in the 50-meter backstroke and earned a silver medal by swimming the backstroke leg in the heats of the 4×100-meter medley relay. Going into the final of the 50 m backstroke, Vaziri was the clear favorite for gold. In the heats of the 50 m backstroke, Vaziri broke Natalie Coughlin's Championship record of 28.30 with a time of 28.25 establishing a new American Record.[2] In the semifinals of the 50 m backstroke, she broke Janine Pietsch's world record of 28.19 with a time of 28.16.[3][4] In the final of the 50 m backstroke, she equalled her own world record en route to winning gold.[5][6]

Vaziri came short of making the 2008 USA Olympic Swimming Team when she finished in 7th place in the final of the 100 m backstroke at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials.[7]

Personal

She has an Iranian father and a mother of German ancestry.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Vaziri Wins World Championship, Matches Own World Record Archived 2007-06-15 at the Wayback Machine, IU Hoosiers website; published 2007-03-29; retrieved 2009-07-13.
  2. ↑ "Women's 50 m backstroke results (heats)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-04. Retrieved 2010-05-30.
  3. ↑ "Women's 50 m backstroke results (semifinals)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-04-10. Retrieved 2010-05-30.
  4. ↑ "Vaziri breaks backstroke world record" Archived 2015-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Pippa Davis, Eurosport, 28 March 2007
  5. ↑ "Women's 50 m backstroke results (final)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-10-04. Retrieved 2010-05-30.
  6. ↑ American Vaziri equals record to win 50 backstroke gold, Guardian Unlimited, March 29, 2007
  7. ↑ "Women's 100 m backstroke results (final)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-10-11. Retrieved 2010-05-30.
  8. ↑ "Iranian - American Vaziri Wins World Championship". IranSportsPress. Retrieved 2007-04-02.


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