EGERSZEGI, KRISZTINA

born Aug. 16, 1974, Budapest, Hung. Hungarian swimmer, the youngest athlete to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming. In 1987 Egerszegi competed in her first international event at the European championships in Strasbourg, France, where she finished fifth in the 200-metre backstroke. At age 14, she became the youngest athlete ever to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming when she won the 200-metre backstroke at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea; Egerszegi also won a silver medal in the 100 metres. In 1991, at the age of 16, she won both the 100- and 200-metre backstroke at the world championships in Perth, Australia. Also in 1991, she broke world records for both distances at the European championships in Athens. At the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain, Egerszegi won three gold medals, the most by any woman in individual events. She won the 400-metre individual medley and set Olympic records in both backstroke events. She was named Female World Swimmer of the Year in 1991 and 1992. In 1993 at the European championships in Sheffield, England, she was the first swimmer ever to earn four individual titles in a single European championship, winning the 100- and 200-metre backstroke, the 200-metre butterfly, and the 400-metre individual medley. Egerszegi returned to the Olympic Games in 1996 in Atlanta, Ga. There she won a gold medal in the 200-metre backstroke and a bronze in the 400-metre individual medley.