Considered the greatest swimmer of all times, the four-time Olympics champion Inge de Bruijn of the Netherlands has announced her retirement from professional swimming.
The 33-year-old veteran, known as the serial record breaker (holds the 50m freestyle and 100m butterfly world records) ended her career with eight Olympic medals and five World Championships.
Failing to compete in any major international event since the Athens Olympics, where she had won the 50m freestyle gold - this decision from the athlete who feels ’she has nothing left to achieve’ was for long expected.
Doing the most difficult - announcing her retirement, de Bruijn said:
My career is finished and I reached the top, I am 33 years now and a granny in swimming, while my body isn’t recovering so well like it did in the past.
Trying out different sports before finally setting into Swimming - Inge made her international debut at the 1991 World Championships, winning a bronze in the 4×100m relay.
The Dutch specialist will be missed in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Read: Stuff
