Hungarian · Pécs, Hungary · Born 3 May 1989Hungarian medley legend who won three Olympic golds at Rio 2016 and dominated IM events globally for over a decade before retiring with 97 career medals.
Katinka Hosszú earned the nickname "Iron Lady" for a race schedule that looked less like a normal competitive program and more like an endurance test: entering, and often winning, events across multiple strokes and distances at the same meet, a volume of racing that most elite swimmers deliberately avoid to protect their times in any single event. Her poolside coaching partnership with Shane Tusup became almost as widely discussed as her results themselves, defined by an unusually animated, vocal bench presence that stood out even by swimming's more demonstrative coaching standards -- a dynamic that shaped her rise through the early 2010s before the partnership eventually ended. Hosszú's triple gold at Rio 2016, across the 100m backstroke and both individual medley distances, came the same Games where her 400m IM world record set in the heats stood as one of the meet's most talked-about swims -- a versatility across stroke types that very few swimmers, male or female, have matched within a single Olympic program.
'Iron Lady' of swimming — legendary work rate and event volume; retired January 2025
How They Played
Versatile all-rounder across medley, backstroke, freestyle and butterfly
Lasting Impact
One of the greatest all-around swimmers in history, redefining event-range for a single competitor
Career Honours
- Triple Olympic champion Rio 2016 (100 back, 200 IM, 400 IM)
- 9-time long-course World champion 2009-2019
- still holds 200 IM world record
Hungarian Athletes