Keena Rothhammer

Keena Rothhammer

Personal information
Full name	Keena Ruth Rothhammer
National team	United States
Born	(1957-02-26) February 26, 1957 (age 67) Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S.
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	146 lb (66 kg)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	Freestyle
Club	Santa Clara Swim Club
Medal record Representing the  United States Olympic Games 1972 Munich 800 m freestyle 1972 Munich 200 m freestyle World Championships (LC) 1973 Belgrade 200 m freestyle 1973 Belgrade 400 m freestyle

Rothhammer (right) at 1972 Olympics

Keena Ruth Rothhammer (born February 26, 1957) is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder in two events.

Rothhammer was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, and is Jewish.[1]

Swimming career

As a teenager, she grew up in Santa Clara, California,[2] and trained with the Santa Clara Swim Club in Santa Clara under the coach George Haines, who was noted for leading U.S. Olympic swimmers during the 1960s and 1970s.

As a 15-year-old, Rothhammer represented the United States at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. She won the gold medal in the women's 800-meter freestyle and set a new world record in the event twice, on successive days.[1] She also won the bronze medal in the women's 200-meter freestyle at the 1972 Olympics. At the 1973 World Aquatics Championships, she won the 200-meter freestyle and finished second in the 400-meter freestyle.[3] The same year, she was named North American Athlete of the Year.[1]

She was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer" in 1991.[4]

See also

• List of Olympic medalists in swimming (women)
• List of select Jewish swimmers
• List of University of Southern California people
• List of World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming (women)
• World record progression 400 metres freestyle
• World record progression 800 metres freestyle

References

1. Taylor, Paul (2004). Jews and the Olympic Games: The Clash Between Sport and Politics : with a Complete Review of Jewish Olympic Medallists. Sussex Academic Press. ISBN 9781903900871.
2. "Shane Gould Sets Medley Mark". The New York Times. April 6, 1973.
3. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Keena Rothhammer". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020.
4. "Keena Rothhammer (USA)". ISHOF.org. International Swimming Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on February 11, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2012.

External links

• Keena Rothhammer – Jews in Sports profile

Records
Preceded by Shane Gould	Women's 400-meter freestyle world record-holder (long course) August 22, 1973 – June 28, 1974	Succeeded by Heather Greenwood
Preceded by Jo Harshbarger	Women's 800-meter freestyle world record-holder (long course) September 3, 1972 – September 9, 1973	Succeeded by Novella Calligaris