Amanda Beard

Amanda Beard is a superstar in the swimming world. A four-time Olympian and gold medalist, she made her first Olympic appearance at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, when she was a 14-year-old high school student in Irvine, California. She won silver medals in the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke, and a gold in the medley relay. Four years later, at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, she won a bronze medal in the 200-meter breaststroke.

Beard attended the University of Arizona, where she captured an individual NCAA Division I championship in 2001. In 2003 she became the world champion and world record holder in the 200-meter breaststroke. She also competed in the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, where she won a gold medal in the 200-meter breaststroke, her first individual gold medal.

Amanda is also known for her modeling career, which has led her to pose for FHM, the Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue and other publications, but she still has time to be a fierce environmental advocate. Beard is particularly interested in the plight of sharks, and she made a PSA about shark fin soup for Oceana and Wild Aid.

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