Three-Time Olympian James Goddard Retires from Swimming

STOCKPORT, Great Britain, September 25. IT’s that time of the swimming cycle again. A day after two-time Olympic gold medalist Megan Jendrick called it a career, British three-time Olympian James Goddard decided to end his time in competitive swimming.

The 30-year-old swimmer, who competed for Britain at the 2004 Athens, 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympic Games, retired from the sport today after finishing seventh in the 200-meter IM at the 2012 Olympiad.

“It’s time to find something new in my life,” Goddard told the BBC. “I’ve been a full-time international swimmer since I was 18, and after 12 years it’s time for new experiences.”

Goddard was initially born in Seychelles, but began his international swimming career by representing England at the 2002 Commonwealth Games. He went on to win the Commonwealth title in the 200-meter backstroke in both 2006 and 2010. His best international finish ever came by way of a fourth-place effort in the 200-meter back in Athens.

Goddard, who represents Stockport Metro, likely would have had a tough time moving forward in the sport after British Swimming elected to cut high performance funding from Stockport as one of its high performance centers.

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