{"id":494868,"date":"2022-01-04T04:00:42","date_gmt":"2022-01-04T11:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=494868"},"modified":"2022-01-04T08:30:05","modified_gmt":"2022-01-04T15:30:05","slug":"swimming-world-january-2022-presents-the-2021-athletes-of-the-year-diving-artistic-swimming-water-polo-paralympics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/swimming-world-january-2022-presents-the-2021-athletes-of-the-year-diving-artistic-swimming-water-polo-paralympics\/","title":{"rendered":"Swimming World January 2022 Presents – The 2021 Athletes of the Year: Diving, Artistic Swimming, Water Polo & Paralympics"},"content":{"rendered":"

The latest issue of Swimming World Magazine<\/em><\/span>
\nis now available for download in the<\/span> Swimming World Vault<\/span><\/strong><\/a>!<\/p>\n

Non-Subscribers Can Download This Issue Here<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The 2021 Athletes of the Year<\/span><\/h1>\n

By Dan D’Addona and Matthew De George<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Diving: Shi Tingmao, China & Xie Siyi, China<\/strong><\/p>\n

Artistic Swimming: Svetlana Kolesnichenko & Svetlana Romashina, Russia<\/strong><\/p>\n

Water Polo: Maddie Musselman, USA & Filip Filipovic, Serbia<\/strong><\/p>\n

Paralympic: Jessica Long, USA & Maksym Krypac, Serbia<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

SHI TINGMAO, CHINA<\/strong><\/span>
\nFEMALE DIVER OF THE YEAR<\/strong>
\nChina\u2019s Shi Tingmao continued to prove she is the top diver in the world, having been named Swimming World\u2019s Female Diver of the Year a record five times (2015-17, 2019, 2021). This past year, Shi won the women\u2019s 3-meter springboard gold medal at the Tokyo Olympic Games. Shi also won gold in the 3-meter synchro, following the same path as she did in Rio in 2016 with gold in both 3-meter events. \u201cI\u2019ve waited so long for this moment,\u201d Shi said after winning her Olympic gold medals. \u201cThere were a lot of expectations. I feel satisfied.\u201d\u2014Dan D\u2019Addona<\/em><\/p>\n

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XIE SIYI, CHINA<\/strong><\/span>
\nMALE DIVER OF THE YEAR<\/strong>
\nLike Shi Tingmao on the women\u2019s side, China\u2019s Xie Siyi captured two gold medals in diving among the men, also taking both 3-meter events (springboard and synchro). Xie was selected as Swimming World\u2019s Male Diver of the Year, an honor he also earned in 2019. This past summer\u2019s Olympic triumph was the cap to an amazing comeback after breaking his leg twice in 2014. The injury kept him from competing for a spot in Rio. But five years later, after an extra year because of the pandemic, Xie finally stood atop the Olympic podium\u2014twice. \u2014Dan D\u2019Addona<\/em><\/p>\n

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SVETLANA KOLESNICHENKO & SVETLANA ROMASHINA, RUSSIA<\/strong><\/span>
\nARTISTIC SWIMMING CO-SWIMMERS OF THE YEAR<\/strong>
\nThe Russian duo of Svetlana Kolesnichenko and Svetlana Romashina once again displayed their dominance in artistic swimming. Ever since 2013, at least one or both of these swimmers have been named Swimming World\u2019s Artistic Swimmers of the Year except for 2014: Romashina five times and Kolesnichenko four times. The duet won the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo with a near-perfect 98.800. It is the third consecutive medal for the two Svetlanas. Romashina, at 31, was the oldest artistic swimmer to earn a medal\u2014and the gold medal was her record sixth in artistic swimming. \u2014Dan D\u2019Addona<\/em><\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n

To continue reading on for Swimming World’s 2021 Athletes of the Year, <\/span><\/a>
\n<\/strong>Click here to download the full January issue of Swimming World Magazine, available now!<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Swimming<\/a>[Photo Courtesy: Robert Hanashiro \/ USA Today Sports]<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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FEATURES<\/p>\n

012<\/span> THE TOP 5 STORIES OF 2021<\/strong><\/span>
\nby David Rieder<\/strong>
\nWhile the pandemic and its massive effects on the sport were the lone top story of 2020, the action in the pool returned to center-stage in 2021. Unsurprisingly, the focus of the year\u2019s top stories centers on Tokyo, where the Olympics produced some amazing performances and historic results.<\/p>\n

016<\/span> 2021 ATHLETES OF THE YEAR<\/strong><\/span>
\nby Dan D\u2019Addona and Matthew De George<\/strong><\/p>\n