Яна Клочкова: Украинская пловчиха – олимпийская чемпионка

Ukrainian swimmer

Yana Oleksandrivna Klochkova (Яна Олександрівна Клочкова; born 7 August 1982) is a Ukrainian swimmer, who has won five Olympic medals in her career, with four of them being gold. She is Merited Master of Sports (1998), Hero of Ukraine (2004)

Yana Klochkova set 50 Ukrainian records in 25 and 50 meter swimming pools at distances of 100, 200, 400 meters with integrated swimming; 200, 400 and 800 meters freestyle; 100 and 200 meters on the back; 200 meters butterfly and relay swimming. At the Olympic Games in Sydney, she set a world record in a 400 meter medley swimming and a European record in a 200 meter medley swimming.

She was born on 7 August 1982 in the city of Simferopol. She moved from there to Kharkiv, then to Kyiv. Sports Society — "Dynamo", Major of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine. Coaches⁣ — Honored Trainer of Ukraine, Honored Worker of Physical Culture of Ukraine Nina Kozhukh and Honored Trainer of the USSR, Honored Worker of Physical Culture of Ukraine Alexander Kozhukh. She retired in 2009 at the age of 26. As of 2018, Yana has an 8 year old son named Alex. In 2022, Yana Klochkova left to live in occupied Crimea. The athlete has never commented on the full scale war of Russia against Ukraine.

In January 2008, Klochkova announced her retirement from sports. On 24 March 2009 in the Olympic swimming pool "Aquarena" in Kharkov on Klochkovskaya street, during the first stage of the Ukrainian Swimming Cup, with completely filled stands, Yana Klochkova's official "parting with water" took place. Officials (Mayor Mikhail Dobkin, Vice Governor Sergei Storozhenko, Head of the Ukrainian Swimming Federation Oleg Dyomin, two time Olympic champion volleyball player Yuriy Poyarkov and many others) spoke about the swimmers, followed by the presentation of flowers and gifts from everyone. Klochkova, nicknamed "the goldfish" in Ukraine, was symbolically presented with an aquarium with a live goldfish. In 2011, Yana Klochkova headed the Kyiv branch of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, but in 2012, without waiting for support for her initiatives from the executive committee of the Olympic Committee, she left this post.

Her gold medals came in the 200 meter individual medley and the 400 meter individual medley at the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics; her silver medal came in the 800 meter freestyle at the 2000 Summer Olympics. She has also won ten titles at swimming's world championships, nineteen European championship titles. She currently holds the short course world record in the 400 meter individual medley. Her 400 m individual medley world record was broken by American Katie Hoff at the 2007 World Championships in Melbourne. On 28 July 2001, she won a silver medal by defeating Qi Hui of China in the women's 200 meter individual medley at the 2001 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. The same year, she won gold medal for 400 meter individual medley at the same event and on two days later won another gold in the 400 meter freestyle. In 2003, she won four golds at the Summer Universiade in South Korea. In 2004, she was named by Swimming World magazine as the World Female Swimmer of the Year and the same year was awarded Hero of Ukraine medal by President Viktor Yanukovich.

"Person of the Year 2000" in the nomination "Sportsman of the Year". "Person of the Year 2003" in the nomination "Sportsman of the Year". Honorary Citizen of Kharkiv and Donetsk.