Egerszegi, Krisztina (1974—)

Hungarian swimmer. Born on August 16, 1974, in Budapest, Hungary.

Won silver medal in 100-meter backstroke and gold in 200-meter backstroke in Seoul Olympics (1988); won gold medals in 400-meter individual medley, 200-meter backstroke, and 100-meter backstroke in Barcelona Olympics (1992); won gold medal in the 200-meter backstroke in Atlanta Olympics (1996).

Known as the queen of the backstroke, Krisztina Egerszegi held the world record at 2:06.62 in the 200-meter backstroke. Egerszegi began swimming at age 13; since Eger means mouse, she was dubbed the Little Mouse. At the 1987 European championships, she finished fourth and fifth. The following year, in the Seoul Olympics, 14-year-old Egerszegi was the youngest swimming gold medalist ever, taking gold in the 200-meter backstroke; she also won a silver in 100-meter backstroke. In 1991, she won two world titles, breaking world records at the 100 and 200-meter backstroke. In 1992, in the Barcelona Olympics, she won three individual gold medals in the 400-meter individual medley, the 200-meter backstroke, and the 100-meter backstroke. When she took the gold medal in the 200 meter backstroke with a time of 2:07.83 in the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, she became the first swimmer since Dawn Fraser to win three gold medals in the same event, a record that went unbroken for 32 years. Only 21 at the time, Egerszegi was the youngest triple champion in history. She also holds distinction as the first woman swimmer to win five individual golds.