Rebecca Adlington Rebecca Adlington Rebecca Adlington, OBE (born 17 February 1989) is a British former competitive swimmer who specialized in freestyle events in international competition. She won two gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in the 400-metre freestyle and 800-metre freestyle, breaking the 19-year-old world record of Janet Evans in the 800-metre final. Adlington was Britain's first Olympic swimming champion since 1988, and the first British swimmer to win two Olympic gold medals since 1908. She won bronze medals in both the women's 400-metre and 800-metre freestyle events in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. On 5 February 2013, Adlington retired
Suriname at the 2008 Summer Olympics athletes to any one Games. Prior to and including 2008, one Surinamese athlete had won the two medals ever claimed by Surinamese athletes–Anthony Nesty, who won a gold medal in 1988, and a bronze medal in 1992, both in swimming events. No medals were won in Beijing. Although Nesty did not participate in any event at the Beijing Olympics, he was Suriname's flag bearer at the ceremonies. He also served as the head coach for the Surinamese Olympic swim team, having served previously as associate head coach for the University of Florida swim team and, during the 2004 Summer Olympics