Otylia Jędrzejczak (born December 13, 1983 in Ruda Śląska) is a Polish swimmer. She is the current world and olympic champion in the 200 metre butterfly and holds the world record in that event. She took part in two summer olympic games.

Jędrzejczak started swimming at the age of six as a measure to correct a slight curvature of the spine. At first she hated the sport. Her attitude towards it changed after she had won her first prize in a competition in Germany at the age of eight. Jędrzejczak took up swimming seriously in high school. Led by coach Maria Jakóbik she won her first titles in the Junior European Championships in 1999. Medals in the Senior European Championships in 1999 and 2000 opened the way to her first olympic appearance. Currently, Jędrzejczak is a student at the Academy of Physical Education in Warsaw (Akademia Wychowania Fizycznego w Warszawie). Her coach is Paweł Słomiński.

Achievements

• In 1999 she won the 100m and 200m butterfly titles during the Junior European Championships in Moscow and a bronze medal in the 200m butterfly event in the Senior European Championships in Istanbul.
• In 2000 she won gold in the 200m butterfly and silver in the 100m butterfly in the European Championships in Helsinki.
• In the 2000 Summer Olympics she placed 5th in the 200m butterfly.
• In 2001 she placed second in the 100m butterfly event in the World Championships in Fukuoka.
• On 4 August 2002 she established a new world record in the 200m butterfly with a time of 2:05.78 during the European Championships in Berlin. Except the 200m title, she won a silver medal in the 100m butterfly event.
• During the 2003 World Championships in Barcelona she placed first in the 200m butterfly and second in the 100m butterfly.
• In the 2004 European Championships in Madrid she defended her 200m butterfly title and placed third in the 100m butterfly event.
• During the 2004 Summer Olympics she won three medals: silver in the 400m freestyle and 100m butterfly, and gold in the 200m butterfly. This equals her in the number of medals earned during single olympic games with legendary Polish athlete Irena Szewińska.

Olympic Gold Medal

Jędrzejczak owes her success to a brilliant finish in the last quarter of the 200 metre distance, which allowed her to overtake Australian Petria Thomas, who led the race for over 150 metres. After the race Jędrzejczak revealed, that during the pre-olympic trials in Athens in June she had declared that if she won a gold medal in the olympics, she would auction it off and hand the proceeds to a charity helping children suffering from leukemia.
The results of the internet auction were announced on the 19 December 2004 with Victoria Cymes, a Polish food company, turning out to be the highest bidder with 257550 zlotys (about 82437 USD). The money was handed over to the Oncology and Haematology Clinic of Wrocław's Children Hospital.

External link

• Biography at FINA web page