National team Russia Role Swimmer Name Yuliya Yefimova Parents Andrei Yefimov | Weight 64 kg Height 1.78 m | |
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Full name Yuliya Andreyevna Yefimova Similar People Jessica Hardy, Veronika Popova, Rebecca Soni, Dariya Ustinova, Missy Franklin Profiles | ||
Yuliya Andreyevna Yefimova (Russian: Юлия Андреевна Ефимова), also romanized Efimova; born 3 April 1992) is a Russian competitive swimmer. A three-time Olympian, she made her Olympic debut in 2008, before going on to win the bronze medal in the 200 metres breaststroke in 2012, and silver medals in the 100 metres and 200 metres breaststroke in 2016. In 2013, she failed a drug test and was suspended from competition for 16 months.
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Yefimova is a five-time World Champion, winning the 50 metres breaststroke in 2009 and 2013, the 100 metres breaststroke in 2015, and the 200 metres breaststroke in 2013 and 2017. She is a former world record holder in the 50 metres breaststroke.
Personal life
Yefimova was born in Grozny, but due to the First Chechen War her family moved to Volgodonsk. There she took up swimming aged six, coached by her father Andrey Yefimov. Until 2011, she lived in Taganrog, where she trained under Irina Vyatchanina and studied at the Southern Federal University. In March that year, she moved to California, United States, where she is coached by Dave Salo, the head coach of the University of Southern California swimming team.
Swimming career
Yefimova's first notable achievement was winning the 50 m, 100 m and 200 m breaststroke titles at the 2007 European Short Course Swimming Championships. At the 2008 European Aquatics Championships she was the gold medalist in 200 m breaststroke and silver medalist in 50 m. She participated at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, reaching fourth place in 100 m and fifth place in 200 m breaststroke.
In 2010, Yefimova won gold medals at the 2010 European Aquatics Championships in 50 m and 100 m breaststroke. In 2012, Yefimova received bronze in 200 m at the 2012 Summer Olympics, with 2:20.92. A year later at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships in Barcelona she triumphed in 200 m with 2:19.41. In the 50 m heats event, the Russian achieved a new world record of 29.78 which was broken in the semifinals by Rūta Meilutytė. Yefimova won the finals with 29.52.
After 16 months of disqualification due to a positive drug test, Yefimova in August 2015 for the first time won the gold medal in 100 m at the World Aquatics Championships, with 1:05.66. In 50 m she was third with 30.13. However, in 200 m she was eliminated in the semifinals; she was 17th.
In June 2016, Yefimova returned at the Los Angeles Invitational, winning in 200 m with 2:22.77. Yefimova became silver medalist at the 2016 Summer Olympics in the 100 m and 200m breaststroke.
Doping scandals
In January 2014, it was announced that Yefimova had failed an out of competition drug test in October 2013. Her positive test was for DHEA, an endogenous steroid hormone banned in professional sports. On 13 May 2014, she was disqualified for 16 months, from 31 October 2013, until 28 February 2015. She was also stripped of her results and medals at the 2013 European Short Course Championships. Her four world short-course records (two relays and the 50 metres and 200 metres breaststroke set in November/December 2013) were also invalidated.
Between 15 February and 30 March 2016, Yefimova tested positive for meldonium six times in total (1x by FINA and 5x by USADA). She was provisionally suspended from international competition by the International Swimming Federation (FINA) on 14 March. This suspension was later lifted while the World Anti-Doping Agency investigated the drug. On 15 July, FINA released a statement saying that Yefimova had "committed 'no fault or negligence' in this case."
2016 Olympics controversy
Yefimova's participation in the 2016 Summer Olympics was controversial in light of an ongoing scandal of doping within the Russian Olympic Team. She was initially banned from participation due to her previous doping suspension, but this ban was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, allowing her to compete. During the Games, she was booed by spectators during each of her races. Yefimova was also criticized by other swimmers, including Lilly King, who won the gold medal in the 100 m breaststroke. Yefimova won the silver, and during the news conference afterwards, she was "on the verge of tears from the opening question about the boos directed at her."
2017
In the 2017 New South Wales State Open Championships in March, Yefimova won the 200 m breaststroke event with a time of 2:28.80. and won the 100 m breaststroke with a time of 1:06.55. A month later, she won the 50 m breaststroke at the 2017 Russian Championships with a time of 29.88.
In July 2017 at the World Championships in Budapest, Yefimova won the bronze medal in the 100 metres breaststroke in 1:05.04. Three days later, she won the 200 metres breaststroke in 2:19.64, to give her the fifth World Championship title of her career.