Australia's former Olympic champion Stephanie retires

FILE - In this July 30, 2012 file photo, Australia's Stephanie Rice smiles after competing in a women's 200-meter individual medley swimming heat at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Triple Olympic champion Stephanie Rice officially retired from competitive swimming on Wednesday, April 9. (AP Photo)
 
BRISBANE, April 9 (AP): Stephanie Rice, who retired Wednesday at the age of 25, managed some golden Olympic moments in an eight-year swimming career cut short by continuing shoulder problems. Along the way, there was also some controversy.

At the top of her achievements were three gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics -- two of them in the individual medleys over 200 and 400 metres in world record time. She also won also gold with the Australian 4x200-meter freestyle relay team, again in a world record. She has not competed since the 2012 London Olympics, where shoulder surgery just before the Games ended any chance she had of reaching the podium.

"I really didn't want to make a rash decision on my career, and if I was going to keep swimming or not because I was still too emotional about the whole preparation that I'd just been through," Rice said on her website Wednesday.

"I felt a lot of pressure to live up to everyone's expectations and fulfil their answers, but I knew I had to take the time for myself to get to the point where I knew 100 per cent what I wanted to do."

After Beijing, Rice became a celebrity, topping a newspaper poll as Australia's most recognizable Olympic athlete, and maintaining an even higher profile in fashion shoots and on her Twitter account.

In September 2010, Rice was criticized for using an offensive word about gay men when tweeting about a rugby union match between Australia and South Africa. Rice removed the remarks and apologized, but not before one of her sponsors, a luxury automobile manufacturer, ended its association with her and asked for the car back. She was also romantically involved with fellow Australian swimmer and former 50-metre world record holder Eamon Sullivan.