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| Ryan Lochte © Gallo Images |
Ryan Lochte beat out superstar Michael Phelps and veteran Aaron Peirsol for male swimmer of the year on Sunday at USA Swimming's Golden Goggles awards.
Rebecca Soni nabbed female swimmer of the year honours, while
Phelps, who earned a leading six nominations, was honoured for
delivering the men's race of the year and for a world championship
relay performance.
Lochte ended Phelps's two-year reign as male swimmer of the year,
thanks to world record-setting triumphs in the 200m individual
medley and 4x200m freestyle relay at the world championships in
Rome.
He earned five medals, including four golds in Rome.
"I just want to say thank you to my parents. They've been 100
percent with me my entire swimming career," Lochte said. "Aaron
Peirsol and Michael Phelps, you guys have pushed me to limits I
didn't even know, and I wouldn't be here without you."
Lochte also shared the relay performance of the year award, for
the 4x100m free relay in Rome in which he, Phelps, Matt Grevers and
Nathan Adrian defeated Russia as favorites France flopped.
Phelps was honoured for his scintillating 100m butterfly triumph
in Rome. He smashed the 50-second barrier with a time of 49.82sec
and handed Milorad Cavic a bigger defeat than the one the Serbian
suffered by a fingertip at the Beijing Olympics.
Soni set a world record and won gold in the 100m breaststroke in
Rome.
The award-winners were decided by fans in online voting.
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