"It was a long season for me" - Swiss record holder Maria Ugolkova announces retirement

Maria Ugolkova, the Swiss swimmer, has announced her retirement from swimming. She holds several Swiss records and is also a two-time Olympic qualifier. The swimmer will be looking forward to exploring the world outside of the sport.

Ugolkova made the announcement through an Instagram post on New Year's Eve. She posted several photos from her swimming career and wrote the following caption:

"Ending this year 2022 by closing a big and very important chapter in my life❤️Thank you everybody who was always there for me and made my sports career possible!🫶"

Maria spoke to Swimswam on January 2, 2023, a few days after announcing her retirement. During the interview, the swimmer said,

"It was a long season for me after the Olympic Games in Tokyo, that was already postponed for one year, and I took my time to rest and think about my future after [the 2022 European Championships] in Rome. I am now 33 years old, and I want to consider and explore my other career path in finance.”

Maria Ugolkova continued,

"Swimming was and will always be a big and very important part of my life and who I am, but I feel that now is the right time to explore the world outside swimming. It is the decision that comes, of course, with a heavy heart, but I’m excited about what is coming next."

Ugolkova has a Master's in Banking and Finance, according to Swimswam. She may be eager to explore her career in the same.

Maria was born in Moscow on July 18, 1989. She speaks five languages: German, English, French, Italian, and Russian. She represented Russia in international competitions until 2015.

Maria Ugolkova's first competition representing Switzerland was the 2015 World Championships in Kazan, Russia. She has won three medals in the European Championships. The Swiss swimmer won two silver medals in 200-meter medley events during the 2019 European Championships in Glasgow and the 2021 European Championships in Kazan. She won another bronze medal in the 200-meter medley during the 2018 European Championships in Glasgow.

Maria now bids farewell to the sport of swimming with 19 Swiss Records. Out of the 19, 10 records are in individual events. Maria Ugolkova has the most records among the current Swiss record holders, according to Swimswam.

Since crossing the age of 30, Maria has shown major improvements in her performance. Among the 10 individual records she holds, seven were made in the past 18 months, as per Swimswam. Maria Ugolkova competed in the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

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Maria Ugolkova's records in Individual events

Maria Ugolkova holds 10 Swiss national records in individual events. As revealed in Swimswam, the 10 national records held by Maria in Individual events are as follows:

• 200 LCM Free – 1:58.77 (June 2017)
• 100 LCM Fly – 58.22 (July 2021)
• 200 LCM IM – 2:10.04 (July 2021)
• 200 SCM Free – 1:56.35 (November 2019)
• 200 SCM Backstroke – 2:08.07 (March 2019)
• 100 SCM Fly – 56.81 (October 2021)
• 200 SCM Fly – 2:06.26 (December 2021)
• 100 SCM IM – 58.25 (December 2021)
• 200 SCM IM – 2:06.41 (November 2021)
• 400 SCM IM – 4:33.51 (October 2021

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Followers react to Maria Ugolkova's retirement

Maria Ugolkova announced her retirement from swimming in an Instagram post. Fans and fellow swimmers reacted to the announcement in the comments section of her post.

Dutch star swimmer and two-time Olympic medalist Femke Heemskerk wrote:

"Congrats on your career!!! ❤️"

Hungarian swimmer Zsuzsanna Jakabos wrote:

"❤️"

Roman Mityukov, the Swiss swimmer, wrote:

"Thank you for everything Masha 🙏🏼 and good luck in the future 😘😉"

Elena Krawzow, the German Paralympic swimmer and two-time Paralympic Games medalist, wrote:

"❤️❤️❤️"

Italian swimmer Ilaria Cusinato wrote:

"I will miss you Maria ❤️ many beautiful things"

Noe Ponti, Swiss swimmer and Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist, wrote:

"Congrats on an amazing career! It’s been a pleasure to be your teammate and share memories with you! Grazie per tutto!"

Jolann Bovey, the Swiss swimmer, wrote:

"Congratulations and thank you for all you have done for our sport! Keep doing your Maria and I wish you all the best for the future 😊"

One of Maria's followers posted a comment, saying,

"👏 💪 Congratulations for showing young people that it is possible, to achieve it by working hard. Good luck in your new "life" 😉"

A few more reactions from fans and fellow swimmers can be seen below:

"Congratulations on your exemplary career and life path ❤️ and thank you for the shared moments 🌟!"

"Congrats, Maria, to an outstanding career! All the best for the future and thanks for all the fun racing together back in the days 😁💪🏼"

"Maria ugolkova is queen of Switzerland swimming."

"Swimming will be much less interesting without you 😔. Good look for your coming other goals. Lov’u"

Despite retiring from professional swimming, Maria Ugolkova will forever support other swimmers who compete in the swimming arena.