WALKER-HEBBORN Chris < Back  
Sport Swimming
CGA England   
Gender Men
Born 01 Jul 1990
Height1.84 m
Human Interest
Further Personal Information
Residence Bath, ENG
General Interest
Hero / Idol US boxer Muhammad Ali. (swimming.org, 25 Oct 2013)
Awards and honours He was named the 2009 Suffolk Sports Personality of the Year in England. (ipswichstar.co.uk, 20 Oct 2009)

He was named the 2008 Young Athlete of the Year at the Splash Awards in Great Britain. (fireball.co.uk, 2011)
Sport Specific Information
When and where did you begin this sport? He began swimming at age three while on holiday in Florida, United States of America.
International Debut
Year 2009
Competing for Great Britain
Tournament World Championships
Location Rome, ITA
General Interest
Nicknames Poppet (bbc.co.uk, 24 Jun 2010)
Sporting philosophy / motto "Winners never quit, quitters never win." (swimming.org, 25 Oct 2013)
Other information RETIRMENT
He retired from competitive sport in September 2018. "I have achieved more in swimming than I could have ever dreamed of when I was a young kid starting out. Lots of people told me I'd never be able to do it and if there's one piece of advice that I can pass on to young swimmers or kids with a dream, it's to never stop believing in yourself." (bbc.co.uk, 05 Sep 2018)

TRAINING IN AUSTRALIA
Although he started swimming competitively while living in Cambridge, England, he began making real progress in his swimming career when he moved to Australia at age 16. "It didn't really pick up until 2007, I was offered a scholarship to study and train on the Gold Coast for two-and-a-half years. I mean being told that you have to move half way across the world without your parents and essentially start a new life was pretty tough." (London Evening Standard YouTube channel, 28 Jul 2016)

MEDAL DEDICATION
He dedicated the silver medal he won in the 4x100m medley relay at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro to his father Andy, who had recently been diagnosed with cancer. "This one's for my dad and it's pretty special. It's been a tough few weeks. This was always going to be my best opportunity and these boys swam out of their skin and I left everything in the pool." (eadt.co.uk, 15 Aug 2016)

TATTOOS
He has a number of tattoos, including one across his chest that reads 'per aquam ad calorimeter' ['through water to glory' in Latin]. (swimvortex.com, 14 Apr 2015)
Further Personal Information
Higher education Fitness and Exercise Management - University of Bath: England
Languages English
Sport Specific Information
Why this sport? "According to my dad, I couldn't wait to get my armbands off in the pool and it went from there really. I played football for a bit as a kid, but once I really got into swimming I didn't have time for football training."
General Interest
Injuries A viral infection meant he missed the 100m backstroke at the 2017 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. Despite his illness and being on a course of antibiotics he was able to compete in the 4x100m medley relay later in the competition, helping the team to silver. (ipswichstar.co.uk, 31 Jul 2017)