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Zsofia BALAZS
Sport Open Water Swimming
NOC Canada   
GenderWomen
Born04 Jul 1990 in Budapest, HUN
Height1.68 m
Weight 58 kg
 Human Interest 
Further Personal Information
Residence
Toronto, ON, CAN
Higher education
Police Studies - Humber College: Canada
General Interest
Hobbies
Going to the cinema, spending time with family and friends, go-karting, riding roller coasters. (swimming.ca, 07 Nov 2014)
Hero / Idol
Hungarian swimmer Agnes Kovacs, Canadian swimmer Elizabeth Warden. (guadalajara.olympic.ca, 31 Oct 2011; Swimming Canada, 10 May 2007)
Further Personal Information
Languages
English, Hungarian
General Interest
Other information
RETIREMENT
She retired from competitive swimming in 2016 to focus on her career as a police officer. "It was a good time to move on and start a new career." (swimming.ca. 02 Nov 2016)

NATIONAL FIRST
She became the first woman to compete for Canada in open water swimming at the Olympic Games when she took part in the 10km event at the 2012 Games in London. (canadianimmigrant.ca, 30 May 2014; triathlonmagazine.ca, 14 Feb 2014)

FROM HUNGARY TO CANADA
She was born in Hungary but moved with her family to Canada at age 13. "I was scared because I was one of those people who thought Canada was a country full of snow, ice and igloos. I was convinced I would have to dogsled to school. Obviously that isn't true, and when we arrived I was at swim club training within a couple of days. (thestar.com, 11 Oct 2014; canadianimmigrant.ca, 30 May 2014)
Injuries
In 2009 she suffered severe concussion after a teammate mistakenly dived into her lane and elbowed her in the head. The injury kept her out of action for six months. (thestar.com, 11 Oct 2014; triathlonmagazine.ca, 14 Feb 2014)
Sport Specific Information
Why this sport?
Her parents encouraged her to learn to swim, and to continue the sport to help with her asthma.
General Interest
Awards and honours
She was a torch bearer for the 2015 Pan American Games torch relay. (tpsnews.ca, 17 Mar 2015)
Sport Specific Information
When and where did you begin this sport?
She first tried swimming at age four in Hungary.
Further Personal Information
Occupation
Police Officer
General Interest
Nicknames
Zsofi (Twitter profile,12 Nov 2016)
Sporting philosophy / motto
"If you have a goal, don't give up. Keep doing what your heart tells you to do. Follow your dreams. No dream is too small to follow. No dream is too big to achieve." (tpa.ca, 02 May 2015)

 Competition Highlights
Pan American Games
Rank Year Venue Event Result
4 2007 Rio de Janeiro, BRA 200m Butterfly 2:13.99
7 2007 Rio de Janeiro, BRA 400m Freestyle 4:17.87
2 2007 Rio de Janeiro, BRA 4 x 200m Freestyle Relay  
World Championships
Rank Year Venue Event Result
19 2013 Barcelona, ESP 10km 1:58:28.5
12 2013 Barcelona, ESP 5km - Team Time Trial 57:13.7
26 2011 Shanghai, CHN 5km 1:01:39.0
40 2011 Shanghai, CHN 10km 2:10:01.7
10 2011 Shanghai, CHN 5km - Team Time Trial 1:02:08.7
33 2009 Rome, ITA 10km 2:02:24.3
World Cup
Rank Year Venue Event Result
46 2015 San Miguel de Cozumel, MEX 10km 1:59:13.00
15 2013 San Miguel de Cozumel, MEX 10km 2:10:48.80
5 2012 Lac St. Jean, QC, CAN 10km 2:02:51
14 2012 Santos, BRA 10km 2:23:40.94
10 2012 Viedma, ARG 10km 2:02:28
31 2007   10km  
Pan Pacific Championships
Rank Year Venue Event Result
4 2010 Irvine, CA, USA 10km 2:02:23.35