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Béryl GASTALDELLO
Sport Swimming
NOC France   
GenderWomen
Born16 Feb 1995 in Marseille, FRA
Height1.78 m
 Human Interest 
Sport Specific Information
Club / Team
 Etoiles 92: Paris, FRA
Further Personal Information
Higher education
 Business Management - Texas A&M University: College Station, TX, USA
General Interest
Hobbies
 Playing the drums, skateboarding, skiing. (swimswam.com, 31 Oct 2018, 05 Oct 2020)
Injuries
 She was diagnosed with mononucleosis [glandular fever] four months before the 2012 Olympic Games in London, which ended her chances of competing at the Games. (laprovence.com, 05 Apr 2015)
Famous relatives
 Both of her parents represented France in swimming. Her mother Veronique Jardin competed at the 1984 and 1992 Olympic Games, and her father Eric Gastaldello competed at the 1983 European Championships in Rome, Italy. Her grandmother Amelie Mirkowitch also represented France in swimming at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. (SportsDeskOnline, 12 May 2021; swimswam.com, 17 May 2016; ffnatation.fr, 27 Jun 2015; laprovence.com, 05 Apr 2015; leparisien.fr, 05 Apr 2015)
Hero / Idol
 Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt. (12thman.com, 19 Jul 2015)
Awards and honours
 She was named 2020 European Female Swimmer of the Year by swimming news website SwimSwam. (swimswam.com, 30 Dec 2020)

While competing for Texas A&M University in the United States of America, she was named 2015 Southeastern Conference [SEC] Female Freshman of the Year. (12thman.com, 14 Apr 2015; a.espncdn.com, 01 Sep 2018)
Sport Specific Information
When and where did you begin this sport?
 She took up swimming at age eight, and began training seriously at age 16.
Further Personal Information
Occupation
 Athlete
Languages
 English, French, Italian
General Interest
Sporting philosophy / motto
 "From a young age, my parents, who were also swimmers, always told me not to forget that swimming is just a sport. I think that now more than ever I look at swimming like a game. I want to jump, move fast, beat the others around me. But, more importantly, I want to have fun." (isl.global, 19 Dec 2019)
Ambitions
 To compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (ouest-france.fr, 09 Dec 2021)
Other information
 VERSATILE
In December 2019 she won medals in backstroke, freestyle and butterfly events at the European short course championships. In late 2021, she said she had not yet decided to focus on any one stroke, having begun working with American coach Coley Stickels. "I like to be versatile. I have just changed my coach, so I am not closing the door on anything, even if I do a lot less backstroke. We will see together, in a year or two, if I focus a little more on one of the three strokes. But now is not the time to make a decision. We are generally asked to specialise as a junior. But I find, for example, that when I do breaststroke, it helps me for the butterfly. The four strokes are connected, each has its characteristics which can help elsewhere, and it's interesting to be able to do different things in training." (ouest-france.fr, 09 Dec 2021; tokyo2020.org, 16 Sep 2020)

DEPRESSION
At the end of 2017 she suffered a bout of depression and anxiety that resulted in her taking a five-month break from the sport. "My head was in such a panic that I did not understand what was going on. I could not even concentrate on people. I could not hold a conversation. I went downhill for real and I realised I needed to make some changes." In late 2019 she said she was still dealing with mental health issues. "Without a doubt, I am a very different person now. It's not over, it takes time unfortunately, but recently it's been much better. It's the first year in two years I've been swimming from start to finish. There are still days I struggle. Sometimes I'm in control, and other times it's complicated, but the scales are tipping more and more towards control. I have reduced my medication, I think I am on the right track. I consult a psychiatrist and a psychologist almost every week." (lequipe.fr, 23 May 2018; SwimSwam YouTube channel, 31 Oct 2018; archyde.com, 07 Dec 2019; isl.global, 19 Dec 2019)

US CITIZENSHIP
In 2014 she relocated to the United States of America to study at Texas A&M University in College Station. In December 2020 she said she was in the process of applying for US citizenship. "I was plunged into a culture that I like, but it is still not mine. I try to take the best out of both worlds. I began the paperwork to get residency in the United States and maybe dual citizenship. Let's say that I am 60% French and 40% American." (leparisien.fr, 09 Dec 2020)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
She has served as a consultant for UniAthletes, a sports talent service that offers guidance to student-athletes and their families during the process of US university recruitment. (uniathletes.com, 07 Feb 2019)
Further Personal Information
Residence
 United States
Sport Specific Information
Name of coach
 Coley Stickels [personal], USA, from 2021
Training Regime
 Alongside her pool training, she does three-hour strength training sessions in the gym three times a week.
General Interest
Nicknames
 Queen Bee (leparisien.fr, 09 Dec 2020)

 Competition Highlights
Olympic Games
Rank Year Venue Event Result
23 2021 Tokyo, JPN 100m Backstroke 1:00.69
Heats 2021 Tokyo, JPN 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay  
Heats 2016 Rio de Janeiro, BRA 100m Freestyle 54.80
Heats 2016 Rio de Janeiro, BRA 100m Butterfly 58.93
Heats 2016 Rio de Janeiro, BRA 4 x 100m Medley Relay  
7 2016 Rio de Janeiro, BRA 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay 3:37.45
World Championships
Rank Year Venue Event Result
12 2023 Fukuoka, JPN 100m Freestyle 54.49
Heats 2023 Fukuoka, JPN 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay  
Heats 2023 Fukuoka, JPN 4 x 100m Medley Relay 3:46.07
Heats 2019 Gwangju, KOR 100m Butterfly 58.83
Heats 2019 Gwangju, KOR 100m Backstroke 1:01.45
Semifinal 2019 Gwangju, KOR 100m Freestyle 54.31
3 2019 Gwangju, KOR 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay  
Heats 2017 Budapest, HUN 100m Butterfly 58.97
Heats 2017 Budapest, HUN 100m Backstroke 1:02.24
Semifinal 2017 Budapest, HUN 50m Butterfly 26.01
Semifinal 2015 Kazan, RUS 50m Backstroke 28.30
Heats 2015 Kazan, RUS 100m Backstroke 1:01.91
Semifinal 2015 Kazan, RUS 50m Butterfly 26.25
Heats 2015 Kazan, RUS 100m Freestyle 55.11
Heats 2015 Kazan, RUS 100m Butterfly 59.06
Heats 2015 Kazan, RUS 4 x 100m Medley Relay  
8 2015 Kazan, RUS 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay 3:38.46
World Championships Short Course
Rank Year Venue Event Result
4 2022 Melbourne, VIC, AUS 50m Butterfly 24.85
2 2022 Melbourne, VIC, AUS 100m Individual Medley 57.63
7 2022 Melbourne, VIC, AUS 100m Freestyle 52.13
6 2022 Melbourne, VIC, AUS 4 x 100m Medley Relay 3:50.28
6 2022 Melbourne, VIC, AUS 4 x 50m Medley Relay 1:43.96
1 2022 Melbourne, VIC, AUS 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay 1:27.33
Heats 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 100m Butterfly  DNS
Heats 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 50m Butterfly  DNS
2 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 100m Individual Medley 57.96
Semifinal 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 50m Freestyle 24.02
Heats 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 4 x 50m Medley Relay 1:48.49
7 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay 1:36.36
6 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay 1:30.06
6 2021 Abu Dhabi, UAE 4 x 50m Medley Relay 1:38.28
European Championships
Rank Year Venue Event Result
Semifinal 2022 Rome, ITA 50m Butterfly 26.69
6 2022 Rome, ITA 50m Freestyle 24.82
7 2022 Rome, ITA 100m Freestyle 54.83
Heats 2022 Rome, ITA 50m Backstroke 28.18
2 2022 Rome, ITA 4 x 100m Medley Relay 3:56.36
6 2022 Rome, ITA 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay 3:39.61
5 2018 Glasgow, SCO 50m Backstroke 28.10
18 2018 Glasgow, SCO 100m Freestyle 55.29
1 2018 Glasgow, SCO 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay 3:34.65
1 2018 Glasgow, SCO 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay 3:22.07
Semifinal 2014 Berlin, GER 100m Butterfly 59.40
Heats 2014 Berlin, GER 50m Butterfly 26.93
Heats 2014 Berlin, GER 100m Backstroke 1:04.09
Heats 2014 Berlin, GER 50m Backstroke 29.17
European Championships Short Course
Rank Year Venue Event Result
2 2023 Otopeni, ROU 50m Freestyle 23.71
Semifinal 2023 Otopeni, ROU 100m Backstroke 58.21
2 2023 Otopeni, ROU 100m Individual Medley 57.67
Heats 2023 Otopeni, ROU 50m Butterfly  DSQ
1 2023 Otopeni, ROU 100m Freestyle 51.48
2 2023 Otopeni, ROU 4 x 50m Medley Relay 1:37.14
3 2023 Otopeni, ROU 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay 1:28.35
4 2019 Glasgow, SCO 100m Butterfly 56.55
2 2019 Glasgow, SCO 50m Backstroke 26.03
2 2019 Glasgow, SCO 50m Butterfly 24.78
8 2019 Glasgow, SCO 50m Freestyle 24.00
2 2019 Glasgow, SCO 100m Freestyle 51.85
5 2019 Glasgow, SCO 4 x 50m Medley Relay 1:38.17
3 2019 Glasgow, SCO 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay 1:28.86
1 2019 Glasgow, SCO 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay 1:35.21
6 2019 Glasgow, SCO 4 x 50m Medley Relay 1:45.85
10 2013 Herning, DEN 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay  DSQ
Heats 2013 Herning, DEN 100m Butterfly 1:01.21
Semifinals 2013 Herning, DEN 50m Backstroke 27.57
Semifinals 2013 Herning, DEN 50m Freestyle 25.06
Heats 2013 Herning, DEN 50m Butterfly 27.07
World Cup
Rank Year Venue Event Result
1 2022 Berlin, GER 100m Individual Medley 57.76
4 2022 Berlin, GER 100m Freestyle 52.27
1 2022 Berlin, GER 50m Butterfly 25.16
2 2022 Indianapolis, IN, USA 100m Butterfly 56.48
8 2022 Indianapolis, IN, USA 100m Freestyle 53.25
2 2022 Indianapolis, IN, USA 100m Individual Medley 57.82
2 2022 Indianapolis, IN, USA 50m Butterfly 25.18
2 2022 Toronto, ON, CAN 50m Butterfly 25.26
1 2022 Toronto, ON, CAN 100m Individual Medley 57.97
2 2022 Toronto, ON, CAN 100m Freestyle 51.67
6 2013 Doha, QAT 50m Backstroke 27.88