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After completing high school, James Magnussen spent six weeks in Norway. He admits that the trip sparked a genuine interest in his family's history, an interest he inherited from his father and grandfather. Now he's making his own name known in sports circles around the world.
Magnussen was born on April 11, 1991 in Port Macquarie, NSW, Australia. He is ranked among the best in the world. In the Australian National Swimming Championships, which also served as the qualifying championships for the London Olympics, he became Australian champion in both the 50m and 100m freestyle. He finished with 47.10 in the 100m, a distance he won by over half a second. He is now one of Australia's strongest gold hopes and will compete in the 50m, 100m and 4 X 100m relay freestyle. His personal bests are 22.41 in the 50m and 47.49 in the 100m in the 50m pool and 22.09 in the 50m, 46.82 in the 100m and 1.44.12 in the 200m in the 25m pool,
James Magnussen already has a gold medal from The Commonwealth Games in India in 2010 and 2 gold and 1 silver from the World Championships in China in 2011.
The preliminary heats start on July 29 and now Norwegians are allowed to cheer on a swimmer from Australia!
