| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Kathryn Jean Heddy |
| Nickname | "Kathy" |
| National team | United States |
| Born | (1958-02-04) February 4, 1958 (age 66) Syracuse, New York |
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) |
| Weight | 134 lb (61 kg) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Swimming |
| Strokes | Freestyle, Medley |
| Club | Central Jersey Aquatic Club |
| Medal record | |
Kathryn Jean Heddy (born February 4, 1958), also known by her married name Kathy Drum, is an American former competition swimming world champion and four-time Pan American champion.
Heddy grew up in Summit, New Jersey, where she graduated early from Summit High School in January 1976, allowing her to focus on her training rather than completing her studies in the Spring of that year. Some of her training was performed with the Central Jersey Aquatic Club under Coach Bill Palmer.
Heddy represented the United States at the 1973 World Championships in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. On September 4, she won the bronze medal in the 200-metre individual medley. On September 8, Heddy was part of the silver medal-winning 4 × 100 m freestyle relay team. On September 9, she finished 7th in the 100 m freestyle.
Heddy competed in the 1975 World Championships in Cali, Colombia. On July 22, she won the gold medal in the 200 m medley with a championship record time, 2:19.80, defeating the East German swimmers, Ulrike Tauber and Angela Franke. On July 24–25, Heddy won bronze medals in the 400 m medley and 400 m freestyle respectively. On July 26, she was part of the silver medal-winning 4 × 100 m freestyle relay team. The American team had taken the world record from the east Germans the previous year and swam 1.25 seconds below that mark in the final, but still lost to the east Germans who took back the world record and won the gold. On July 27, Heddy finished fourth in the 100 m freestyle, 1/100 s from the bronze. She received four medals in total, when summing up her 1975 world championship.
Heddy also participated at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, where she finished fifth in the 400-metre freestyle on July 20.
See also
- List of World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming (women)
- World record progression 4 × 100 metres freestyle relay
References
- Meyer, Lacy. "Summit's Own Kathy Heddy: Swim Star Eyes Olympics", The Summit Herald, February 19, 1976. Accessed October 14, 2018. "Summit has its own candidate for the summer Olympics in Montreal. Kathy Heddy, age 18, is the holder of four gold medals in swimming from the Pan American games.... 'I'm grateful that Summit High School allowed me to graduate in January.'"
- "Pooling Their Talents", Asbury Park Press, Asbury, New Jersey, 28 November 1999, pg. 131
- "Central Jersey Aquatic Club History". centraljerseyaquaticclub.com. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
- "1973 World Championships". the-sports.org. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
- "1975 World Championships". the-sports.org. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
- Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Kathy Heddy". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2012.
| World long-course champions in women's 200 m individual medley | |
|---|---|
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| Pan American Champions in Women's 400 m freestyle | |
|---|---|
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| Pan American Champions in Women's 200 m individual medley | |
|---|---|
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| Pan American Champions in Women's 400 m individual medley | |
|---|---|
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- 1958 births
- Living people
- American female freestyle swimmers
- World record setters in swimming
- Olympic swimmers for the United States
- Sportspeople from Summit, New Jersey
- Sportspeople from Syracuse, New York
- Summit High School (New Jersey) alumni
- Swimmers at the 1976 Summer Olympics
- World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming
- Swimmers at the 1975 Pan American Games
- Medalists at the 1975 Pan American Games
- Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in swimming
- 20th-century American sportswomen