Franziska van Almsick (; born 5 April 1978) is a German swimmer. She won her first Olympic medals in 1992 at the Barcelona Olympic Games aged 14. Her career began at the SC Dynamo Berlin. She has the distinction of having the most career Olympic medals, ten, without ever winning a gold medal. She ended her career at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004. In 1993, she was named by Swimming World magazine as the Female World Swimmer of the Year. She has two sons, born in 2006 and 2013. The family's residence is Heidelberg. See also List of German records in swimming List of multiple Summer Olympic medalists List of multiple Olympic medalists at a single Games World record progression 50 metres freestyle World record progression 100 metres freestyle World record progression 200 metres freestyle Sport in Berlin References External links 1978 births Living people Swimmers from Berlin People from East Berlin German female swimmers German female freestyle swimmers Olympic swimmers of Germany Swimmers at the 1992 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics World record setters in swimming Olympic silver medalists for Germany Olympic bronze medalists for Germany Olympic bronze medalists in swimming German female butterfly swimmers World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming Medalists at the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) European Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in swimming Recipients of the Order of Merit of Berlin 20th-century German women 21st-century German women