About Jessica Hardy
Jessica Adele Hardy Meichtry (born March 12, 1987) is an American competitive swimmer who specializes in breaststroke and freestyle events. Hardy earned a bronze medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle and a gold medal in the 4×100-meter medley relays at the 2012 Summer Olympics. She has won a total of twenty-eight medals in major international competition, fourteen gold, nine silver, and five bronze spanning the Olympics, World and the Pan Pacific Championships. From 2008 to 2009, Hardy served a 12 month suspension from swimming competition due to an anti-doping rule violation at the 2008 Olympic Trials. She returned to competition in 2009, setting new long course world records in the 50-meter breaststroke and 100-meter breaststroke at the 2009 U.S. Open Swimming Championships. == Early life == Hardy was born in Orange, California, on March 12, 1987, the daughter of George Hardy and Denise Robinson. Her mother swam in college for Indiana State University for one week and is currently a psychotherapist. Jessica is a 2005 graduate of Wilson Classical High School in Long Beach and was Swimming World's Female High School Swimmer of the Year in 2004 and 2005. In High School she participated in several sports. Hardy swam for the Seal Beach Swim Club, but at 16 transferred to the larger and more competitive Irvine Novaquatics program in April 2003, where she was managed and trained by Hall of Fame Head Coach Dave Salo.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.