Dual Olympic swimming champion Grant Hackett announced his retirement Monday after almost a decade of dominance in the 1,500 meters. “I have been doing this for a long time and just make the most of every opportunity,” Hackett told the Swimming Australia awards dinner Monday. “Now it is all just a memory for me.” Hackett, 28, retires with the 1,500-meter record of 14 minutes, 34.56 seconds that he set at the 2001 World Championships at Fukuoka, Japan. He also holds the world record in the 800 and held the world mark for the 200 freestyle in 1999 until it was overhauled by fellow Australian Ian Thorpe. The normally composed Hackett was emotional as he told the audience of his decision. They gave him a standing ovation. “I wasn't expecting that,” he said. Despite his versatility, Hackett's favorite and most successful event was the 1500, the most gruelling race in the pool. He was unbeaten in the event for almost a decade with no-one getting within six seconds of his world record. Hackett has spent the last two months considering his future after just missing out on a history-making third straight Olympic 1,500-meter freestyle title in Beijing. Hackett won four world titles from 1998 and two Olympic golds in the 1,500 before being beaten by Oussama Mellouli of Tunisia in August in Beijing. He has recently taken up a job reading the weekend sports news on the Nine television network in Melbourne and is starting a career in finance with an Australian bank. He has a stack of 18 medals, featuring 10 gold, at five world championships. Hackett said competing in the Sydney Games and being part of the successful Australian team had been his career highlights. He underwent shoulder surgery in Nov. 2005 and was forced to pull out of the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. He used his time away from the pool to complete a university degree in commerce and law and left his Gold Coast home to marry Australian singer Candice Alley. When asked what he would miss most in retirement, Hackett replied: “The love of the competition and competing and being part of such a wonderful team environment.”
