She loves swimming and she loves Seychelles. She is Federica Pellegrini and she is a star in Italy.
Federica, who raised her celebrity profile on home ground last month when she broke two world records and won two gold medals at the World Swimming Championships in Rome, Italy, has a soft spot for Seychelles.
She forms part of the star-studded list of world athletes who have courted our shores, fallen in love with it at first sight, and made a promise to return.
Federica, who said that every time she steps in the pool she competes “with both my heart and mind for Italy because that’s where my heart is”, first set foot in Seychelles in 2007 for a photo-shoot.
But she then returned the following year with her swimmer boyfriend Luca Marin, after the Olympic Games in China, this time to laze in the sun, sip cool drinks by the pool and simply enjoy a real Seychelles holiday.
She stayed at the luxurious St Anne Resort and Spa.
Federica is currently the women’s 200m freestyle (long course and short course) and 400m (long course) freestyle world record holder.
At the 2009 World Championship, she became the first woman ever to breach the 4 minute barrier in 400m freestyle with a time of 3:59.15.
She currently holds four world records, five European records and 12 Italian records.
picture: Seychelles Tourism Board