Krayzelburg calls time on backstroke career

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Four-times Olympic gold medalist backstroker Lenny Krayzelburg announced his retirement from competitive swimming on Friday.

The 32-year-old American, born in the Ukrainian city of Odessa, plans to focus his time on several initiatives to help grow the sport in his adopted country.

"I sincerely want to thank all of my coaches, team mates and competitors through my years in swimming," Krayzelburg said in a statement issued by the United States Olympic Committee.

"Although most consider swimming an individual sport, there is absolutely no way I could have achieved my success without these people challenging, motivating, encouraging and supporting me along the way."

Krayzelburg, who became a U.S. citizen in 1995, completed a golden backstroke double by winning the 100 meters and 200 titles at the 1998 world championships in Perth.

The following year, he set world records over both distances in the space of just three days at the Pan Pacific swimming championships in Sydney.

Firmly established as the dominant figure in men's backstroke, Krayzelburg was a triple gold medalist at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, winning gold in the 100, 200 and 4x100 medley relay.

He went on to win a fourth gold medal in the 4x100 medley relay at the 2004 Athens Games.

An 11-times U.S. national champion, Krayzelburg was named USA Swimming's swimmer of the year in 1999 and 2000.

In 2005, Krayzelburg launched the Lenny Krayzelburg Swim School in conjunction with the Westside Jewish Community Center in Los Angeles.

Two years later, he co-founded www.SwimRoom.com, a social networking website, with fellow swimmers Michael Phelps, Ian Crocker, Kirsty Coventry, Katie Hoff, Ryan Lochte, Megan Jendrick and Whitney Myers.

"I am now excited to use my success as an Olympic swimmer as a platform to bring others to the sport," Krayzelburg said. "I look forward to sharing my passion for swimming with others as I enter the next phase of my life."

(Writing by Mark Lamport-Stokes; Editing by Ed Osmond)