Linda Hanel

{{Short description|Australian swimmer (born 1961)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}

{{use Australian English|date=December 2016}}

{{Infobox swimmer

| name = Linda Hanel

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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1961|10|17|df=yes}}

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{{MedalSport | Women's swimming}}

{{MedalCountry | Australia}}

{{MedalCompetition | Commonwealth Games}}

{{MedalBronze | 1978 Edmonton | 100 m butterfly}}

{{MedalBronze | 1978 Edmonton | 200 m butterfly}}

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Linda Hanel (born 17 October 1961) is an Australian former champion swimmer. She competed in three events at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal - the 100-metre Women's Butterfly (12th position), the 200-metre Women's Butterfly (12th position) and the 4x100-metre Women's Medley Relay (8th position).{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/linda-hanel-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418113554/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/linda-hanel-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 April 2020 |title=Linda Hanel Olympic Results |accessdate=19 December 2016}}{{Cite web|title=Linda Lepore|url=https://www.olympics.com.au/olympians/linda-lepore/|access-date=5 June 2021|website=Australian Olympic Committee|language=en-AU}} At the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada, Hanel set a Games record in her qualifying heat, with a time of 2:14.54.{{Cite news|last=Shallhorn|first=Deborah|date=8 August 1978|title=Smith toasts 4th gold with juice|work=Globe and Mail}} She went on to win a bronze medal in both the Women's 100-metre Butterfly and the 200-metre Butterfly.{{Cite web|title=Athletes|url=https://www.fina.org/athletes/1139175/linda-hanel|website=FINA}} In her home state of Victoria, she held the record for the 200-metre open butterfly for nearly 26 years, with a time of 2:12.12.{{Cite news|last=Paxinos|first=Stathi|date=4 January 2006|title=Klim upstaged, but unfazed.|work=The Age}}

Hanel won gold at the 1979 Spartaklad Games in Moscow in the 100-metre Butterfly event, crediting her friend, fellow Olympic swimmer Michelle Ford, for her success.{{cite news |title=Gold to Linda |issue=7 August 1979 |publisher=Bulletin}} She withdrew from the 1980 Moscow Olympics due to illness.{{Cite web|last=Hanson|first=Ian|date=24 July 2020|title=The Michelle Ford story, Part One|url=https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/the-michelle-ford-story-part-one-the-phone-call-from-her-mum-that-changed-michelles-life-forever/|access-date=26 July 2021}}