Kenrick Monk

Kenrick John Monk (born 1 January 1988) is an Australian swimmer who competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, as well as at an international level through the FINA World Aquatics Championships, Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, and the Commonwealth Games. Outside of the pool, Monk gained attention in 2011 after he falsely claimed to have been involved in a deliberate hit-and-run accident.

Early life Born in 1988 in Blacktown, New South Wales, Monk attended Quakers Hill High School. He started swimming at the age of four while in Blacktown, and at 14 he started training with coach Tony Shaw, who also trained Grant Brits.

Swimming career Monk competed in his first Commonwealth Games in 2006, after being asked to fill in for Ian Thorpe. He finished seventh in the 100m freestyle event, and ninth in the 200m. As a member of the Australian men's relay team, he won gold in the 4×100-metre medley (as a heat swimmer) and bronze in the 4×200-metre freestyle. Later that year he competed in the 2006 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, finishing sixth in the 200-metre freestyle, and taking the bronze medal in the men's 4×100-metre and 4×200-metre freestyle relay events. an achievement that he regarded as one of his best.

In 2008, Monk won two gold medals at the FINA Short Course World Championships in the 200m freestyle individual competition and the men's 4×200-metre freestyle relay. Subsequently he finished third in the 4×200-metre freestyle relay at the 2009 World Aquatics Championship and fifth in the individual 200-metre freestyle. Monk claimed to have been deliberately hit by a car while riding his bike, and a police investigation was launched.

As a result of making a false statement to police, Monk faced a possible $10,000 fine, three-year jail term and disciplinary action from Swimming Australia. In late November 2011, the Queensland Police Service announced that they would not be pursuing charges, but he was fined by Swimming Australia and received a letter of reprimand from the Queensland police. In response, the president of the Queensland Police Union spoke out against the decision, arguing against Swimming Australia's defence of Monk, and stated that "The public rightly expect that no one should deliberately waste the time of police, whether they be wannabe B-grade celebrity athletes like this modern-day 'boy who cried wolf', Kenrick Monk, or just regular people."