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Amanda Beard, 27, is a seven-time Olympic medalist.

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updated 4:11 p.m. ET Sept. 15, 2009

NEW YORK - Olympic champion swimmer Amanda Beard has yet another achievement to add to her list: Motherhood!

The athlete and her husband, photographer Sacha Brown, welcomed their first child, Blaise Ray Brown, in Los Angeles on Tuesday, PEOPLE has learned exclusively.  The baby boy weighed in at 7 lbs., 12 oz., and was 19 3/4 inches long.

"I was in labor for about 16 hours and it was all worth it. He is happy and healthy and everything went as planned," Beard tells PEOPLE.  "It was the most amazing experience that Sacha and I have ever experienced.  We are so happy to be new parents! This is gonna be the best adventure ever."

Beard, 27, a seven-time Olympic medalist, tied the knot with Brown, 34, on Wakatobi, an archipelago off southeastern Indonesia, where the couple enjoyed non-alcoholic toasts at the sunset ceremony in May.

Up next for the new mom? Beard would love to get back in the water — but not too soon! — to train and hopefully compete in the 2012 Olympics.