Swimming at the Summer Paralympics
Encyclopedia
Swimming
has been contested at every Summer Paralympics. At the first games, the 1960 Paralympics, 62 swimming events were held in distances of 25 and 50 metres, plus a 3×50 metre relay for men. Since then, swimming at the Paralympics has grown to 140 events covering distances from 50 to 400 metres, plus 4×50 and 4×100 metre relays. Along with track and field athletics
, it is one of the largest sports at the Paralympics in terms of the number of events, competitors, and spectators.
As with most Paralympic sports, athletes are classified according to the type and extent of their disability. See Paralympic swimming
for details of the classification system.
The International Paralympic Committee
recognizes the fastest times swam at the games as Paralympic records.
Multiple Paralympic gold medalists in swimming include Trischa Zorn
(USA
), with 55 medals of which 41 gold, Béatrice Hess
(FRA
), with 23 medals of which 20 gold, Mike Kenny (GBR
), with 16 gold medals, Mayumi Narita
(JPN
), with 19 medals of which 15 gold, and Uri Bergman
(ISR
), with 13 medals of which 12 gold.
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
has been contested at every Summer Paralympics. At the first games, the 1960 Paralympics, 62 swimming events were held in distances of 25 and 50 metres, plus a 3×50 metre relay for men. Since then, swimming at the Paralympics has grown to 140 events covering distances from 50 to 400 metres, plus 4×50 and 4×100 metre relays. Along with track and field athletics
Athletics at the Summer Paralympics
Athletics has been contested at every Summer Paralympics since the first games in 1960. Men and women from all disability groups compete in the sport.Some athletes use wheelchairs or prosthetic limbs....
, it is one of the largest sports at the Paralympics in terms of the number of events, competitors, and spectators.
As with most Paralympic sports, athletes are classified according to the type and extent of their disability. See Paralympic swimming
Paralympic swimming
Paralympic swimming is an adaptation of the sport of swimming for athletes with disabilities. Paralympic swimming is contested not only at the Summer Paralympic Games, but at disabled sports competitions throughout the world...
for details of the classification system.
The International Paralympic Committee
International Paralympic Committee
The International Paralympic Committee is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and functions as the international federation for nine sports...
recognizes the fastest times swam at the games as Paralympic records.
Multiple Paralympic gold medalists in swimming include Trischa Zorn
Trischa Zorn
Trischa Zorn, born June 1, 1964 in Orange, California, is a United States swimmer. Blind from birth, she competes in Paralympic swimming . She is, at present, the most successful athlete in the history of the Paralympic Games, having won 55 medals, of which 41 are gold...
(USA
United States at the Paralympics
The United States has participated in every Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. The United States has performed particularly well at the Summer Paralympic Games, but its performance at the Winter Games has also been impressive...
), with 55 medals of which 41 gold, Béatrice Hess
Béatrice Hess
Béatrice Pierre Hess, born in 1961 or 1962, is a French swimmer. The French newspaper L'Humanité has described her as "one of the best swimmers in the world", while the magazine Marianne has described her as "the French Thorpedo".Competing at the Paralympic Games, Hess won four gold medals in 1984,...
(FRA
France at the Paralympics
France participated in the inaugural Paralympic Games in 1960 in Rome, and has taken part in every edition of the Summer and Winter Paralympics since then...
), with 23 medals of which 20 gold, Mike Kenny (GBR
Great Britain at the Paralympics
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has participated in every Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. Britain has performed particularly well at the Summer Paralympic Games, consistently finishing between second and fifth on the medal tables - a slightly better performance than at...
), with 16 gold medals, Mayumi Narita
Mayumi Narita
is a Japanese swimmer, described as "one of the world’s best Paralympic athletes" by the International Paralympic Committee. Japan Today has described her as a "swimming sensation perhaps as great as the Thorpedo but whose name few know"...
(JPN
Japan at the Paralympics
Absent at the inaugural Paralympic Games in 1960 in Rome, Japan made its Paralympic début by hosting the 1964 Games in Tokyo. The country has participated in every subsequent edition of the Summer Paralympics, and in every edition of the Winter Paralympics since the first in 1976...
), with 19 medals of which 15 gold, and Uri Bergman
Uri Bergman
Uri Bergman is an Israeli paralympic swimming champion.Bergman was born in 1953 in Kibbutz Givat Brener and contracted polio as a young baby. In his youth he was active in the Kibbutz's water polo team, and later joining the Israel Sports Center for the Disabled...
(ISR
Israel at the Paralympics
Israel first competed at the Paralympic Games in 1960, at the Summer Games in Rome, Italy.Israel has been more successful at the Paralympic Games than at the Olympic Games. In total, Israel has won 113 gold medals at the Summer Paralympic Games. At the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Israelis...
), with 13 medals of which 12 gold.