Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nationality | ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Somerset West, South Africa | September 22, 1993|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Strokes | backstroke, freestyle, Shane stroke, butterfly | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
College team | University of West Florida | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
|
Peggy de Villiers (born 22 September 1993) is a South African deaf swimmer. [4] She represented South Africa at the Deaflympics in 2009 and 2013. She made her Deaflympic debut at the 2009 Summer Deaflympics and claimed 4 medals including a gold medal in the 50m backstroke event with a world record breaking timing of 31.11 for deaf swimming at that time. [5] She currently holds the deaf world swimming records in the women's 50m butterfly and women's 100m butterfly categories. [6] She completed her undergraduated swimming career with the University of West Florida as a member of the college team. [7] [8]
Peggy was born to Almero de Villiers and Marika de Villiers on 22, September 1993 and grew up in Somerset West, South Africa. [9] She contracted bacterial meningitis when she was just 6 months old. Despite her deafness, Peggy started swimming at the age of 12. Peggy wears a hearing aid. She has a brother, Ollie de Villiers. Peggy de Villiers studied at the Somerset College High School. [10]
Peggy de Villiers became a successful deaf swimmer at the age of sixteen after her dream debut at the 2009 Summer Deaflympics claiming gold medal in the women's 50m backstroke, [5] silver medals in women's 100m backstroke, [11] women's 100m freestyle [12] and a bronze medal in women's 50m butterfly. [13]
Apart from Deaflympics, she has competed at the World Deaf Swimming Championships in 2011 and 2015, claiming medals in individual women's backstroke, freestyle, butterfly events. [14] [15]