 2016 Australian Paralympic team portrait of Rachael Watson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Rachael Watson | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Australian | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 30 January 1992 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Classifications | S3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Chandler Swimming Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Rachael Elizabeth Watson, OAM (born 30 January 1992) is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. Watson represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics winning gold in the 50m Freestyle S4, [1] a feat she repeated at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. [2]
Watson was born on 30 January 1992. She is a triplet and has mild cerebral palsy however remained functionally independent and ambulant. In her early 20's she acquired Guillain Barre Syndrome that led to severe muscle weakness and peripheral nervous system damage resulting in quadriplegia requiring the use of a wheelchair. [3]
Watson took up swimming as part of her rehabilitation from Guillain Barre Syndrome. [3] The majority of competitions are held in a multi class (MC) format where each athlete swims against the world record for their classification and the swimmer with the highest point score wins the race. Watson has myopia and is unable to see the results score board at the end of the pool so remains unaware of her placing until she is told.
At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, Watson won the gold medal in the Women's 50m Freestyle S4 in a Paralympic record time of 40.13. Watson became the first swimmer classed S5 or below, to win gold for Australia this millennium. [4]
Watson qualified for the 2017 World Championships but the competition was cancelled due to a major earthquake in Mexico occurring just a fortnight prior to the event.
In 2018, Watson was chosen to volunteer at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. She could not compete as her swimming classification was not included in this competition.
At the postponed 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, Watson won the gold medal in the Women's 50m freestyle S4 in a Paralympic record time of 39.36. [5]
In 2022, Watson was chosen to volunteer at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. She could not compete as her swimming classification was not included in this competition.
Watson trains at the Chandler Swimming Club in Brisbane. [6]
2016 – Australian Institute of Sport Discovery of the Year [7]
2016 – Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association Most Improved Athlete [8]
2017 – Medal of the Order of Australia [9]
2021 - University of Queensland Blue (university sport) Award for Sporting Excellence
2022 - University of Queensland Sportswoman of the Year
2023 - Australian Sports Medal
Ellie Victoria Cole, is an Australian retired Paralympic swimmer and wheelchair basketball player. After having her leg amputated due to cancer, she trained in swimming as part of her rehabilitation program and progressed more rapidly than instructors had predicted. She began competitive swimming in 2003 and first competed internationally at the 2006 IPC Swimming World Championships, where she won a silver medal. Since then, she has won medals in the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, the Commonwealth Games, the Paralympic Games, the IPC Swimming World Championships, and various national championships. Following the 2012 London Paralympics, where she won four gold and two bronze medals, Cole underwent two shoulder reconstructions and made a successful return to swimming at the 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships, winning five medals, including three golds. She subsequently represented Australia at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympics, the 2018 Commonwealth Games, and the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. In claiming her seventeenth Paralympic medal in Tokyo, Cole became Australia's most decorated female Paralympian with six gold, five silver and six bronze medals from four Paralympic Games.
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S11, SB11, SM11 are disability swimming classifications for blind swimmers.
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Paige Leonhardt is an Australian swimmer. She represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics and the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, where she won a silver medal.
Katja Dedekind is an Australian Paralympic vision-impaired swimmer and goalball player. She won a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games and two bronze medals at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.
Liesette Bruinsma is a Dutch Paralympic swimmer. She competes in S11 classification events for athletes with visual impairments. She is the 2016 double Paralympic champion within her classification. She competed at the 2020 Summer Paralympics, in Women's 400 metre freestyle S11, and Women's 100 metre freestyle S11, winning silver medals.
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