Sergey Punko (also spelled Sergei, born 10 January 1981 in Navapolatsk) is a formerly Belarusian, [1] now Russian, Paralympic swimmer. He was born with a progressive eye disease, but had normal sight as a child. [2] He started swimming at age 10, and competed nationally and internationally in able-bodied competition until he was 21. [2] By that time, he had less than 5% vision. Classified S12, he began swimming in disability meets in 2002. [2] He quickly broke long-standing world records, and was named World Disabled Swimmer of the Year in 2003. [2]
Up to the 2012 Paralympic Games he has won four gold, six silver and three bronze medals. [3] At the 2012 Summer Paralympics, he won a gold and silver medals for Russia.[ citation needed ]
In February 2013, Punko held S12 long course world records in 200, 400 and 800 metre freestyle and 200 metre butterfly events. [4]
Natalie du Toit OIG MBE is a South African swimmer. She is best known for the gold medals she won at the 2004 Paralympic Games as well as the Commonwealth Games. She was one of two Paralympians to compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; the other being table tennis player Natalia Partyka. Du Toit became the third amputee ever to qualify for the Olympics, where she placed 16th in the 10km swim.
Matthew John Cowdrey is an Australian politician and Paralympic swimmer. He presently holds numerous world records. He has a congenital amputation of his left arm; it stops just below the elbow. Cowdrey competed at the 2004 Paralympic Games, 2006 Commonwealth Games, 2008 Paralympic Games, 2010 Commonwealth Games, and the 2012 Paralympic Games. After the 2012 London Games, he is the most successful Australian Paralympian, having won thirteen Paralympic gold medals and twenty three Paralympic medals in total. On 10 February 2015, Cowdrey announced his retirement from swimming.
Jessica Tatiana Long is a Russian-American Paralympic swimmer from Baltimore, Maryland, who competes in the S8, SB7 and SM8 category events. She has held many world records and competed at five Paralympic Games, winning 29 medals. She has won over 50 world championship medals.
David Evan Roberts CBE, is a Welsh swimmer. An eleven-time Paralympic gold medallist, he is one of Great Britain's most successful Paralympians ever.
Trischa Zorn is an American Paralympic swimmer. Blind from birth, she competed in Paralympic swimming. She is the most successful athlete in the history of the Paralympic Games, having won 55 medals, and was inducted into the Paralympic Hall of Fame in 2012. She took the Paralympic Oath for athletes at the 1996 Summer Paralympics in Atlanta.
Theresa Goh Rui SiBBM is a Singaporean swimmer and Paralympic medalist, with a bronze at the SB4 100m breaststroke at the 2016 Summer Paralympics. She holds the world records for the SB4 50 metres and 200 metres breaststroke events.
Dame Sophie Frances Pascoe is a New Zealand para-swimmer. She has represented New Zealand at four Summer Paralympic Games from 2008, winning a total of eleven gold medals, seven silver medals and one bronze medal, making her New Zealand's most successful Paralympian. She has also represented New Zealand at the Commonwealth Games.
Matthew "Matt" Benedict Walker MBE is a British swimmer who has participated in four Paralympic Games, winning eleven medals. He competes in the S7, SM7 (medley) and SB7 (breaststroke) classifications.
Mohamed Farhat Chida is a Paralympic athlete from Tunisia competing mainly in category T38 sprint events.
Daniel de Faria Dias is a Brazilian Paralympic swimmer. Having learnt to swim in 2004 after being inspired by Clodoaldo Silva at the 2004 Summer Paralympics, he entered his first international competition two years later winning five medals. He competed in a wide range of swimming events at the 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020 Paralympics and won 27 medals, including 14 gold medals.
Matthew John Levy, is a retired Australian Paralympic swimmer. At five Paralympic Games from 2004 to 2020, he has won three gold, one silver and six bronze medals.
Taylor Corry is an Australian S14 swimmer. At the 2012 Summer Paralympics, she won two silver medals.
Hannah Russell, is a British Paralympic swimmer competing in S12 classification events. In 2012, she became British S12 champion in the 100m backstroke and qualified for the 2012 Summer Paralympic Games where she won a silver in the 400m freestyle and a bronze in the 100m butterfly. In the 2016 Summer Paralympic Games, she won the gold medal in the 100m backstroke with the time of 1:06:06 earning her the World Record.
Bethany Charlotte Firth, is a Northern Irish Paralympic swimmer. Since 2014 she has competed for Great Britain; previously, Firth had represented Ireland. A six time Paralympic gold medalist, she has won gold in her specialist event - the 100 metres backstroke - for both Ireland at the 2012 Summer Paralympics and Great Britain at the 2016 and 2020 Summer Paralympics. These were in addition to the Mixed 4 x 100 metres freestyle relay S14 at the 2020 Games, and 200 metres medley and 200 metres freestyle for Great Britain at the 2016 Games, where she was the nation's most successful Paralympian with three golds and a silver medal. She competes in the S14 classification for athletes with an intellectual impairment.
Ihar Boki is a visually impaired Belarusian Paralympic swimmer. He competed at the 2012, 2016 and 2020 Paralympics and won 16 gold medals. As of February 2013, he holds the S13 long course world records in 100, 200 and 400 metre freestyle, 50 and 100 metre backstroke and 200 metres individual medley events. In 2018, he was named the World Disabled Male Swimmer of the Year by Swimming World.
Rowan Crothers is an Australian freestyle swimmer. He represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics and the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. He won two gold and one silver medals at the Tokyo Paralympics. He has a been selected to compete at the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, France.
Jenna Jones is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. She represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics. She has a been selected to compete at the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, France.
Rebecca Meyers is a Paralympic swimmer of the United States. She won three gold and one silver medals in Rio 2016. She was also a member of the 2012 Paralympic Team, and won a silver and bronze in London. Rebecca Meyers has also competed at the 2009 Summer Deaflympics which was held in Taiwan, which is also her only appearance at the Deaflympics. She also clinched a bronze medal in the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay event in the 2009 Summer Deaflympics.
Iaroslav Denysenko is a swimmer from Ukraine who competes in Paralympic S13, SB13 and SM13 events. A five time European champion, in 2013 Denysenko won the World Championship in 50 metres freestyle S13, and has appeared in two Paralympic Games
Joanna Mendak is a Polish Paralympic swimmer. She represented Poland at the Summer Paralympics in 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2021. In total, she won three gold medals, one silver medal and two bronze medals at the Summer Paralympics.