 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . (Learn how and when to remove these messages)
|
 De Paepe at the 2024 Summer Paralympics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | Belgian | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 3 January 1985 Belgium | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Para swimming Paratriathlon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | 3T Triathlon Tenacity Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wim De Paepe (born 1 January 1985) is a Belgian Paralympic swimmer and triathlete. [1] He competes in classification PTS2. [2]
De Paepe grew up on a farm, specializing the production of strawberries, in the country-side of Bois-de-Nivelles in Hainaut Province, Belgium, in a family of 5, with a brother and a sister. He lost a part of his right leg when he was ten years old in an accident with a farmer's equipment, as a result of which he now wears a prosthetic leg. [3] [2] Sports having always played an important part in his and his family member's lives, he wanted to continue to practice a sport and as his sister was already a swimmer, he took up swimming himself, partly because it did not require any specific equipment partly because it allowed him to learn to live with his new body. [3] [4]
De Paepe is married and has three sons. [1] He works as a physiotherapist and osteopath. [3]
De Paepe started doing international para swimming competitions from around the age of 15. [3]
He participated in the 2002, 2006 and 2010 IPC Swimming World Championships in multiple events, ranging from 50 to 400 metres freestyle S9 over 100 metres backstroke S9 to 200 metres individual medley SM9 and even 5,000 metres Open Water S10, with an 8th place in the 100 metres Freestyle S9 at the 2002 IPC Swimming World Championships in Mar del Plata, Argentina, as his best result. [5]
He represented Belgium at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece finishing 6th in the final of the men's 400 metres freestyle S9. [6]
After a long hiatus from competition sports, and when COVID-19 forced him to slow down at work, he turned to sports and after he cycled up the Mount Ventoux in France, [7] he decided to join the "Royal Cercle Athlétique du Brabant Wallon" [8] setting his mind to para triathlon. [3] With success. At his very first European Triathlon Para Championships, in 2021 in Valencia, Spain, he wins the bronze medal. [9] [10] He follows that up in December of that year with another bronze medal, this time at the World Triathlon Para Championships in Abu Dhabi. [11] [12]
Nearly a year later to the day, he wins another bronze medal at the 2022 World Triathlon Para Championships again in Abu Dhabi. [13] [14]
Twenty years after participating as a swimmer in the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Greece, he qualified as a triathlete for the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, France. [15] [16] In Paris, he finished 5th, one place better than in 2024. [17] Barely 20 days after the Olympics, he won a bronze medal at the Europe Triathlon Championships in Vichy, France [18] [19] and in October he become world champion at the 2024 World Triathlon Para Championships in Torremolinos, Spain and the first Belgian to do so. [20] [21]
Sandra "Sandy" Dukat is an American Paralympic athlete. Born with proximal femoral focal deficiency, she had her right leg amputated above the knee at the age of four. She has competed internationally in alpine skiing, swimming and triathlon. As of February 2013, she holds the marathon world record for above-knee amputee women.
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 Tuomela is a Canadian paralympic competitive swimmer and para triathlete who was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. She won silver in the 50-metre freestyle at the 2000 Summer Paralympics and bronze in the Women's PTVI Paratriathlon at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
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.
Brenden Hall, is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. He competed at the, 2008 Beijing Paralympics, 2012 London Paralympics, 2016 Rio Paralympics, 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and the 2024 Paris Paralympics. At the end of the Paris Paralympics, he had won three gold, one silver and three bronze medals.
Rowan Crothers is an Australian freestyle swimmer. He represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and 2024 Paris Paralympics. He won two gold and one silver medals at the Tokyo Paralympics and two silver and one bronze medals at Paris Paralympics.
Emily Beecroft is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. She represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and 2024 Paris Paralympics.
Timothy Malcolm Disken, is an Australian paralympic swimmer. He represented Australia at the 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships and won bronze in the men's 4 × 100 m freestyle relay. At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, he won a gold medal in the men's 100m freestyle S9, a silver medal in the men's S9 50m freestyle and a bronze medal in the men's 200m individual medley SM9. He also competed at the 2020 Summer Paralympics.
Timothy Hodge is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. He has represented Australia at the 2016, 2020, and 2024 Summer Paralympics, where he won two gold, three silver and one bronze medals.
Dimosthenis 'Dimos' Michalentzakis is a Greek Paralympic swimmer who competes in S9 and S8 classification events. He won Paralympic gold in the 100m butterfly S9 at 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro and Paralympic bronze in the 100m freestyle S8 at 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo. He was born in Alexandroupoli in 19/10/1998 and he has origin from Feres. He holds the world record in 200 meters freestyle in his category with a performance of 2:07:16. The Municipal Swimming Pool of Alexandroupoli has his name.
Toni Stephanie Shaw is a British Paralympic swimmer. In 2019 she set the world record time for the S9 200m butterfly, and was also part of the team that set a new world record for the 4 × 100 m medley relay. At the 2020 Summer Paralympics, she won a bronze medal in the women's 400 metre freestyle S9 event and later went on to win gold at the 2022 World Para Swimming Championships, becoming the World Champion. She is a three-time World Champion and two-time European Champion.
William Michael Martin, is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. He won three gold and one silver medals at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, breaking two world records and a Paralympic record in the process.
Alexander Tuckfield is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. He began swimming at the age on ten. He has cerebral palsy. At the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, he won a bronze medal
Ugo Didier is a French Paralympic swimmer. He represented France at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Paralympics.
Sabrina Duchesne is a Canadian Paralympic swimmer who won a bronze medal in the Women's 34pts 4x100m relay event at the 2020 Summer Paralympics. She competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, 2018 Pan Pacific Para Swimming Championships, and 2019 World Para Swimming Championships.
Alexa Leary is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. She won a gold medal and silver medal at the 2023 World Para Swimming Championships. She won two gold medals and a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Paralympics..
Thomas "Tom" Goodman is an Australian para-triathlete. He competed at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.
Sam de Visser is a Belgian Paralympic swimmer. He competes in classification S9.
Tatyana Lebrun is a Belgian Paralympic swimmer. She competes in classification S10.
Kylian Portal is a French para swimmer. He competed at the 2024 Summer Paralympics and won a bronze medal in the men's 400m freestyle S13, behind his brother Alex, who won silver.
