Para Swimming World Championships - Ones to Watch

Manchester is set to host the 11th edition of the Para Swimming World Championships for the first time this year, taking place from the 31st of July to the 6th of August 2023. The upcoming event will be held in Manchester's newly refurbished Aquatics Centre, also home to the British Para-Swimming National Performance Centre.

The World Championships have previously been held in the United Kingdom only twice, following Glasgow in 2015 and London in 2019, making it an exhilarating experience for British competitors and fans to experience the event on home soil. In 2019 the Championship witnessed an astounding 188 records broken, including 29 world records, with the British team accumulating an impressive 47 medals across the competition. Naturally, the British athletes will be determined to surpass this result in Manchester later this month.

British athletes:

This year, a formidable 28-strong British team has been carefully chosen, featuring highly experienced athletes including 15 swimmers who have previously competed in the London 2019 World Championships and 10 athletes who achieved podium finishes in last year's event in Madeira, Spain. The British team is evidently poised to make a significant impact at the upcoming Championships.

Here are just a few of the British athletes selected for the upcoming event in July who are not to be missed. The full British team can be found here.

Among notable British athletes to watch out for is Bethany Firth MBE (S14), a multiple world record holder and Paralympic champion, who is celebrated as one of the most successful British swimmers. Firth's extraordinary achievements in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where she secured multiple medals, including gold in both the S14 100m Backstroke and the Mixed S14 4x100m Freestyle Relay, have cemented her reputation as a swimming powerhouse. She aims to add to her medal collection in Manchester and at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.

More recently, Firth secured an impressive haul of five gold medals at Madeira in 2022, triumphing in the S14 200m Freestyle, S4 100m Backstroke, SM14 200m Individual Medley, Mixed S14 4x100m Freestyle Relay and Mixed S14 4x100m Medley Relay. Continuing her impressive form, earlier this year at Sheffield's Citi Para Swimming Word Series British Meet, Firth further solidified her podium reputation, claiming gold in the 200m Freestyle and silver in the 100m Backstroke events. She is clearly prepared for Manchester and looks to be in excellent shape to succeed again in her third World Para Championship.

Firth will be joined by fellow World Champions Ellie Challis (S3), Grace Harvey (S6) and Poppy Maskill (S14) who train collectively and are based at the Performance Centre Manchester, situated in this year's venue. In Madeira last year, Challis and Harvey both set impressive new British records. Harvey broke the Women’s 100m Breaststroke SB5 record, finishing in an extraordinary time of 1:41.19, a staggering 17.04 seconds quicker than her nearest rival. Challis improved on the British record by almost half a second in the Women’s 50m freestyle S3 final, taking the silver medal. At only 19 years old, it will be exciting to see how she fairs at her home pool in Manchester. Poppy Maskill (S14) is also no stranger to the podium. In her senior debut for Great Britain at Madeira last year, Maskill secured a silver in the S14 100m Backstroke and bronze in the S14 100m Butterfly. Maskil's recent results at the British Para-swimming meet in Sheffield 2023 show huge promise as she won gold in the MC100m Backstroke with a time of 1:07.13.

Stephen Clegg, an experienced athlete who only ventured into swimming in 2014, has been making waves with remarkable performances. His rapid progress led him to make his grand debut at the 2016 European Championships in Funchal, Portugal before the Rio Games. There, he remarkably qualified for three finals and achieved a new personal best in the S13 400m freestyle event. His latest achievements include becoming the first-ever S12 swimmer to finish under 28 seconds in the Men’s 50m Backstroke, taking gold in the 2023 Citi Para Swimming World Series leg in Berlin in May – an extraordinary achievement to carry into his swimming career.

The British team also include six debutants who have earned the opportunity to compete in Manchester following the trials at the Citi Para Swimming World Series in Sheffield in March. Among those, Faye Rogers (S10) and William Ellard (S14) both won World Series gold medals, while Rhys Darbey (S14) and Georgia Sheffield (S14) both secured individual qualification times.

International Athletes:

The international athletes participating in the Manchester Championships are no less remarkable.

During the Madeira 2022 Championships, Italy reigned supreme at the medals table, securing an impressive 27 golds, and claiming the top spot for consecutive World Championships. As the para-swimmers gather in Manchester, Italy will undoubtedly be striving to maintain their supremacy and secure the championship title for the third time. Italy's dynamic duo, Stefano Raimondi and Simone Barlaam played a pivotal role in Italy's golden success last year, contributing to an astonishing 11 Gold medals. Notably, Barlaam's exceptional talents were on full display as he shattered two world records in the S9 100m Backstroke and freestyle events, in addition to securing five individual medals. Raimondi also showcased his extraordinary talent, clinching an impressive tally of five individual gold medals. Additionally, he secured a silver and a bronze, making him the male athlete with the highest number of podium finishes in the competition. His exceptional performance left no doubt about his dominance in the sport and will make him a favourite for the upcoming competition.

An outstanding mention is reserved for Spain's young prodigy, Anastasiya Dmytriv, who secured her inaugural World Championship gold at Madeira when she was just 13 years old, surpassing Paralympic champion Ellen Keane in the women's 100m breaststroke SB8 event. This year, the talented athlete is set to compete in three thrilling events: the Women's 200m Individual Medley, the Women's 100m Breaststroke SB8, and the Women's 100m Butterfly S9. Her remarkable achievements at such a tender age highlight her potential as a rising star in para-swimming.

Another exceptional young talent hails from Brazil, seventeen-year-old Samuel Oliveira, who showcased his incredible skills at Madeira by securing two gold medals in the men's 50m Backstroke S5 (36.58) event. Notably, he later teamed up with Joana Neves (S5), Daniel Mendes (S6), and Lídia Cruz (S4) to achieve yet another triumphant victory, securing gold in the mixed 4x50m freestyle relay. Known as ‘Samuka’ in Brazil, his journey to success has been an inspiring one, as he lost his arms due to an unfortunate electric shock incident while flying a kite. His cousin Tiago Oliveira, who also endured the same accident, participated in the Madeira World Championships, demonstrating tremendous resilience, and coming in sixth place in his race.

As we approach the 2023 World Championships, 34-year-old Leanne Smith (USA) emerges as an unmistakable favourite among seasoned athletes. In 2010, Smith faced a formidable challenge when she encountered facial paralysis and numbness, leading to an extensive five-month hospitalization in pursuit of a diagnosis. Finally, in 2012, she received a definitive verdict—dystonia, a rare and progressive neurological condition characterized by its wide array of symptoms affecting bodily regions, and varying levels of disability. To cope with her condition, Smith took up swimming in 2013 to alleviate stress on her body and regain mobility. Over the years, she has proven herself as one of the world's premier athletes, but it was in Madeira last year where she shone, securing an astounding seven gold medals—a remarkable feat that stands as the best US performance since Jessica Long's achievements in 2010.

Overall, the Manchester World Championships looks to be an incredibly exciting and action-packed event filled with inspirational talent worldwide. For more information on the event click here.