10 Female Swimmers To Watch At The 2024 Paralympics

2024 SUMMER PARALYMPIC GAMES

• August 28 – September 8, 2024
  • Swimming: August 29 – September 7, 2024
• La Défense Arena – Paris, France
• LCM (50 meters)
• Meet Central
• Full Schedule
• How To Watch

There are only three days to go until La Défense Arena is filled with noise again, as Paralympic swimming gets underway on August 29th. There’s an exciting mix of veterans and debutants set to race in Paris, many of whom have already taken down world records this year. In that spirit, we’ve compiled a list of ten female swimmers to keep an eye on during the Games, like we did for the men.

Jessica Long, United States (S8, SB7, SM8 classification)

Jessica Long is one of the biggest names in Paralympic swimming, especially for American fans. She’s had an incredible career in terms of both longevity and dominance. At 32, she’s a 33x world champion and 16x Paralympic champion headed to her sixth Paralympic Games.

Listing all her career accolades would take pages but most recently, she earned six medals in Tokyo, including gold in the 100 butterfly S8, 200 medley SM8, and 4×100 medley relay 34 points, showing that she’s still at the top of her game. Long skipped the 2022 World Championships, but picked up two more world titles during the 2023 World Championships in Manchester, England, winning the 100 butterfly S8 and the 200 medley SM8.

She’ll aim to defend her titles in Paris and keep her 200 medley SM8 streak alive. She’s won gold in that event for the last four Paralympic Games.

Yip Pin Xiu, Singapore (S2 classification)

Yip Pin Xiu is another example of longevity in the sport. At 16, Yip made her Paralympic debut at the Beijing Games in style, breaking the 50 free S3 world record in prelims. She followed up by earning silver in the finals, but struck gold later in the meet, winning the 50 back S3. It was a significant achievement for Yip and her country; it was Singapore’s first Paralympic gold medal.

Yip, now 32, has continued to shine in the Paralympics since Beijing—she won the 50/100 backstroke S2 in Rio and defended both titles in Tokyo. She kept her streak alive in both events at 2022 Worlds and won 100 back gold in 2023.

Now, the five-time Paralympic champion will aim to add to her medal collection at her fifth Paralympic Games.

Lu Dong, China (S5, SM5 classification)

At the Tokyo Paralympics, Lu Dong racked up four gold medals—the most of any female swimmer at the Games—to help China win another Paralympic swimming medal table. She won the 50 back S5 with a world record of 37.18 and won the 50 fly S5, 200 IM SM5, and the mixed 4×50 freestyle relay 20 points. She’ll aim to defend all those titles in Paris, as well as racing the 100/200 free S5.

She’s now a 7x Paralympic medallist, with five of those medals being gold. She’s performed well since Tokyo too, winning two golds and two bronzes at the 2023 World Championships.

China has dominated the pool’s medal table at the last three Paralympic Games, and they’re looking for a fourth-straight medal table win in Paris. Lu will be key to that effort, as will swimmers like Liu Yu and Ma Jia, who are both set to defend multiple golds this week.

Alice Tai, Great Britain (S8, SB8, SM8 classification)

After getting on the podium twice at the 2016 Paralympics, Alice Tai, 25, withdrew from the 2020 Paralympics due to an elbow injury. She was also dealing with increased pain in her right foot from the bilateral talipes she was born with, and ultimately had her right leg amputated below the knee in January 2022.

She returned to international competition at the 2022 World Championships where she won silver in the 100 freestyle S8 after going into the meet with no goals other than to enjoy her return to racing. A year later at 2023 Worlds, she won gold in the 100 back S8 and silver in the 50 free S8. So, while she’s raced internationally multiple times since her amputation, this will be her first time back at the Paralympics since 2016, where she won gold in the 4×100 medley relay 34 points and silver in the 100 back S10.

Tai is part of a deep British team in the pool that includes swimmers like Faye Rogers, Maisie Summers-Newton, and Lily Newman-Baronius who have all broken world records this year.

Tess Routliffe, Canada (S7, SB7, SM7 classification)

Canada’s Tess Routliffe also missed the Tokyo Paralympics. The Rio silver medalist in the 200 medley SM7 fractured her spine during weight training, which meant she was unable to compete at the Games.

She’s since recovered and like Tai, returned to international competition at 2022 Worlds, where she won the 100 breast SB7, took silver in the 200 medley S7, and bronze in the 50 fly S7. A year later, she contributed to Canada’s strongest performance at a Para Swimming World Championships by defending her 100 breast SB7 title and adding a gold in the 200 medley SB7, and another silver and bronze.

After qualifying for her first Paralympics since Rio, Routliffe cracked the 50 breast SB7 world record at the Berlin CITI Para Swimming Series meet with a 40.68. She’ll race the 50 butterfly S7, 100 breast SB7, and 200 medley SM7 in Paris. She, along with reigning Olympic champions Aurelie Rivard and Danielle Dorris aims to help Canada carry its momentum from the 2023 Para World Championships and the 2024 Olympic Games to the Paralympics.

Maria Carolina Santiago, Brazil (S12 classification)

Maria Carolina Santiago began Para swimming in 2018 when she was 33, returning to the pool after nearly a decade. Three years later, at her first Paralympic Games, she made history for Brazil as she became the first female swimmer from her country to win three gold medals at the same Games and broke a 17-year drought for Brazil in the pool at the Paralympics. In addition to her three golds, she also won silver in the mixed 4×100 free relay 49 points and bronze in the 100 backstroke S12.

Now 39, Santiago returns to the Paralympic stage looking to defend her Paralympic titles in the 50 free S13, 100 free S12, and 100 breast SB12. She’s been on fire since Tokyo, winning three golds at the 2022 and 2023 Worlds and breaking world records in the 50 free S12 and 50 fly S12.

Alexa Leary, Australia (S9 classification)

The 23-year-old Alexa Leary is set to make her Paralympic debut in Paris. Leary was a triathlete growing up; in 2021, she sustained life-changing injuries while out on her cycling training and spent over 100 days in the hospital.

After her recovery, she turned to Para swimming. In her international debut at 2023 Worlds, Leary made quite the impression. She won the 100 free S9, nearly breaking the world record, and took silver in the 50 free S9. She earned the 2023 Emerging Athlete of the Year at the Australian Institute for Sports Performance Awards for her performance at the World Championships.

In April 2024, Leary continued to shine, snagging the 100 free S9 world record with a 59.64, and will be one of the medal favorites in the S9 classification’s sprint events in her first Paralympics.

Gia Pergolini, United States (S13, SB13, SM13 classification)

Gia Pergolini made her first international appearance at the 2017 World Championships in Mexico City. She earned silver in the 100 backstroke S13 and defended her medal two years later at the 2019 Worlds.

She had her breakout moment in Tokyo, breaking the 100 back S13 world record twice on her way to her first Paralympic gold, winning the final in 1:04.64 which still stands as the world record.

After winning double gold at the 2022 Worlds (100 free S13/100 back S13), Pergolini—still a teenager—took a break from the sport. She returned to the long-course pool at the end of 2023 with a bang, breaking the 50 back S13 world record (30.31) at the U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championship. Six months later, she made her second Paralympic team and will be in Paris to defend her crown.

Verena Schott, Germany (S6, SB5, SM6 classification)

35-year-old Verena Schott is a four-time Paralympic medalist. After winning silver in the 200 medley SM6 in London, she earned three bronze medals at the Tokyo Games (100 back S6, 100 breast SB5, 200 medley SM6). Last year, the veteran—who claimed her first Worlds medals in 2010—earned her first gold medal at the World/Paralympic level since 2015, winning the 100 breast SB5 in Manchester at the 2023 World Championships.

Now, Schott looks to carry that momentum into Paris and win her first Paralympic gold medal. She’s looked strong so far this season, claiming five medals at the 2024 European Championships, including gold in the 100 backstroke S6 and the 50 butterfly S6.

Ellen Keane, Ireland (S9, SM9, SB8 classification)

At 13, Ellen Keane was Ireland’s youngest athlete when she competed at the 2008 Paralympics. 16 years later, Keane is gearing up for one final competition as she’s announced that the Paris Games will be her last before retirement.

She’s not done yet though—and she’ll be right in the heart of the action in the 100 breaststroke SB8 final as she aims to defend her title in the event from Tokyo. That was her second Paralympic medal as she earned bronze in the same event in Rio, and she’s aiming to be back on the podium for a third straight time and close out her career on a high note. She’s had strong results since Tokyo, winning silver at 2022 Worlds, 2023 Worlds, and the 2024 European Championships.