Part of this article originally appeared in the 2022 Summer Preview edition of SwimSwam Magazine, courtesy of author Aglaia Pezzato. Subscribe to the SwimSwam Magazine here.
Italian Paralympic superstar Simone Barlaam won the gold medal in the men’s 50 freestyle S9 in a world record time of 23.90 at the 2024 Paralympics on Monday. This is Barlaam’s second medal in Paris, the 6th of his Paralympic career, and that number figures to continue growing with more racing coming in the next few days.
Back in 2022, Barlaam, a phenomenal swimmer but also a talented artist, created some special artwork for SwimSwam Magazine. The theme of the issue was “first time” and Simone did three amazing pieces inspired by three special moments (“firsts”) in swimming history.
“History is made of “first times.” The first man on the moon. The first woman to summit Everest. The first human flight. This list could go on and on forever. Sport, and of course swimming, is filled with breakthroughs and first-evers.
Mankind is scared of the unknown. Doing something for the first time is overcoming this fear. This is why first times are crucial in our lives and evolution as human society. We often read about men and women who through their actions inspire us to be the best version of ourselves in spite of this fear. This is the power of doing something for the first time: creating a legacy that will keep inspiring people from all over the world for centuries.
The following panels are about four “first times” that I believe have been crucial to making swimming the sport that we all love. I hope you all enjoy them, and remember: Just keep swimming.”
On July 9, 1922, Johnny Weissmuller was the first man to swim the 100 freestyle in less than one minute, with a time of 58.6 seconds. In October 1962, Australian Dawn Fraser became the first woman to swim the 100 freestyle in less than one minute.
Illustration N.1 (Sub60): Technical pen and various airbrushes on digital tablet. (8.3 x 11.7 in/210 x 297mm)
On August 25, 1875, British Navy Captain Matthew Webb was the first man to swim the English
Channel from Dover to Calais without artificial aid. The Channel crossing took him almost 22 hours.
Illustration N.2 (Captain Webb): fine tip and monoline pen on digital tablet. (11.7 x 16.5 in./297x 420 mm)
On May 3, 2008, South African swimmer Natalie Du Toit finished fourth in the 10km race at the World Open Water Swimming Championships in Seville. This result made her the first-ever Paralympic swimmer to qualify for the Olympic Games. Later that year she swam at the Beijing Olympics, where she finished 16th. Natalie was also the first athlete to carry a flag in the opening ceremony of both the Olympic and Paralympic Games in a single year.
Illustration N.3 (G.O.A.T.): alcohol-based markers and ink on smooth paper. (11 x 14 in./279 x 359 mm)
In the Italian team, Lorenzo Zazzeri is also an accomplished artist