Celebrating swimmers for IDPWD 2020
Today is the UN's International Day of People With Disabilities, whose theme this year is ‘not all disabilities are visible’.
To mark the day we're celebrating four swimmers – superstar Paralympian Ellie Simmonds, People's Pool board member Mark Wilson, New Brighton Chilly Dipper Kiera Tuck and Waterloo sensory swimmer Gabe.
Ellie Simmonds OBE came to national attention at the age of just 13, when she competed in the five events at the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing, winning two gold medals. In 2012, she won another two golds, a silver and a bronze at the London Paralympics, setting a World Record in the 400m freestyle. And she took another gold at the Rio Paralympics in 2016, this time setting a world record for the 200m medley.
People’s Pool board member Mark Wilson says, “I was born minus both legs and one arm and walked for pretty much all of my working life on two tin legs. With stumps encased in ‘sockets’ and a lot of straps around my back, it felt pretty good to leave all that behind and go for a swim. I learnt to swim at boarding school and in truth my first challenge wasn’t buoyancy but sorting out how to swim in a straight line! I managed that and went on to win some medals at Stoke Mandeville Games, the precursor to what we know today as the Paralympics.
“A few decades later I had qualified as a scuba diver and swum on the Great Barrier Reef and survived! Now I’m looking forward to the day when The Peoples Pool becomes a gorgeous, inclusive, incredibly accessible community gem on our amazing Merseyside coastline.”
New Brighton Happy Chilly Dipper Kiera Tuck, says, “I have fibromyalgia, reactive arthritis anxiety, depression and chronic fatigue syndrome. I've been sea/cold water swimming since July and I try for a minimum of 4 times a week. I don’t take any pain meds, no antidepressants, no longer using alcohol to relax or numb pain. I'm not cured but the pain’s reduced massively. It’s had a magical holistic healing effect for both my mental and physical health. It is the best free medicine out there!”
The sensory swimming programme run by Liverpool Swimming Academy (pictured) has been great for Tasha’s son Gabe – she says, “the sensory swim in Waterloo has given my son, who has a sensory condition, a calm fun environment to listen and learn. His confidence has massively improved, which has helped his development. It is his favourite activity to do every week!”.
If you have a health condition that's eased by swimming, or you find your needs aren’t always catered for at traditional pools, we’d love to hear from you. Get in touch via email or social media, and sign up to join the People's Pool community. This is your pool - help us make sure it’s as inclusive and as joyous as it can possibly be.