- Alexa Leary was fastest in the S9 100m freestyle final
- Another world record set, first individual gold at the Paralympics
- 2021 bicycle accident left swimmer, 23, with brain damage
Australian swimmer Alexa Leary has won a gold medal at the Paralympic Games in impressive fashion, and fulfilled a fortune teller’s prediction from three years ago.
After setting a world record of 59.60 in the morning session at the La Defense Arena in Paris, Leary went one better by claiming gold in the 100m freestyle (S9) with a blazing time of 59.53.
The gold was Leary’s first individual Paralympic medal and came after single-handedly leading the Australian 100-metre relay team to a convincing first place two days earlier.
The achievement marks another milestone in the increasingly rich chapter of what the 23-year-old calls her “second life.”
Leary nearly died after falling from her bike in 2021, leaving her with brain damage and several long-term injuries.
More than once, doctors told her parents, Russ and Belinda, that they should prepare to say goodbye to their daughter.
Seeking answers and hope, Leary’s parents turned to a psychic who predicted that the swimmer would become a gold medalist at the Paralympic Games.
“It’s really amazing that when I was in intensive care, my father got a fortune teller,” Leary explains.
Australia’s Alexa Leary celebrates her victory in the S9 freestyle final at the Paris Paralympic Games
The gold was Leary’s first individual Paralympic medal and came after single-handedly carrying the Australian 100m relay team to first place two days earlier
Alexa Leary had to learn to walk again after her horrific cycling accident in 2021 that nearly killed her
It was an incredible journey for Alexa, who used swimming as a way to recover from the accident
‘The fortune teller said I wanted to go to the Paralympics, and now that I’m here I think, ‘Wow, I did it.”
Leary was beside herself with excitement as she enjoyed winning gold in a world record time.
And Leary almost had a second Australian medal in her race, as Emily Beecroft just missed out on bronze, finishing fourth.
However, on Wednesday evening, two bronze medals were won for Australia in the pool.
Twenty-year-old Ricky Betar led his 200m medley (S14) through the first 100m, but eventually finished third.
That was in contrast to Grant ‘Scooter’ Patterson, who emerged at the end of his 50m breaststroke (SB2) to take third place and claim his second bronze medal of the Games.
Patterson, 35, was determined to continue racing until the 2032 Games in Brisbane and catch his white whale.
“Unless something else happens, like Mercedes offering me an (F1) contract, I will be there in 2032,” he said.
“I have only one goal left and that is the gold medal. Who knows if I will ever get it, but I’m going for it and I’m going for it.”