Tokyo Paralympics preview: Para swimming day 1

The Tokyo Aquatics Centre will be the home of the best Para swimmers in the world going into the battle for medals from 25 August to 3 September at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

The Para swimming competition programme is divided into two sessions per day. Heats take place during the morning session, while the finals are held during the afternoon session, starting at 5:00 pm (Tokyo time).

There will be 16 finals on day one with the men's 400m freestyle S9 as the curtain raiser. Australia's Brenden Hall will jump in the water as the favourite to defend his Rio 2016 Paralympic gold.

Hall is the double Paralympic champion in the event, three-time world champion and a world record holder on top of all. He will be accompanied by the Italian Federico Morlacchi, Mexico City 2017 world champion and silver medallist from Rio 2016.

London 2019 world champion Jacobo Garrido of Spain is another one to watch in the 400m freestyle S9. On his Paralympic debut, France's Ugo Didier will try to make an upset and win his first medal in Tokyo. He won the European title and set the best time of the year at Madeira 2020 in May.

In the women's 400m freestyle S9 final, there will be three main medal contenders. Australia's Lakeisha Patterson and Ellie Cole will try to take away the gold from Spain's Nuria Marques.

She is the defending Paralympic champion and the gold medallist from the Mexico City 2017 Worlds. Patterson is the reigning world champion from London 2010 and the fastest woman in the 400m freestyle S9 this year.

Cole is one of the stars of the Netflix documentary 'Rising Phoenix', about the history of the Paralympic Movement. She is also the most experienced in the event, with three medals to her name (bronze at Beijing 2008 and London 2012, and silver at Rio 2016).

 

Men's 100m backstroke S1 and S2, women's 100m backstroke S2

Backstroke events will start with the men's 100m final in the S1 class. Italy's Francesco Bettella will lead the way as the reigning European champion and the silver medallist from Rio 2016.

He is also the pole sitter in the event as the owner of the fastest time of the year from the Euros in Madeira. His main rival in Tokyo will be Iyad Shalabi from Israel, a silver medallist from Madeira and the second-fastest man in the event this year.

The S1 final will be followed by the men's 100m backstroke S2 final. Chile's Alberto Abarza will come to Tokyo as a top medal contender as the bronze medallist from the last two World Championships. He is also the Parapan American Games champion from Lima 2019.

Abarza will have to look out for Brazil's Gabriel dos Santos who set the fastest time of the year at the National Trials in Sao Paulo in June.

This event will be followed by the women's 100m backstroke S2. Yip Pin Xiu from Singapore is the biggest star in the race as the reigning Paralympic and world champion.

She is also the owner of the world record and the fastest time in 2021. Miyuki Yamada may give hosts Japan one of their first medals in the pool.

Men's and women's 100m butterfly S14 

The men's 100m butterfly S14 final should be one of the most exciting on day one. World record holder and reigning world champion Reece Dunn from Great Britain will go up against the home-country favourite Dai Tokairin. He set the second-fastest time of the year in Fuji in March and is in fine form ahead of his home Paralympics.

Gabriel Bandeira from Brazil is another one to watch out for. The 22-year-old set the best time of the year at the National Trials and won the gold medal with a new Americas record at the European Open Championships in Madeira in May.

The Brits will keep their hopes high in the women's 100m butterfly S14. Jessica-Jane Applegate is the two-time European champion and silver medallist from the last Worlds in London 2019.

RPC's Valeriia Shabalina should be Applegate's main rival as the reigning world champion and world record holder. The 21-year-old Australian Paige Leonhardt set the fastest time in the world this year just two months ago and will look to ruin Applegate's and Shabalina's plans in Tokyo.

Men's 50m breaststroke SB3, women's 50m freestyle S6

Men's 50m breaststroke SB3 event is RPC's Roman Zhdanov territory this year. He set the fastest time in the world in May, while he also took the European Championships title in Madeira. Zhdanov is also the bronze medallist from London 2019 Worlds where Italian Efrem Morelli won the gold medal.

Morelli is the world record holder, two-time world champion and European champion from Dublin in 2018. At the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, he won the bronze medal.

Besides Zhdanov and Morelli, Miguel Luque from Spain is another one to watch. He set the second-best time in 2021 at the Berlin World Series in June and is coming to Tokyo in fine form.

Women's 50m freestyle S6 is Ukraine's area. Yelyzaveta Mereshko is the reigning Paralympic and world champion, four-time European champion and world record holder. On top of all, she set the fastest time of the year in Madeira.

Her compatriot Viktoriia Savtsova is following in Mereshko's footsteps. The 24-year-old won the silver medal at the last Paralympic Games, World Championships and European Championships. She also set the second-best time in 2021.

Men's and women's 50m freestyle S10

The S10 class has a lot to offer on day one in the men's and women's 50m freestyle. Maksym Krypak is going to Tokyo as the reigning Paralympic and European champion, as well as the world record holder.

Stefano Raimondi from Italy and Phelipe Rodrigues from Brazil will try to shatter his dream of winning the second straight Paralympic gold. Raimondi is the world champion from London two years ago, while Rodrigues has the world title from Mexico City 2017. He is also the silver medallist from the Rio 2016 Paralympics and the London 2019 Worlds.

Australia's Rowan Crothers is the owner of the second-fastest time of the year and will try to squeeze in on the podium.

Canada's Aurelie Rivard is the main favourite in the women's event. She is the reigning Paralympic and world champion with a world record to her name.

Chantalle Zijderveld from the Netherlands will try to take away Rivard's crown as the fastest woman in the class. The two should also expect a good performance from Italy's Alessia Scortechini, reigning European champion and the silver medallist from Mexico City 2017 Worlds. She also owns the third-best time of the year from Euros.

 

Men's and women's 100m butterfly S13

Women's and men's 100m butterfly S13 events are most likely going to be a one Para swimmer show. Italy's Carlotta Gilli is the reigning European champion and the silver medallist from London 2019 Worlds. She is also the one to beat when it comes to world record and the best time of the year.

Shokhsanamkhon Toshpulatova from Uzbekistan will be Gilli's main rival in Tokyo. She is the reigning world champion and the owner of the second-fastest time of the year.

Ihar Boki from Belarus won six gold medals at Rio 2016 and will kick off in Tokyo in one of his favourite events. He is the world record holder, as well as the two-time Paralympic champion, three-time European champion and four-time world champion in the men's 100m Butterfly S13.

His best time of the year is almost three seconds faster than the second one set by Ukraine's Oleksii Virchenko.

Men's and women's 200m freestyle S5, men's 100m freestyle S8

Another Para swimming giant starts his quest for medals on day one. Tokyo 2020 will be the last Paralympics for Brazil's Daniel Dias who will jump in the water in the men's 200m freestyle S5 as the three-time Paralympic champion and the four-time world champion in the event. 

His main rival will be Italy's Francesco Bocciardo who is the world record holder, reigning world and European champion, as well as the fastest man in the event in 2021.

The competition will be much stronger in the women's 200m freestyle S5. Zhang Li from China leads the way as the Paralympic champion from Rio 2016.

Great Britain's Tully Kearney won the gold medal at the World Championships in 2019 in London, while Italy's Monica Boggioni took bronze in the same competition. She is also the reigning European champion.

Para swimming will round-up on the first day with the men's 100m freestyle S8 final. Greece's biggest medal hope Dimosthenis Michalentzakis is the reigning world and European champion. He also swam the second-best time of the season so far.

The 21-year-old Ben Popham from Australia set the fastest time in 2021 at a competition in Adelaide in June. He will be the greatest threat for Michalentzakis together with China's Guanglong Yang, a two-time World Championships medallist.

Complete schedule and results from Para swimming at Tokyo 2020 will be available on Paralympic.org.