Elena Krawzow's episode in 'WHO I AM Paralympics' TV series wins prestigious award

The ‘Who I Am Paralympics’ TV series episode featuring German Para swimmer Elena Krawzow won the Mention D'Honneur at the 40th Milano International Ficts Fest in the Olympic & Paralympic Spirit Category. 

The information was revealed by the Japanese company WOWOW Co., Ltd, which is the producer.

The episode was broadcasted and streamed on 8 January 2023 and focused on the life and sporting journey of Krawzow, who is the current Paralympic champion in 100m breaststroke in the SB13 class. She has also won three golds in the World Championships and five in the European Championships.

The 30-year old specializes in breaststroke and freestyle.

At age seven she was diagnosed with macular degeneration, which left her with less than 3% vision.

In 2021 she started chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment for a brain tumour, but she is still training and competing with the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games in mind.

Milano International Ficts Fest is the sole international sports film festival officially endorsed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Regarded as the pinnacle of global sports-related film and television festivals, it celebrated its 40th edition this year.

With over 1,200 submissions from 130 countries, Krawzow’s episode was selected among the six nominated works in the Olympic & Paralympic Spirit Category.

The festival took place in Milan from 7 to 11 November, and the award-winning works in each category were announced on the final day. It's noteworthy that this is the first time a WOWOW original production has received this award.

The synopsis

The WHO I AM series began in 2016 as a large-scale documentary series in collaboration with WOWOW and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). It followed the journey of Para athletes to Rio 2016, PyeongChang 2018 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

More than 40 names from 25 countries have appeared in the WHO I AM series. Some of them are Daniel Dias (Brazil), Salum Ageze Kashafali (Norway) and Beatrice Vio (Italy), among many other Paralympians.

Previously, Vio's episode, named The Golden Phoenix, was even nominated for an International Emmy Award in 2018.

In addition, the "Paralympic Documentary Series WHO I AM" Season 2 (broadcasted from 2017 to 2018) and Season 3 (broadcasted in 2018) were nominated for the Asian Television Awards Documentary Series category, making this the third nomination for the "WHO I AM" series.

The success of the project made it evolve into two different series: "WHO I AM Paralympic," which still delves into the world's top Para athletes, and "WHO I AM LIFE," featuring a diverse lineup of artists and creators.

Next season

The latest season of both series is set to premiere in January 2024.

The first two episodes of the “WHO I AM Paralympic” will feature Japanese Tokita Oda, who made remarkable leaps in 2023 by achieving the youngest Grand Slam victory in wheelchair tennis history and attaining the world No. 1 ranking, and Italian Ambra Sabatini, who set a world record and won a gold medal in the women's 100m at Tokyo 2020. Both are expected to be big names in Paris 2024.

For the start of 2024, the lineup for "WHO I AM LIFE" features a musician from Guinea named Sidiki Conde and Austrian stage actor Yuria Knoll.

Both of the series are broadcasted and streamed for free in Japan.

WOWOW Co., Ltd. also announced that the "WHO I AM LIFE" documentary series had been nominated for the Documentary Series category at the 28th Asian Television Awards.

The Asian Television Awards is an international accolade that recognizes outstanding television programs and personalities in the television broadcasting industry across Asia. This year marks the 28th edition since its establishment in 1996. The announcement of the winners and the award ceremony will take place on January 12th and 13th, 2024, in Vietnam.