Brianna Nelson (born 9 May 1992) is a S7 classified Canadian para-swimmer who has competed in the 2008 and 2012 Paralympics. She was introduced to swimming by her cycling coach and had won two silver medals and one gold in the Paralympics and the

IPC Swimming World Championships The World Para Swimming Championships, known before 30 November 2016 as the IPC Swimming World Championships, are the world championships for swimming where athletes with a disability compete. They are organised by the International Paralympic C ...

. She currently attends the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary instit ...

Personal life

Nelson was born on 9 May 1992 in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. She resides in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. Th ...

. She started swimming when her cycling coach Stephen Burke recommended swimming to improve core strength and balance. She later gave up cycling to continue swimming. She was born with

cerebral palsy Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sensa ...

that effects her right side. She practices at

Saanich Commonwealth Place Saanich Commonwealth Place is a recreation center located west of the Patricia Bay Highway and north of Royal Oak Drive in Saanich, British Columbia in Canada. It was originally constructed in 1993 for the August 1994 Commonwealth Games, and is ...

where her freestyle had improved by a full second. Nelson currently attends the

where she studies history and psychology.

Career

2012 London Paralympics

Nelson's second Paralympic, After she had won the two silver medals in the 50 metre butterfly and 200 metre individual medley. She said, "I knew it was going to be a battle for the silver medal, I just went for it." She was later congratulated by Canada's Prime Minister

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

2013 International Paralympic Committee

Nelson won one gold medal at the Swimming World Championships in 2013. She finished first 1:07 seconds ahead of Britain swimmer Susannah Rodgers clocking 35.70 seconds. She said that "It wasn't a race I was expecting to win, but I wanted to perform well. To get the gold on top of that is amazing."

References

External links