Michelle Alonso Morales (born 29 March 1994, in

Tenerife Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...

) is a

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

competitor from

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. She has been dubbed by the media as ''"The Little Mermaid of the Canary Islands"''. She is also considered one of the most important personalities of Spanish sport.

Personal

Alonso was born 29 March 1994 and has an intellectual disability. She is from the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

. As of 2012, she lived in

. In October 2013, she was awarded the gold Real Orden al Mérito Deportivo at a ceremony at the Teatro de Madrid Cofidis, and attended by Princess Elena, Minister of Education, Culture and Sport, José Ignacio Wert, the president of the Higher Sports Council (CSD), Miguel Cardinal, and the Director General of Sports of CSD, Ana Muñoz.

Swimming

Alonso is an S14 classified swimmer. She is affiliated with the Spanish Sports Federation for Persons with Intellectual Disability (FEddi). In 2010, Alonso competed at the Tenerife International Open. In 2012 Alonso competed at the Paralympic Swimming Championship of Spain by Autonomous Communities. She raced at the

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Summer Paralympic Gam ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

where she earned a gold medal in the 100 metre breaststroke setting a new world record of 1:16.85. She competed at the

2013 IPC Swimming World Championships The 2013 IPC Swimming World Championships was an international swimming competition, the biggest meet for athletes with a disability since the 2012 Summer Paralympics. It was held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and lasted from 12 to 18 August. Around ...

, where she won a gold medal in her favoured 100m breaststroke. The next year she again represented Spain, this time in the

2014 IPC Swimming European Championships The 2014 IPC Swimming European Championships was an international swimming competition held in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, from the 4th to the 10th of August. Around 375 athletes from 35 different countries attended. The venue, the Pieter van d ...

. She entered four events, winning gold in the 100m breaststroke S14 breaking her own world record, set at the Paralympics, by over a second. She broke her own world record again at the

2020 Summer Paralympics The , branded as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, was an international multi-sport parasports event held from 24 August to 5 September 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. They were the 16th Summer Paralympic Games as organized by the International Paralym ...

, with a time of 1:12:02. During the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Michelle led the Spanish delegation at the opening ceremony carrying the

flag of Spain The national flag of Spain ( es, Bandera de España), as it is defined in the Constitution of 1978, consists of three horizontal stripes: red, yellow and red, the yellow stripe being twice the size of each red stripe. Traditionally, the middle ...

.Michelle Alonso, bandera de España
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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Alonso, Michelle 1994 births Living people Spanish female breaststroke swimmers Spanish female freestyle swimmers Paralympic swimmers for Spain Paralympic gold medalists for Spain Paralympic medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Swimmers at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Sportspeople from Santa Cruz de Tenerife S14-classified para swimmers Medalists at the World Para Swimming Championships Medalists at the World Para Swimming European Championships 21st-century Spanish women