Valérie Grand'Maison (born October 12, 1988) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

former

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 ...

and Paralympic champion. Over two

Summer Paralympic Games The Summer Paralympics, also known as the Games of the Paralympiad, are an international multi-sport event where athletes with physical disabilities compete. This includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and cerebr ...

she won a total of six medals setting multiple world records in

Paralympic swimming Para swimming is an adaptation of the sport of swimming for athletes with disabilities. Para swimmers compete at the Summer Paralympic Games and at other sports competitions throughout the world. The sport is governed by the International Paral ...

Biography

Valérie Grand'Maison started

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...

at the age of seven years and started to compete competitively at the age of nine years with the swimming club CAMO of

Montréal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. Grand'Maison developed a condition that degrades the vision of the eyes called

macular degeneration Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred vision, blurred or vision loss, no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no sym ...

at the age of 12. By the age of 15, she had already lost most of the vision in both her eyes. Pierre Lamy, her swimming coach at the time, suggested that she get classified as an athlete who is handicapped. At the 2005

Canada Games The Canada Games () is a multi-sport event held every two years, alternating between the Canada Winter Games and the Canada Summer Games. They represent the highest level of national competition for Canadian athletes. Two separate programs are or ...

in Regina she qualified to be part of the Canadian Handicapped Swimming Team. She then participated at the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

held in Melbourne, Australia. In 2006 at the National Swimming Paralympic Championships in South Africa, she won seven medals with five of them being gold. She also established a new record for the 100 Metre free. At the

2008 Summer Paralympics The 2008 Summer Paralympic Games (), the 13th Summer Paralympic Games, took place in Beijing, China, from September 6 to 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao. It was ...

Grand’Maison won six medals, with three of them being gold. One gold was for the 100 Metre Butterfly, another for the 100 Metre Free and the last for the 400 Metre Free. In addition she broke two world records. In 2010 a right shoulder injury put her career on hold. Grand'Maison changed her swimming schedule to accommodate the injury. She was a member of the

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

Marlets and trained under the guidance of coach Peter Carpenter. In 2011, at the Pan-Pacific Championships in Edmonton, Grand'Maison raced the 200 m individual medley and won the gold medal. She also added three silver medals and one bronze to her collection. Grand'Maison finished second in the 50 m freestyle, 200 m freestyle and 100 m breaststroke. In addition, she won third place in the 100 m butterfly and fifth in the 100 m freestyle. At the

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

in London, Grand'Maison participated in the 50 m and 100 m freestyle, 100 m breakstroke and 200 m individual medley events. She won silver medals in the 50 m and 100 m freestyle (S13) and a gold medal in the 200 m medley, setting a world record.Le Canada en argent , ICI.Radio-Canada.ca
Radio-canada.ca. September 2, 2012. Grand'Maison's final international competition was the 2013 IPC Swimming World Championships held in her hometown of

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada.

Personal life

Grand'Maison attended McGill University where she completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology and History. Whilst at McGill University, she was coached by Peter Carpenter until her retirement from professional swimming in 2013.

Performance History

Grand'Maison has competed at a number of events around the world including World Championships and Paralympic games. She has held multiple S13 world records.

References

External links

Meet McGill Paralympian Valérie Grand’Maison – McGill Reporter
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grand'Maison, Valerie 1988 births Living people Canadian female backstroke swimmers Canadian female breaststroke swimmers Canadian female butterfly swimmers Canadian female freestyle swimmers Canadian female medley swimmers Paralympic swimmers for Canada Paralympic gold medalists for Canada Paralympic silver medalists for Canada Swimmers at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Swimmers at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Canadian blind people World record holders in paralympic swimming S13-classified para swimmers Sportspeople from Sherbrooke Medalists at the World Para Swimming Championships Paralympic medalists in swimming 21st-century Canadian sportswomen McGill University alumni Swimmers at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for Canada Parapan American Games medalists in swimming Medalists at the 2007 Parapan American Games Parapan American Games gold medalists for Canada Parapan American Games silver medalists for Canada