Indomitable spirit. Getting to meet, a truly special individual.

So for our USA Grand Prix morning officials meeting guest speaker, we were honored with Mallory Weggemann, Paralympic World Champion Swimmer joining us. She told us of her 2012 Paralympics saga which was just incredible. 

Background, January 2008, Mallory received an epidural injection to help treat back pain; however by the time it was finished she was forever changed.  Complications with the procedure left the college freshman paralyzed from the waist down. 

Swimming since she was 7, she was back in the pool four months after the incident. She immediately excelled winning championships and setting records. I have even offciated events she has been in at the U of MN meets. 

She set her sights on London 2012 Paralympics. Along the way she won numerous international championships and set numerous international records. 

Come time for the Parlympics, she was entered in 7 events and had trained planning to win 7 gold medals. 

Upon arrival in London, she was informed that her classification was changed from 7 to 8. Paralympic swimmers are classified 1-10 on their ability to stroke, 1 being little functioning, 10 being the most. Another country had protested her disability and asked to have her re-classified, which was enacted with no review nor input. Being switched from 7 to 8 meant she would be competing with athletes that had an impairment, but functioning limbs, and in swimming primarily they have functioning legs. Adding insult to injury, they had stripped her of her 7 standing world records. 

She was devastated, angry, frustrated and let down. She thought there was no way she could compete against girls with two legs. With no feeling below her belly button, Mallory essentially rolls off of the front of the starting block and begins stroking. Other competitors starting conventionally would have a tremendous advantage.

Unable to change or appeal the decision, she found herself sitting, listening to her music, writing her media statement for withdrawing from the Paralympics. Then, she decided she had worked too hard to end it like this. She took off her headphones, looked at her agent and said, “I am going to win the gold medal in the 50 meter freestyle”.  Her agent looked at her and said, “Welcome back.”

When waiting in the ready room for her race, found she had to turn up her headphones and put a towel over her head. Her competitors were jumping up and down, stretching and talking about how they had been out for a 5 mile training run. One other competitor had a wheel chair, but it was for rest as part of her taper, she didn’t really need it for mobility. Mallory got up on the blocks and when the horn sounded, entered the water. The other 7 lanes all leapt into the water with “normal” starts and because it was their strength, dolphin kicked forward before they had to surface and swim. Mallory was instantly 4 – 5 body lengths behind. She stroked as hard as she could, slowly catching them, and at the 25 meters she could see them in her peripheral vision just ahead of her. She told herself she could do this, she took one last breath and buried her head, never breathing again until the wall, stroking with everything she had. When she hit the wall, she had made up the distance won by 3 tenths of a second! The placed went crazy, the announcer had never even once mentioned her name during the race play by play, she had been that far behind. 

Since London, an investigation has begun after the outcry from other friendly competitors. Mallory’s 7 world records have been reinstated, but she still remains classifies as an 8. She competed in 5 other events in London, her highest other finish in the 100 Free in 4^th and winning a bronze medal as part of the 4x100 Medley Relay team. 

That 50M Free gold medal means a great deal to her. And that was the medal that she passed around the room and I got to hold.