Hannah Russell facts for kids
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| Nationality | British | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 5 August 1996 Chertsey, England |
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| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Woking SC | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Hannah Russell was born on August 5, 1996. She is a talented British Paralympic swimmer. Hannah competes in S12 classification events, which are for swimmers with visual impairments.
She has achieved amazing success in her swimming career. In 2012, she won a silver medal and a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London. She then went on to win two gold medals at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio. Hannah also earned another gold medal at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo.
Contents
Hannah Russell's Swimming Journey
Starting Out in Swimming
Hannah Russell was born in Ottershaw, Surrey. She has a visual impairment. Hannah started swimming when she was five years old. She first joined Woking Swimming Club. Later, at age twelve, she moved to Guildford City Swimming Club.
She attended Gordon's School in West End, Surrey. After that, she studied at Kelly College in Tavistock. In 2010, Hannah was discovered through a special program. This program helps find young people with disabilities who have sporting talent.
Early Competitions and Records
In 2011, Hannah was classified as an S12 swimmer. This classification is for athletes with a certain level of visual impairment. She then competed in the 2011 IPC European Championships in Berlin. There, she won two medals: a silver in the 100-meter backstroke and a bronze in the 100-meter butterfly.
In 2012, she competed in the British Championships. She won a gold medal in the 100-meter backstroke. She also took a silver medal in the 400-meter freestyle. During this event, Hannah broke the European record for the S12 class 100-meter backstroke. Her time was 1:09.52. Later that month, she broke two S12 world records. These were in the 400-meter freestyle and the 100-meter backstroke.
London 2012 Paralympic Games
Even though Hannah was aiming for the 2016 Paralympics, her results were so good that she qualified for the 2012 Games in London. At just 16 years old, she was one of the youngest members of the Great Britain swimming team.
She competed in five S12 events. These included the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle, 400-meter freestyle, 100-meter backstroke, and 100-meter butterfly. In her very first event, the 400-meter freestyle, she swam her personal best time. She earned a silver medal, which was her first Paralympic medal. She also won a bronze medal in the 100-meter butterfly.
World and European Success
In 2013, Hannah competed in her first IPC Swimming World Championships in Montreal. She won five medals there. She earned a bronze in the 400-meter freestyle. She also took three silver medals in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle, and 100-meter butterfly. Most impressively, she became a world champion in the 100-meter backstroke.
The next year, she went to the 2014 IPC Swimming European Championships in Eindhoven. She continued her friendly rivalry with Russian swimmer Darya Stukalova. Hannah won six medals at these games. All of them were silver, except for the 100-meter backstroke, where she won gold on her eighteenth birthday.
After her eighteenth birthday, she returned to Woking Swimming Club. She also had dual membership with City of Manchester Aquatics starting in May 2016. Her last big international competition before the 2016 Paralympics was the 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships in Glasgow. She won a gold medal in the 50-meter freestyle. She also took two silver medals in the 100-meter backstroke and 100-meter freestyle.
Taking a Break and Returning Strong
In 2019, Hannah took a break from swimming. During this time, she completed a degree in sports science from the University of Salford. Watching the 2019 Para-swimming World Championships inspired her to return to the sport.
Tokyo 2020 and Beyond
At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Hannah Russell won another gold medal. This was in the S12 Women's 100-meter Backstroke. She also earned a bronze medal in the S12 Women's 100-meter Freestyle. She also competed in the S13 Women's 50-meter Freestyle.
Hannah was recognized for her amazing achievements. She was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 2017. Later, in 2022, she was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her services to swimming.
In 2022, Hannah Russell competed in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. She won her first Commonwealth Games medal there. She took the silver medal in the Women’s 50-meter Freestyle S13 event.
See also
In Spanish: Hannah Russell para niños
