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Canada’s visually impaired Michael Edgson ruled swimming from 1984-1992
Being the only male included in the top five most decorated Paralympians, Michael Edgson (center), a Canadian swimmer, conquered the hearts of people all over the world. (Credit: @JasonBeck82/Twitter)

Canada’s visually impaired Michael Edgson ruled swimming from 1984-1992

NORTH VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Being the only male included in the top five most decorated Paralympians, Michael Edgson, a Canadian swimmer, conquered the hearts of people all over the world. He won 18 gold medals and nine world records during the period between 1984 and 1992 without giving a chance to win for his visual impairment.

The prescribed medication for sickness in his childhood led him close to blindness by damaging his optic nerves. After trying hockey and soccer (where his visual impairment became a threat), he started to focus on swimming and was determined to win the national level, being part of the Canadian Blind Sports Association Team.

Once he met with world-famous hockey player Walter Gretzky and he said, “Those who are truly great need not talk about it.” He really means that Edgson was great.

Born on May 6, 1969, in North Vancouver, Edgson started swimming when he was introduced to Nanaimo Riptides Swim Club at the age of 11. After high school, he joined the University of Victoria for his under graduation and became a team member of the Vikes Swim Team.

He medaled with four gold and two silver along with four world records in the 1984 Paralympic Games in Long Island. He competed in several international games in both categories of able-bodied as well as disabled.

Edgson won nine gold medals while beating four world records in the B3 classification in the 1988 Paralympics held in Seoul. “My diet was important to me as was the removal of all unnecessary distractions. Heading into Seoul, I had taken a much-disciplined approach in preparing both physically and mentally. My expectations were to swim faster than I ever had, one event at a time, and to compete in nine events rather than in one event of nine races,” he recalls about the Seoul Paralympics.

After winning the ninth medal, he said “Winning the ninth medal was more of a relief than conquest. I prepared for each race one at a time with a complete focus on that specific race. They were nine individual efforts that happened to occur back to back to back.”

He was the one who carry the Canadian flag in the 1988 Seoul Paralympics’ closing ceremony. “That was the perfect ending to a spectacular competition. Walking onto the track leading the Canadian Team hoisting the flag high in the air with great pride is a memory I cherish to this day,” he said.

In the 1992 Paralympics held in Barcelona, he secured four gold and one silver and beat up one more world record.

He received the BC Disabled Athlete of the Year award three times and was included in the list of finalists for the Canadian Athlete of the Year award in 1992. He was named to a series of awards including, Terry Fox Hall of Fame in 2006, Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame in 2013, and Canadian Sports Hall of Fame in 2015. He was the first Paralympian to receive Swimming Canada’s Circle of Excellence.

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