2019 WORLD PARA SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
- September 9-15, 2019
- London Aquatics Centre, London, England
- Prelims 10 a.m. local time/finals 6 p.m.
- Full results
Australian veteran Lakeisha Patterson, who nabbed a world title in the women’s S9 400 free Friday in London, caught up with SwimSwam after her race to break down her strategy and talk about her impairment.
“I can’t control what anybody else is doing, so I’ve got t0 just zone in, focus on myself during the race, and not really focus on what everyone else is doing,” Patterson said. “When I breathe to the left, I can kind of see them a little bit behind me, so that does drive me to keep it going.”
She goes on to explain her impairment. Patterson, 20, was recently classed up from S8 to S9; she earned six S8 medals (including two gold) at the 2016 Paralympics. She went 4:38.29 in the 400 Friday, winning by five seconds and setting a new Oceania record. The world record, set by Natalie Du Toit in 2008, sits at 4:23.81.
Patterson went on to discuss how her impairment affects her swimming.
“I have cerebral palsy left hemiplegia, which means the left side of my body – my arm, trunk and left leg is all impaired – leaving me with loss of coordination, balance and some other issues, so in the water, I’m really just powering home on the right side of my body, which can be quite hard to balance, so I’ve got to really work on my core and move through the water as fast as I can.”
I sent SS a copy of the IPC own investigation report into this swimmer where they stated she needs to be looked at for IM.
She is a fraud and the coaching team are complicit in her cheating.
With the photographic and video evidence she should get a life ban.
Along with the latest GB S8 swimmer who was S10 and on no talent program before Glasgow 2019, she was given IPC Classification down to S7 then moved to S8.
Genuine disabled swimmers being robbed by cheats
Well stated MARK.
Mary posted on an earlier story that Patterson’s classification history is S10,NE,S9,S7,S8 and now S9. Pray tell what the heck type of Left Hemiplegic CP is this? A link to some grant she received, she cannot even pronounce Cerebral Palsy:
https://youtu.be/O_qir_vjE4Y
‘Lakeisha has beaten the challenges of cerebral palsy, epilepsy and early onset Parkinson’s disease to be a world-class swimmer. AMP’s Tomorrow Fund is helping the Queenslander to fulfill her Rio Paralympics dream.’
What has happened to her Early Onset Parkinsons Disease … cured? Why would a swimmer with CP and PD be classified NE then S7 then S9? Why has she stopped stating that she was born with CP and… Read more »
Well said CONFUSED.
She has zero understanding of Cerebral Palsy and she most certainly did not power home on the right side of her body. Pity SS didn’t ask her why sometimes her hand isn’t clawed,, why she only has a palsied arm in back and fly but not in free, breast and dive, why she has no signs of atrophy or spasticity, why she balances on her left leg for long period of times and what the heck happened to her Early Onset Parkinsons Disease. Sad, very sad.
“I have cerebral palsy left hemiplegia, which means the left side of my body – my arm, trunk and left leg is all impaired – leaving me with loss of coordination, balance and… Read more »
Honestly, how stupid does she think people are? People are not buying it “Lucky”. Love to hear her explain the straight arm perfect streamline dive followed by the bent left arm fly, very bent left arm backstroke, normal breaststroke and perfectly balanced freestyle with normal arms (just curled up fingers). Any chance someone can ask her about all that Swimswam?