Timothy Disken

Timothy Disken was born with mild cerebral palsy which affects both sides of his body, with his left side being worse than his right.

He started swimming at a young age and was swimming in able-bodied competitions before he was introduced to Para-sport in 2011 through his school which is for students with physical impairments. He was nationally classified in 2011.

Timothy was selected to compete at the 2015 IPC World Swimming Championships in Glasgow. He competed in seven events and made the final in six of them. He won bronze in the 4×100 freestyle relay and just missed the podium in the 50m freestyle and 4x100m medley relay coming fourth.

Coached by renowned Paralympic swim coach Yuriy Vdovychenko, Tim made his Paralympic debut in Rio  and achieved his goal of stepping atop the podium at the highest level possible. Tim took out gold in the men’s 100m freestyle, touching the wall just ahead of fellow Aussie teammate and reigning Paralympic champion Brenden Hall, and also won a silver in the 50 freestyle and bronze in the 200m individual medley.

When training, Tim turns to Paralympic legends Matthew Cowdrey, and current teammate Matthew Levy as inspiration in achieving his goals. He believes both have been a major influence on his career, as their success has motivated him to be the best athlete he could be.

One of Timothy’s favourite hobbies is modifying his 2002 Mitsubishi Magna. He has also played piano for 15 years and is a qualified piano instructor. He has particular appreciation of classical and jazz piano pieces.

Timothy would like to live life to the fullest and without regrets. He completed high school in 2015 and in the future would like to work with children with disabilities.