Timothy Disken propelled himself into the international spotlight when he won a gold medal in the men’s 100m freestyle S9 at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

Since then, he has won the hearts of thousands of sport fans across Australia with more outstanding performances in the pool, including an unbelievable resurgence off the back of a horrifying medical emergency in October 2017 that was just minutes from ending his life.

Set to contest the Canadian Open after the 2017 World Para-swimming Championships were cancelled, Timothy came down with a headache around lunchtime on the day before competition began. That night, the pain became worse. And later, unbearable.

Timothy woke the next day in the intensive care unit at St Michael’s Hospital in Toronto to be told he had undergone emergency surgery, after the shunt which diverts excessive cerebrospinal fluid away from his brain had broken.

Over the following six months, …

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Date of birth
3 November 1996
Sport
Para-swimming
Past Paralympic Games

Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020

Impairment
Physical Impairment – Diplegic cerebral palsy
How acquired
Congenital
Residence
Glen Waverley, VIC
Occupation
Athlete
Started competing
2008
First competed for Australia
2014
Sport career highlights

Winning a gold medal in the men’s 100m freestyle S9 at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games

Greatest sporting moments

Matt Cowdrey breaking the Australian record for most career gold medals at the Paralympic Games

Heroes/role models

Matt Levy, his brother

Favourite quote
Go hard or go home

Disciplines

  • Sport: Para-swimming Discipline: 50m freestyle Classification: S9
  • Sport: Para-swimming Discipline: 100m freestyle Classification: S9
  • Sport: Para-swimming Discipline: 200m individual medley Classification: SM9
  • Sport: Para-swimming Discipline: 4x100m freestyle Classification: S9

Social Media

  • instagram
  • twitter