Triple gold for Dunchurch swimmer who made big waves at Deaflympics
Dunchurch swimmer Charlotte Gower has made big waves at the Deaflympics, walking away from the competition with seven medals.
Representing Team GB in Tokyo, Charlotte, 15, won three golds, three silvers and one bronze.
Charlotte’s speciality is the backstroke, and this shone through as she won medals in the 50m, 100m and 200m races.
She added to this with individual medals in the 200m medley, 100m and 200m freestyle.
Charlotte started swimming at the age of seven with Rugby Swimming Club, later joining GB Deaf Swimming and qualifying for the GB Nationals. Charlotte has also been selected to be a part of the Swim England talent pathway - National Youth Development Programme.
The event takes place from November 15-26 and Charlotte, who also has epilepsy, said before the event it was a “great honour” to be competing.
Despite having no government funding, the team of 65 athletes and their support team have surpassed expectations with their tally, which puts them 12th out of over 80 countries on the
overall Medals Leaderboard for the games.
This Deaflympics event is extra special as it marks 100 years of the Deaflympics.
Much like the Olympics, it brings together top athletes from a wide range of sports, including swimming, athletics, basketball, and football.
Over the last couple of weeks, the DeaflympicsGB Team have competed in football, athletics, shooting, cycling, swimming, golf, and tennis against other top deaf athletes from around the world.
Every competitor is deaf or hard of hearing, and events rely on visual signals instead of sound.