Faye Rogers celebrates Paralympics gold in 'lifesaving' para-swimming

Faye Rogers claimed Paralympic gold in Paris just three years after a life changing car crash. Credit: PA

Faye Rogers completed the journey from Olympic hopeful to Paralympic swimming champion by claiming gold three years after the car crash which changed her life.

The 21-year-old from Stockton-on-Tees edged out ParalympicsGB team-mate Callie-Ann Warrington to scoop the S10 100m butterfly crown in a British one-two in Paris.

Rogers took part in Olympic selection trials for Tokyo in 2021 before seriously injuring her right arm in September of that year, while driving to training on the day she was due to move to Aberdeen University.

She suffered several open fractures, a dislocated elbow and a severed ulna nerve. She needed to have her elbow fused and was told by doctors that her competitive swimming career was over.

Rogers has described the last three years as a whirlwind. Credit: PA

“It’s been an absolute whirlwind, the last three years,” Rogers said after the race. “It’s been a massive journey. I couldn’t be prouder of where I’ve come from and how I’ve got here.

“Being told you’re never going to swim competitively again, as someone whose life revolved around swimming, that was really, really difficult.

“Getting into Para swimming has been amazing. It’s honestly been a lifesaver for me.

“I don’t think I’d have coped with the accident and my impairment without being able to swim. I couldn’t be more grateful.”

Rogers, who is also the reigning world champion, was fastest ahead of Warrington by 1.31 seconds in the heats but trailed her compatriot at the halfway point of Tuesday's final.

The biochemistry student battled back to touch the wall in one minute 5.84 secs – taking the title, and what was then ParalympicsGB's 30th gold of games, by just 0.57 secs.

Faye Rogers pipped fellow Brit Callie-Ann Warrington to gold. Credit: PA

“I could see Callie next to me,” she said “I got a bit nervous but I was relatively confident.

“Callie put up a really good fight down that second 50 (metres), pushed me on a lot. I couldn’t be more happy with the outcome.”

Maidstone-born Warrington clocked a personal best of one minute 6.41 secs as she held off Canadian bronze medallist Katie Cosgriffe.

“To be able to race against Faye is just everything,” Warrington said. “We have been saying to each other the last couple of months, ‘come on, we can get the one-two’. It was lovely to have her next to me.

“We are very good friends until we get to the blocks, then we are competitors and it’s nice to be able to separate that. We are both very determined people.”

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