SIMMONDS Eleanor

Great Britain
Swimming
11 Nov 1994
26
Female
SB6,SM6,S6
WALSALL
 
Great Britain

Events and Medals

Discipline Event Rank Medal
SWM Swimming Women's 400m Freestyle - S6 5
Women's 100m Breaststroke - SB6 4
Women's 200m Individual Medley - SM6 5

Schedule

Change
Start Time Location Event Status
Tokyo Aquatics Centre
Women's 200m Individual Medley - SM6 Heat 1
Finished
Tokyo Aquatics Centre
Women's 200m Individual Medley - SM6 Final
Finished
Tokyo Aquatics Centre
Women's 100m Breaststroke - SB6 Heat 1
Finished
Tokyo Aquatics Centre
Women's 100m Breaststroke - SB6 Final
Finished
Tokyo Aquatics Centre
Women's 400m Freestyle - S6 Heat 1
Finished
Tokyo Aquatics Centre
Women's 400m Freestyle - S6 Final
Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

:
RankEventYearLocationResult
Paralympic Games
1200m Individual Medley - SM62016Rio de Janeiro, BRA2:59.81
1400m Freestyle - S62012London, GBR5:19.17
1200m Individual Medley - SM62012London, GBR3:05.39
1100m Freestyle - S62008Beijing, CHN1:18.75
1400m Freestyle - S62008Beijing, CHN5:41.34
2100m Freestyle - S62012London, GBR1:14.82
3400m Freestyle - S62016Rio de Janeiro, BRA5:24.87
350m Freestyle - S62012London, GBR36.11
4100m Breaststroke - SB62016Rio de Janeiro, BRA1:39.46
5100m Freestyle - S62016Rio de Janeiro, BRA1:15.77
550m Freestyle - S62008Beijing, CHN37.77
5200m Individual Medley - SM62008Beijing, CHN3:18.41
650m Freestyle - S62016Rio de Janeiro, BRA35.54
850m Butterfly - S62008Beijing, CHN43.14
World Championships
1200m Individual Medley - SM62015Glasgow, GBR3:01.02
1100m Freestyle - S62013Montreal, QC, CAN
1400m Freestyle - S62013Montreal, QC, CAN5:24.02
1200m Individual Medley - SM62013Montreal, QC, CAN3:04.41
150m Freestyle - S62010Eindhoven, NED36.03
1100m Freestyle - S62010Eindhoven, NED1:15.97
1400m Freestyle - S62010Eindhoven, NED5:27.64
1200m Individual Medley - SM62010Eindhoven, NED3:09.24
2400m Freestyle - S62015Glasgow, GBR5:22.54
24x100m Freestyle Relay - 34 Points2010Eindhoven, NED4:29.49
24x100m Medley Relay - 34 Points2010Eindhoven, NED5:00.93
3400m Freestyle - S62019London, GBR5:21.78
3100m Breaststroke - SB62019London, GBR1:38.22
3100m Breaststroke - SB62015Glasgow, GBR1:39.99
34x100m Freestyle Relay - 34 Points2015Glasgow, GBR4:29.83
350m Freestyle - S62013Montreal, QC, CAN36.44
3Women's 4 x 50m Medley Relay 20 Points2010Eindhoven, NED3:17.98
4200m Individual Medley - SM62019London, GBR3:03.23
4100m Freestyle - S62015Glasgow, GBR1:15.15
4100m Backstroke - S62013Montreal, QC, CAN1:33.16
4100m Breaststroke - SB62013Montreal, QC, CAN1:43.16
550m Freestyle - S62015Glasgow, GBR36.08
5400m Freestyle - S62006Durban, RSA6:18.46
750m Freestyle - S62006Durban, RSA41.22
7100m Freestyle - S62006Durban, RSA1:27.64
850m Butterfly - S62006Durban, RSA47.66
DSQ100m Backstroke - S62006Durban, RSADSQ
European Championships
2400m Freestyle - S62018Dublin, IRL5:26.20
2100m Breaststroke - SB62018Dublin, IRL1:41.56
4200m Individual Medley - SM62018Dublin, IRL3:06.18
:
Ellie (Facebook profile, 14 May 2020)
:
Baking, travelling, swimming in the sea, ocean conservation. (Twitter profile, 26 Mar 2020; palatinate.org.uk, 06 Mar 2020)
:
Athlete
:
Psychology - Loughborough University, Great Britain
:
English
:
Camden Swiss Cottage SC [London, GBR]
:
Adam Taylor [club], GBR; Billy Pye [personal], GBR
:
2006 for Great Britain, World Championships in Durban, South Africa (telegraph.co.uk, 05 Aug 2013)
:
At age 12 she had an operation to insert four metal plates into her legs. The plates were used to straighten her limbs. (dailystar.co.uk, 05 Sep 2012)
:
She began swimming at age five. (telegraph.co.uk, 30 Apr 2008)
:
Her parents took her swimming to give her confidence in the water. She was inspired to try and reach an elite level after watching the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens. "When I was younger, I watched the Athens 2004 Paralympics, I was about eight or nine. And I watched a lady called Nyree Lewis, she was a [British] disability swimmer, and she got a gold medal. I remember as a kid asking, 'How old do you have to be to go to the Paralympics? How does she do that?' That was when I was really saying, 'Oh man, I really want to go to a Paralympics, I want to get a gold medal'." (dailymail.co.uk, 03 Sep 2012; telegraph.co.uk, 30 Apr 2008; palatinate.org.uk, 06 Mar 2020)
:
To compete at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. She hopes to work as a teacher after retiring from the sport. (bbc.co.uk, 27 Jun 2017; palatinate.org.uk, 06 Mar 2020)
:
She does nine training sessions a week, as well as gym work and yoga. "From Monday to Wednesday I train with [Team Speedo] in Camden [London, England]. Thursday, Friday, Saturday I'm at the [London] Aquatic Centre with Billy [Pye]. I get the best of both worlds." (theguardian.com, 11 Jan 2020; palatinate.org.uk, 06 Mar 2020)
:
Competing at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. "The highlight of my career was London 2012. That was a Games that I will never, ever forget and it was definitely my highlight." (skysports.com, 25 Aug 2020)
:
US tennis player Serena Williams, British heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill, British Para swimmer Nyree Kindred [nee Lewis]. (palatinate.org.uk, 06 Mar 2020)
:
Coach Billy Pye. (swimming.org, 23 Sep 2013)
:
"Leading up to a competition, I listen to music, watch things on TV, get into a good series, or a good book." (palatinate.org.uk, 06 Mar 2020)
:
"Work hard and believe in yourself." (swimming.org, 23 Sep 2013)
:
In January 2018 she received an honorary degree from Swansea University in Wales. (swimswam.com, 22 Jan 2018)

In November 2013 she received an honorary degree from the University of Bath in England. (itv.com, 07 Nov 2013)

In December 2012 she was appointed Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire [OBE]. This followed her appointment as Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire [MBE] at age 14 in 2009, which made her the youngest person to have received the honour. (guardian.co.uk, 30 Dec 2012; walesonline.co.uk, 01 Jan 2009)

She won the 2008 BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year award. (paralympic.org, 01 May 2009)

General Interest

Classification
S6, SB6, SM6 (IPC, 25 Feb 2021)

Type of Impairment
Short stature (elliesimmonds.com, 30 Mar 2015)

Origin of Impairment
Congenital (elliesimmonds.com, 30 Mar 2015)

Impairment Details
She was born with achondroplasia and is a person of short stature. (elliesimmonds.com, 30 Mar 2015)

General
FUTURE PLANS
She had intended to retire from competition in 2020 after the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, but the postponement of the Games forced her to reconsider her plans. "My plan for this summer [2020] was to go to the Games and then retire after. Now I will continue towards next year [2021] and Tokyo. I'm unsure what my situation will be after Tokyo, but I think in the future I'd love to teach children abroad. Maybe I'll teach English internationally. That's what I'd like to do. Whenever I do retire in the future, I'll always like swimming and I'll always love it. For me it's a sport that's brought so much joy, it's brought me the best teammates in the world, and memories that I'll never ever forget." (bbc.co.uk, 28 Apr 2020; palatinate.org.uk, 06 Mar 2020; britishswimming.org, 22 May 2020)

FINDING NEW OBJECTIVES
After the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, she says she struggled to maintain her passion for swimming and considered quitting the sport. She took some time off to travel through Asia, Australia and the United States of America, and then relocated to London, England, to rejoin former coach Billy Pye. "I just hated swimming and everything about it. I just didn't want to get back in the pool. I didn't have any objectives, I had achieved my dreams. I needed that time away to refocus and figure out what I wanted in life. It gave me perspective of what the sport is for me and helped me find my love for it again. Being back with Billy is such a laugh. We push each other to the limits but we know what makes us tick." (bbc.com, 30 Mar 2018; swimswam.com, 29 Nov 2019; inews.co.uk, 06 Sep 2019)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
In January 2019 she was appointed as a non-executive director of the organising committee for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England. "I intend to utilise all the experience and knowledge I've picked up over the course of the last decade and hopefully contribute to making Birmingham the best Commonwealth Games to date." In June 2020 she was part of the BBC's Celebrity Supply Teacher programme, and on her episode she taught children about the ocean and wildlife. She has been an ambassador for Sainsbury's Active Kids Holiday Clubs, which encourages children to be active and healthier during the school holidays. She has also served as a patron of Dwarf Sports Association UK, an ambassador for WaterAid, and a Girlguiding leader in Manchester, England. (insidethegames.biz, 22 Jan 2019; expressandstar.com, 22 Jan 2019; gov.uk, 21 Jan 2019; skysports.com, 25 Aug 2020; hellomagazine.com, 13 Nov 2020; Facebook page, 29 Jun 2020)

Legend
:
Gold Medal Event
:
Silver Medal Event
:
Bronze Medal Event
Content 1 (removed through CDN)
Content 2 (removed through CDN).
Timing and scoring provided by OMEGA. Results powered by Atos