With the Olympic spirit burning fiercely within all Australians now, it is hard not to look forward to Paris 2024 and beyond, but swimming fans will not have to wait long with just over two weeks until the Australian Dolphins dive back into the pool at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.
Historically, the Australian Paralympic team has outperformed the Australian Olympic team but after the incredible results over the past two weeks, they have quite a task ahead of them.
One athlete who looks to be leading the Australian Dolphins is Perth local, Ben Popham, as one of the favourites to claim gold throughout the Championships.
Popham who trains from Arena Swim Club under the tutelage of Simon Redmon has been a key member of the Australian team since breaking through in 2018.
At the 2019 IPC World Para Swimming Championships, Popham claimed silver in the S8 100m Freestyle and bronze in the S8 50m Freestyle. Since then, Popham has broken his personal best several times and claimed the Australian record which has stood since the early 2000s.
Popham is clearly in fine form as the fastest entrant into the Men’s S8 100m Freestyle which will be swum on Wednesday, August 25. In addition, Popham will race the Men’s S8 400m Freestyle on Tuesday, August 31.
Much like the WA Olympians, Popham looks to be a pivotal part of the Australian relays and will be in strong contention for the Men's 4x100m Freestyle Relay (34 points) and the Men's 4x100m Medley Relay (34 Points) which will be swum on Monday, August 31 and Friday, September 3 respectively. With Australia narrowly missing the medals in 2016, Popham should play an important part in bringing them back to the podium.
Once a telethon star, Popham has had his fair share of airtime and is not afraid of the bright lights that come along with the pressure of a Paralympic Games. Popham is expected to swim exceptionally fast with his preparation the best it possibly could be given the recent barriers and come home as a star of the Games, regardless of the result.
