Roundup: A Look Back At Para Swimming Nationals In Boise

Lizzi Smith let followers in on the fact that she was nervous before her races, writing, “Nerves and caring go hand in (bionic) hand for me. I’m going to spend the rest of my career owning that about myself 😌. Time to take these butterflies for a ride 🦋🏊🏻‍♀️.”

And some more from the pool party in Boise from Smith:

Taylor Winnett gave a little rundown of the weekend including:

-> Tech suits ripped- 1

-> Relays raced- 2

-> Standing relay starts completed for the first time since my injury (s/o to coach @benjamindcolin !!!)- 2

-> Medals won- 4 (🥇1500 free, 🥈100 fly, 🥉100 back,🥈200 I.M.)

-> Mahi pets- ~1,000

-> Total meterage raced- 2,800m

-> Memories made- immeasurable 🥹

“I love this sport, the opportunities it has given me, and the people I have the blessing to call my friends. Thank you God for this weekend! 🥔

“Up next- World Championships Camp in Colorado Springs in July!”

Gray Rutledge wrote, “oh look it’s me at another swim meet! so happy to come home with broken records, especially in my very best event & making A time standards!!! but even happier to be in the pool with some of my fav ppl & getting to know even more amazing athletes! safe to say my 2nd US Paralympic Nationals meet was awesome 🤍.”

And Kubiak wrote, “Six sessions, eleven swims, and so many memories made.

“Grateful to have had the opportunity to compete alongside some truly incredible athletes and to have spent the weekend cheering for my lovely friends at U.S. Paralympic Nationals in Idaho! Thank you @usparaswimming and @idahocentralaquaticcenter for putting on such an amazing competition.

“Next stop: World Championships!”

Both U.S. Paralympics Swimming and SwimSwam provided daily coverage of the meet, which you can see here:

Day 1

• U.S. Para Swim
• SwimSwam

Day 2

• U.S. Para Swim
• SwimSwam

Day 3

• U.S. Para Swim
• SwimSwam

Meanwhile, KTVB-TV provided a local perspective of the big meet here.

And A Happy Olympic & Paralympic Day To You

Few people have won as many Paralympic medals as Jessica Long, clocking in with 31 medals won at six Games. Olympic & Paralympic Day is celebrated worldwide on June 23, marking the founding of the modern Olympics and to promote the values of the Olympic & Paralympic movements, and Long was one of several Paralympic swimmers to post about the occasion. She shared a photo of a tiny Jessica climbing out of a pool, and wrote, “From a little dreamer to standing on top of the podium — look how far we’ve come and we’re not finished yet.

“Can’t wait for the journey to LA 2028 💫

“Happy Olympic and Paralympic Day!”

Gia Pergolini included a snap of the U.S. Olympians and Paralympians visiting the White House last fall as well as some behind-the-scenes shots from Paris for her celebratory post:

Winnett marked her first Olympic & Paralympic day as a Paralympian, writing, “There’s so much I can say!! It was an honor to represent my country on the largest stage in Para Swimming in Paris last year. I’m grateful for my family, friends, and faith for supporting me to where I am today and I cannot wait to either join my teammates or cheer them on at the next Paralympic Games: LA28. Racing at nationals this past week really helped put in perspective how I felt at my first, second, third, and forth nationals before Paris, chasing the dream of becoming a Paralympian one day. May the Paralympic movement continue to grow and thrive!

Here’s a little throwback to June 30th, 2024, the day I found out I made the Paris Paralympic Team. It’s crazy that it has almost been a year already! ❤️🤍💙”

Grace Nuhfer also was excited about her first Olympic & Paralympic Day as a Paralympian:

And Morgan Ray got in on the action, too, writing, “Happy #OlympicParalympicDay 🫱🏻‍🫲🏼 #LetsMove Dreams can come true y'all. Fight the good fight and keep the faith.”

Karen Price is a reporter from Pittsburgh who has covered Olympic and Paralympic sports for various publications. She is a freelance contributor to USParaSwimming.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.