Alice Tai Para-Swimmer

Alice Tai MBE is a Paralympic, World, European and Commonwealth champion who most recently secured a staggering seven gold medals at the World Para Swimming Championships in 2019.

Tai won all but one of the eight events she entered in London, securing gold in the S8 50m, 100m and 400m Freestyle, S8 100m Backstroke, S8 100m Butterfly, 34pt 4x100m Medley Relay and 34pt 4x100m Freestyle Relay. 

The Ealing Swimming Club athlete's eye-catching display backed up an impressive medal haul across 2018, which culminated with her winning four golds in each of her events at the European Para Swimming Championships in Dublin. The victories came in the S8 100m Freestyle, S8 100m Backstroke, S8 100m Butterfly and Women's 34pt 4x100m Medley Relay. 

Those successes were preceeded by two trips to the British Para-Swimming International Meet podium to collect double gold in the MC 100m Freestyle and Backstroke events, as well as silver and gold in those respective events for Team England at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. 

Tai made her Paralympic debut at Rio 2016, a Games in which she claimed a gold - in the Women's 34pts 4x100m Medley Relay - and S10 100m Backstroke bronze at the first time of asking. 

A highly successful debut World Championships at Glasgow 2015 preceded that Paralympic bow, the Poole-born swimmer clinching four medals, including gold in the 34pt 4x100m Medley Relay and a trio of bronzes. Earlier that year, Tai impressed by reaching four finals at the British Para-Swimming International Meet. 

In 2014, Tai made her international breakthrough, qualifying for her first senior British team at a major championship team, courtesy of Youth 100m and 400m Freestyle golds at the British Para-Swimming International Meet in Glasgow, which put her on the plane to the Europeans in Eindhoven.

Still only 15 at the time, she looked at home on the international stage, winning 100m Backstroke silver and 400m Freestyle bronze in the S10 class, before standing on the top step of the international podium for the first time after victory with the British 34pt 4x100m Freestyle Relay quartet.

Tai had made telling progress in 2013, reaching three senior finals at the British International Disability Swimming Championships and then winning MC 50m Freestyle bronze and MC 100m Freestyle silver at the ASA National Championships in Sheffield.