Richard Eliason

Richard Eliason (born 8 April 1988) is an Australian swimmer. He was selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in swimming. He has an intellectual disability and was among the first intellectually disabled athletes to compete in the Paralympics after the 2000 Summer Paralympics intellectual disability controversy. While he did not receive a medal at the Games, he placed 5th in the final. He is a recipient of the Service to Australian Swim Team award.

Personal Eliason was born on 8 April 1988 with an intellectual disability and is from Flynn, Australian Capital Territory. Some of his Games preparation took place at the Canberra International Sports & Aquatic Centre. and is coached by Cameron Gledhill at his club venue Canberra International Sports & Aquatic Centre. He started competitive swimming in 2001. In March 2012, he competed in the Adelaide hosted national selection trials,

Eliason made his national team debut at the 2005 INAS-FID Global Games, where he won a silver medal in the 200 metre breaststroke event. in 2012 he posted the fastest time in the world in his classification in the 100 meters butterfly.

Paralympics

In July 2012, Eliason was formally selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in the men's 100 metres breaststroke event in the intellectual disability classification, which had been excluded since the 2000 Summer Paralympics intellectual disability controversy. He placed 5th in the final. He did not gain a medal at the 2012 Games. Long 100m Breaststroke 01:10.7 2012 EnergyAustralia Swimming Championships 18-Mar-12