Katja Dedekind
Personal information
Full nameKatja Dedekind
NicknameKitty-Kat
NationalityAustralian
Born (2001-08-17) 17 August 2001
Durban, South Africa
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBackstroke and Freestyle
ClassificationsS13
ClubYeronga Park Swim Club
CoachRob van der Zant and Kate Sparkes
Medal record
Women's Paralympic swimming
Representing  Australia
Paralympics
Bronze medal – third place2016 Rio de Janeiro100 m backstroke S13
Bronze medal – third place2020 Tokyo100 m backstroke S13
Bronze medal – third place2020 Tokyo400 m freestyle S13
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2022 Madeira50 m freestyle S13
Gold medal – first place2023 Manchester50 m freestyle S13
Silver medal – second place2022 Madeira100 m backstroke S13
Silver medal – second place2022 Madeira400 m freestyle S13
Silver medal – second place2023 Manchester100 m freestyle S13
Bronze medal – third place2023 Manchester100 m backstroke S13
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place2022 Birmingham50 m freestyle S13

Katja Dedekind (born 17 August 2001) is an Australian Paralympic vision-impaired swimmer and goalball player. She won a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games and two bronze medals at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.[1][2][3]

Personal life

Dedekind was born 17 August 2001 in Durban, South Africa.[4] She has a twin brother.[4] From congenital cataracts and amblyopia, she is blind in the right eye and has limited vision in the left eye.[5]

Previously from Kenmore, Brisbane,[5] Dedekind now lives on the Sunshine Coast having graduated from Matthew Flinders Anglican College, Buderim, in 2019.[6][7]

In March 2018, Dedekind had the honour of being a Queen's Baton Relay runner as one of 3500 Australians for the XXI Commonwealth Games.[5]

Dedekind was awarded a Sporting Full Blue at Grffith University whilst studying a Bachelor of Communications.[8]

Dedekind's motto is "If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you".[9]

Sporting career

Dedekind competes in swimming and goalball. In swimming, she is classified as S13.

Dedekind took up goalball in 2012 after attending a 'come and try' day. At the 2012, Australian Goalball Championships in Melbourne, she was awarded the title 'Best Defensive Junior Player'[4] She was a member of the winning team at the 2013 Australian Invitational Cup in Sydney.[9]

Dedekind took up swimming at an early age with her twin brother, but did not start competing until 2012.[4] At the 2015 Swimming Queensland Sprint Championships, she was awarded the 'Swimmer of the Meet' award for swimmers with a disability.[4] In 2015, she won three gold and five silver medals at the 2015 SSA Pacific School Games. At 2016 Australian Swimming Championships, she won the bronze medal in the women's 200 m freestyle and finished fifth women's 50 m backstroke and women's 50 m butterfly.[4] She is a member of the UQ Swim Club and was coached by David Heyden.[4][10]

In 2016, Dedekind was selected to represent Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games.[11] She competed in four events and achieved one podium finish. She won a bronze medal in the women's 100 m backstroke S13. She achieved seventh in 400 m freestyle S13.[12] but didn't progress to the finals in 50 m freestyle S13,[13] 100 m freestyle S13 and 100 m freestyle S13.[14]

In August 2018 at the Pan Pacific Para Swimming Championships in Cairns, Queensland, just before her seventeenth birthday, Dedekind took gold with her fastest competitive time for the 100 m backstroke.[15] She also achieved bronze in the women’s 200 m individual medley for the SM12/13 classification, and silver in the 400 m freestyle S13.

She competed at the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships in London in four events but did not medal.[16]

Dedekind is a member of the Australian Dolphins swim team. She was coached by Nathan Doyle while preparing for the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo.[6][17] At the games, Dedekind won a bronze medal in the Women's 100 m backstroke S13 with a time of 1:06.49, after achieving a personal best time of 1:07.38 in the Heats. She also won a bronze medal competing in the Women's 400 m freestyle S13.[18][19] Her time of 4:35.87 was 12 seconds behind the winner, Anna Stetsenko, of Ukraine. Dedekind also competed in the 50 m freestyle S13 where she qualified for the finals but could only manage fourth in the final.[20]

At the 2022 World Para Swimming Championships, Madeira, Dedekind won three medals - gold in the Women's 50 m Freestyle S13 and silver in the Women's 100 m Backstroke S13 and Women's 400 m Freestyle S13.[21]

At the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Dedekind won the gold medal in Women's 50 m freestyle S13 in a world record time.[22][23]

About June 2022, Dedekind changed clubs from SC Spartans with coach Nathan Doyle to the Yeronga Park Swim Club with coaches Robert van der Zant and Kate Sparkes.[24]

Recognition

References

  1. ↑ "Australian Paralympic Swimming Team announced". Australian Paralympic Committee News, 1 August 2016. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  2. ↑ "Katja Dedekind". Rio Paralympics Official site. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  3. ↑ "Paralympics Australia Names Powerful Para-Swimming Team For Tokyo". Paralympics Australia. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Katja Dedekind". Australian Paralympic Committee website. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 O’Malley, Brendan (21 November 2017). "An inspiring young swimmer will carry the Queen's baton in the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games". Courier-Mail (Brisbane). Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Get to know Katja Dedekind". Swimming Australia. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  7. ↑ "Six Flinders Sports Stars wear the Green and Gold to represent Australia". Matthew Flinders Anglican College. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  8. ↑ Dobson, Ben (16 November 2023). "Cass makes a big splash at Griffith Sports Blues Awards". news.griffith.edu.au. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  9. 1 2 "Katja Dedekind-Goalball". Sporting Dreams website. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  10. ↑ "True Story Tuesday: Katja Dedekind & Dave Heyden". YouTube. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  11. ↑ "Swimming (Athletes)". Athletes Selected for Rio. Australian Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  12. ↑ "Katja Dedekind". Rio Official Results. Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  13. ↑ "Katja Dedekind". Rio Official Results. Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  14. ↑ "Katja Dedekind". Rio Official Results. Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  15. ↑ "Cairns: Katja later – Dedekind and Dolphins deliver more gold for Australia". Swimming Australia. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  16. ↑ "Katja Dedekind". Swimming Australia. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  17. ↑ Cumming, Stuart (3 August 2018). "Teen targets Tokyo success in crucial build-up swim". Susnshine Coast Daily. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  18. ↑ "Paralympics Australia Names Powerful Para-Swimming Team For Tokyo". Paralympics Australia. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  19. ↑ "Swimming - DEDEKIND Katja - Tokyo 2020 Paralympics". Tokyo2020.org. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  20. ↑ "Australian Paralympic Team for Tokyo 2021". The Roar. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
  21. ↑ "Dolphins Create Australian Swimming History In Portugal". Swimming Australia. 21 June 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  22. ↑ "Cole, Patterson And Levy Amongst Stars Of The Pool Ready To Splash And Dash In Birmingham". Commonwealth Games Australia. 5 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  23. ↑ "2022 Commonwealth Games Results". Commonwealth Games Australia. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  24. ↑ "Yeronga Park Memorial Swimming Pool". www.brisbane.qld.gov.au. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
  25. ↑ "2016 Annual Awards winners". Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association website. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2016.
  26. ↑ "Paralympic medallist is USC's top athlete for 2021". University of Sunshine Coast News. 24 November 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  27. ↑ "Golf's Cameron Smith Wins The Courier Mail Channel Seven Queensland Sport Star Award For 2022". QSport. 25 November 2022. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
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