Amanda 'Mandy' Drennan (born 22 May 1988 in Cowes, Victoria )[1] is a Paralympic swimming competitor from Australia. She was born without her right leg.[2] She learned to swim as a child on Victoria's Phillip Island but trained in Melbourne several times a week due to the island's lack of facilities.[2] At the age of ten, she competed in her first state championships and a year later represented Australia at the Pacific School Games.[3] In 2000, she was offered a wildcard entry at the 2000 Sydney Paralympic Games but her family and coach decided it was not in her long-term development to accept it.[3]

Mandy Drennan
Personal information
Nationality Australia
Born22 May 1988 (1988-05-22) (age 36)
Cowes, Victoria, Australia
Medal record
Swimming
Paralympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Athens Women's 4x100 m Freestyle 34 pts
IPC Swimming World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2002 Mar Del Plata Women's 4x100m Medley Relay
Silver medal – second place 2002 Mar Del Plata Women's 4x100m Freestyle Relay

She competed in the 2002 IPC Swimming Championships in Mar Del Plata, Argentina winning a gold medal in the women's 4 × 100 m medley relay and silver medal in the women's 4 × 100 m freestyle relay.[2] She held an Australian Institute of Sport Paralympic swimming scholarship from 2003 to 2004.[4] She won a bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Games in the Women's 4 × 100 m Freestyle 34 pts event.[1][5] She competed at the 2008 Beijing Games and did not win a medal.[5]

In 2005, she won the Bass Coast Sportsperson of the Year award.[2] In 2011, she swam 66 km around Phillip Island in a shark cage to raise funds to re-establish Warley Hospital on the Island. Her mother was a nurse at the centre when it closed in 2007.[6] She works as pharmacist in Melbourne.

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Australian Paralympic Committee (2008). Media guide : 2004 Athens Paralympic Games. Sydney, Australia: Australian Paralympic Committee. Information on past Australian Paralympic Games results and profiles on Australian athletes and staff attending the Athens Paralympic Games.
  2. ^ a b c d "Mandy Dreenan Profile". International Paralympic Committee Swimming Website. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  3. ^ a b "My Story". Swim For Life Website. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  4. ^ "AIS at the Roll of Honour for the Paralympics". Australian Sports Commission Website. Archived from the original on 23 February 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  5. ^ a b "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
  6. ^ "Paralympian Amanda Drennan attempts epic swim around Phillip Island". Herald Sun. 16 March 2011. Retrieved 12 March 2012.