Andrea Cole
Canadian Paralympic swimmer
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Andrea Cole (born 29 January 1984) is a Canadian former Paralympic swimmer. She competed as a member of Team Canada at the 2000 Summer Paralympics, 2004 Summer Paralympics, and 2008 Summer Paralympics. She set a Canadian record in the women's SM8 200-m individual medley in 2002 with a time of 3:03.04, which was beaten in 2016.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 29 January 1984 Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | University of Western Ontario Lakehead University Queen's University | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Paralympic swimming | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability class | S8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Early life
Cole was born and raised in Thunder Bay, Ontario. She began swimming after her mother read an article about a Paralympic swimmer.[1]
Career
Cole was selected to compete with Team Canada's National Swimming Team during the 2000 Summer Paralympics.[2] In 2002, Cole set a new Canadian women's record for fastest SM8 200-m individual medley with a time of 3:03.04. This record was later beaten in 2016 by Abi Tripp.[3] Cole was named to Team Canada's National Swimming Team for the 2004 Summer Paralympics where she won a silver medal in the 4X100m freestyle relay and bronze in the 100m butterfly.[4] As a result, she was named a co-recipient of the 2005 Janet Dunn Award from the Canadian Cerebral Palsy Sport Association.[5]
In 2007, Cole qualified for the Parapan American Games with a time of one minute, 26.32 seconds in the 100-metre butterfly.[6] During the 2007 Parapan American Games, she won two gold medals while competing in the women's S8 disability category 100-freestyle and 100 backstroke.[7] The next year, she was selected to compete at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in the S8 200m IM.[8][9]
In 2013, Cole was inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame.[2]