Terence Parkin is a special person. “I sat right next to him throughout the weekend,” said Ashley Twichell, winner of the aQuellé Midmar Mile. “He is a very genuine, humble, friendly guy.”
Parkin was born in Zimbabwe and won the silver medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics in the 200m breaststroke. He used sign language to communicate with his coach at the Olympics where he famously said, “I am going to the Olympics to represent South Africa, but it’s so vitally important for me to go, to show that the deaf can do anything. They can’t hear, they can see everything. I would like to show the world that there’s opportunities for the deaf.”
Parkin has done that and much more, both big and small.
“His daughters said that Terence was not supposed to be swimming because he had just broken a rib from doing a warrior (adventure) race,” said Twichell shown with his daughter. “But he wanted to swim with his daughters.”
Despite the broken ribs, he swam and kicked using the International Swimming Hall of Fame safety device.
He is widely known among breaststrokers and South Africans as someone special in the pool.
The open water is no different.
A few years ago, Parkin did the unprecedented at the aQuellé Midmar Mile.
Parkin not only joined the 8-mile Charity Club where athletes swim all 8 one-mile heats across the Midmar Dam, but he went took the charity swim 8 steps forward.
The swimmers of the 8-mile Charity Club swim point-to-point, from start to finish, of the normal Midmar Mile course. After they are finished, they boat back to the start to begin their next mile start. But Parkin refused to get a boat ride back. Instead he swam back, completing a total of 16 miles to raise money for charity.
He could not hear the cheers, but he certainly sees all.
Photo of Terence Parkin and his daughter at the end of the Midmar Mile courtesy of Anthony Grote/Game Plan Media.
Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the WOWSA Awards, Oceans Seven, Openwaterpedia, Citrus Corps, World Open Water Swimming Association, Daily News of Open Water Swimming, Global Open Water Swimming Conference. He is Chief Executive Officer of KAATSU Global and KAATSU Research Institute. Inductee in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and Ice Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of 2019), recipient of the International Swimming Hall of Fame's Poseidon Award (2016), International Swimming Hall of Fame's Irving Davids-Captain Roger Wheeler Memorial Award (2010), USA Swimming's Glen S. Hummer Award (2007, 2010) and Harvard University's John B. Imrie Award (1984). Served on the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and as Technical Delegate with the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games, and 9-time USA Swimming coaching staff. Note: WOWSA only recommends products or services used or recommended by the community. WOWSA does not receive compensation for links or products mentioned on this site or in blog posts. If it does, it will be indicated clearly on that specific post. See WOWSA's privacy policy for more information.