Antonios Tsapatakis

Paralympic-World Champion, Axiomatic Police officer

Greece

Antonios Tsapatakis grew up in Chania, Crete. Αt the age of five, he started swimming in the public swimming pool of Chania. At the age of 12, he became a polo athlete of Chania swim club, earning awards in swimming and polo alike. In 2005, he enlisted in the academy of the Hellenic Police. One year later, in December 2006, just outside the swimming pool where he had spent half of his life as a polo player, he lost the control of his motorcycle due to excessive speed. He was ejected against a pavement, resulting in paralysis of the lower limbs. Just under 9 months after becoming paralyzed Tsapatakis was back in the pool and in 2009 he started swimming in the disabled team of Megalonissos. Tsapatakis stated that what drove him back to swimming was his need of independence and becoming active again.