South Africa’s multiple paralympic champion Natalie du Toit is aiming for an astonishing seven golden medals at the London Olympics when she jumps in the pool for her last major international event.
The 28-year-old from Cape Town, whose story of courage in the face of a major setback has inspired millions, will take part in seven events in her third Paralympics.
Together with Oscar Pistorius, the “Blade Runner” who became the first double amputee to compete in the Olympics when he ran in the 400m heats this year, Du Toit forms the backbone of South Africa’s 62-strong team heading to the British capital.
She is aiming to go out with a bang, performing in the 50m, 100m and 400m freestyle, 200m individual medley, 100m backstroke and two categories in the 100m butterfly.
Du Toit has been preparing since last year at the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Swimming World Championships in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, last year.
“London 2012 will be the end of my swimming career,” she told the IPC magazine The Paralympian in an interview published in January this year.
“The reason I did all of the events at the World Championships in Eindhoven was because I want to do all the events at the Paralympics.”
Du Toit started competing internationally as 14-year-old able-bodied swimmer, representing South Africa in the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Three years later her scooter was hit by a car as she was returning to school after swimming practice. The teen’s left leg was amputated below the knee.
