Tracey Cross
Cross takes the official Athletes Oath at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Opening Ceremony
Personal information
Full nameTracey Nicole Cross
Nationality Australia
Born4 December 1972
Bunbury, Western Australia
Medal record
Swimming
Paralympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1992 Barcelona Women's 100 m Freestyle B1
Gold medal – first place 1992 Barcelona Women's 400 m Freestyle B1
Gold medal – first place 1996 Atlanta Women's 100 m Butterfly B1
Gold medal – first place 1996 Atlanta Women's 200 m Medley B1
Silver medal – second place 1992 Barcelona Women's 100 m Backstroke B1
Silver medal – second place 1992 Barcelona Women's 200 m Medley B1
Silver medal – second place 1996 Atlanta Women's 50 m Freestyle B1
Silver medal – second place 2000 Sydney Women's 100 m Freestyle S11
Silver medal – second place 2000 Sydney Women's 400 m Freestyle S11
Bronze medal – third place 2000 Sydney Women's 50 m Freestyle S11
IPC Swimming World Championships
Gold medal – first place1994 Valletta100 m Freestyle S11
Silver medal – second place1994 Valletta50 m Freestyle S11
Silver medal – second place1994 Valletta400 m Freestyle S11
World Championships and Games for the Disabled
Gold medal – first place 1990 AssenWomen's 400 m Freestyle B1
Bronze medal – third place 1990 AssenWomen's 100 m Freestyle B1

Tracey Nicole Cross, OAM[1] (born 4 December 1972)[2] is an Australian visually impaired swimmer. She won ten medals at three Paralympics, from 1992 to 2000.

Personal

Cross was born in the Western Australian city of Bunbury on 4 December 1972.[2] She has been blind since birth; in a 2000 interview, she said that the light perception that she had in one eye was "almost useless".[3] She was left out of sporting activities at school, and started swimming at the age of 15.[3] She took the sport casually at first, but took it more seriously when she found that she had a natural aptitude for swimming.[3]

In 1994, she obtained a law degree from Murdoch University. After working in that field for some years, she became a massage therapist; she works in a natural health clinic in West Perth. Cross developed her passion for massage after she sustained a neck and shoulder injury while training for the 2000 Sydney Paralympics.[3][4]

Swimming career

Action shot of Cross in the pool during competition at the 2000 Summer Paralympics

Cross won her first international gold medal in the women's 400 m Freestyle B1 at the 1990 World Championships and Games for the Disabled in Assen, Netherlands.[5][6]

At the 1992 Barcelona Games, she won two gold medals in the Women's 100 m Freestyle B1 and Women's 400 m Freestyle B1 events, and two silver medals in the Women's 100 m Backstroke B1 and Women's 200 m Medley B1 events;[7] she also came fourth in both the Women's 100 m Butterfly B1[8] and Women's 50 m Freestyle B1 events.[9]

She won two gold medals at the 1996 Atlanta Games in the Women's 100 m Butterfly B1 and the Women's 200 m Medley B1 events, and a silver medal in the Women's 50 m Freestyle B1 event;[7] she also came fifth in the Women's 100 m Backstroke B1 event[10] and came seventh in the heats of the Women's 400 m Freestyle B2 event.[11]

She spoke the Paralympic oath at the opening ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Paralympics.[12] In the competition, she received two silver medals in the Women's 100 m Freestyle S11 and the Women's 400 m Freestyle S11 events, and a bronze medal in the Women's 50 m Freestyle S11 event;[7] she also came fifth in the Women's 200 m Medley SM11 event[13] and eighth in the Women's 100 m Backstroke S11 event.[14]

Recognition

In 1993, Cross received a Medal of the Order of Australia for her 1992 Paralympic gold medals.[1] In that year, she also received the Western Australian Citizen of the Year Award in the Youth category.[15] On 14 November 2000, she received an Australian Sports Medal "For Service to Sport as a gold Medallist at the Paralympic Games".[16] She received a Centenary Medal on 1 January 2001 "For service to the community through Paralympic swimming".[17] In 2009, she was inducted into the Swimming Western Australia Hall of Fame.[18]

References

  1. 1 2 "Cross, Tracey Nicole: Medal of the Order of Australia". It's an Honour. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  2. 1 2 "Australians at the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics: Swimmers". Australian Sports Commission. Archived from the original on 20 January 2000. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Derriman, Philip (11 October 2000). "Why every stroke counts for Cross". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 40. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  4. ↑ "Tracey Cross – Remedial Massage Therapist". Centro Health. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  5. ↑ "Athlete's Profile: Tracey Cross". Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 5 December 2000. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  6. ↑ World Championships and Games for the Disabled – Athletics Results. Netherlands: Organising Committee. 1990.
  7. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  8. ↑ "1992 Women's 100 m Butterfly Results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  9. ↑ "1992 Women's 50 m Freestyle B1 results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  10. ↑ "1996 Women's 100 m Backstroke B1 – Results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  11. ↑ "1996 Women's 400 m Freestyle B2 – Results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  12. ↑ "Honour for swimmer". Illawarra Mercury. 16 October 2000. p. 7. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  13. ↑ "2000 Women's 200 m Medley SM11 – results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  14. ↑ "2000 Women's 100 m Backstroke S11 – Results". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  15. ↑ "WA Citizen of the Year Awards". Celebrate WA. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  16. ↑ "Cross, Tracey Nicole: Australian Sports Medal". It's an Honour. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  17. ↑ "Cross, Tracey: Centenary Medal". It's an Honour. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  18. ↑ "Hall of Fame". Swimming Western Australia. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
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