Story By: Georgina Jadikovska, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
This stunning German para swimmer who has appeared on the cover of Playboy has been crowned champion winning her sixth gold medal in the European championships.
German swimmer Elena Krawzow posted a picture with her gold medal on 18th May after being crowned champion at the European Para Swimming Championship which is taking place in the Portuguese region of Madeira between 16th and 22nd May.
The top swimmer, who represents Germany but was born in Kazakhstan, has suffered from a degenerative disease called macular retinal dystrophy since she was 7 which has left her with around 3 percent of her vision.
However, Elena has not let that stopped her from enjoying a successful career in swimming, winning several medals including the silver medal in the 2012 London Olympics and a gold medal in the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships in London.
Both victories were in the 100-metre breaststroke SB13.
Shortly after taking home gold in 2019, the stunning athlete, who specialises in breaststroke and freestyle, became the first Paralympian to grace the covers of German Playboy in October 2020. The issue can be seen here (https://bit.ly/3bFIFYG).
In an interview with Bild, Krawzow spoke about her Playboy shoot and the reaction of her friends and family, the latter of who, she said are predominantly Muslim and can be very conservative.
She said: “I felt queasy because I come from a very conservative household. For them [Kazakhs] it was unimaginable that ‘one of their own’ would do something like that.
“I knew my family couldn’t handle it. My father already thinks my Instagram account is too much.”
The 27-year-old explained she wanted to make a difference saying: “I come from a country where women are still oppressed. I experienced that first hand.
“As a woman, you have a lot of regulations and hardly any say. It doesn’t matter what others say. And I don’t want to hide because of my illness.”
The victory marks the fourth time Krawzow comes on top as a European champion swimmer in her career after several days of only commuting between her hotel and the sports hall.
She said: “The police are monitoring and making sure nobody goes on sightseeing tours. They’re even standing in front of the hotel.”
Krawzow is set to participate in a 50-metre freestyle final today (20th May) but said she was not very optimistic about it saying: “I don’t have very good prospects in this one.”
However, she admitted the European Para Swimming Championship is an interim goal as the ultimate aim is “to win a gold medal at the Paralympics in Tokyo.”
The German Para-Swimming team will prepare in camps in Turkey before heading off to Japan in summer.
Krawzow’s most recent gold medal is her sixth gold in European championships.
