Para swimmer says she is humbled by MBE honour
A swimmer has said it was humbling to be recognised in the King’s Birthday Honours.
Rebecca Redfern, 24, from Droitwich, has been awarded an MBE for services to young people and the community in Worcestershire.
She was diagnosed with a condition which limits peripheral vision, retinitis pigmentosa, when she was seven years old.
She was encouraged to take part in swimming with her siblings, however, and at the age of 16 she took part in her first Paralympics in Rio, winning a silver medal – just a year after joining Worcester Swimming Club.
“It opened up this whole new world to me, and I fell in love with the sport even more than I thought I could,” she said.
She went on to qualify for the Tokyo Paralympics just nine months after giving birth to her son, having initially thought her swimming career might come to an end due to the challenge of juggling the responsibilities of being a parent with being a full-time athlete.
Ms Redfern said her stubborn attitude led her to win her second Paralympic silver medal, and she said she was determined to continue this success by aiming for a gold medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
She also has a World Championship gold medal to her name, and regularly takes her medals to local schools to inspire youngsters.
“Everything I have experienced I just pass it on and share it, because the way a child’s face lights up when you say ‘my favourite stroke is breaststroke’ and they’re like ‘I love breaststroke too’ it fills me with joy,” she said.
She is also a patron of charity Sight Concern, and said they did amazing work for visually impaired people to help them feel included and independent.
“I still struggle completely to be independent on my own,” she said.
“I have so much respect for Sight Concern and the work they do.”
She is still coached by Mark Stowe – who first encouraged her to consider para swimming – and said she was looking forward to appearing at the Paris 2024 games.
Ms Redfern praised her family for the support they had given her, with her mum and partner driving her to and from swimming and supporting with childcare.
She also praised her coach for supporting her to reach her third Paralympics.
“We have so much confidence between us, heading into Paris. It’s a really exciting year for us,” she said.
She said her aim for the competition was to achieve a lifetime best.
“For me it’s not necessarily about medals, at my age I just want a personal best.”
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