Alex Portal (born 12 February 2002) is a French Paralympic swimmer. He competed at the 2020 Summer Paralympics, winning two medals, and at the 2024 Summer Paralympics, winning four medals.
.jpg) Portal in 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 12 February 2002 Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Paralympic swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability class | S13, SM13 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editPortal was born on 12 February 2002 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France.[1] He and his younger brother Kylian were both born with ocular albinism, a condition resulting in poor eyesight.[2][3] Alex began swimming at age five at the club CN Pecq, and later began competing at age seven with the club Cercle des nageurs de l'ouest in Saint-Germain-en-Laye.[1] He attended the business school Ecole de Management Léonard De Vinci.[1]
Portal initially competed against non-disabled swimmers, before registering for para swimming in 2016. He competed at the French national championships and qualified for the national team shortly after.[4] Classified as an S13 swimmer, Portal won two medals at the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships.[1] He qualified for the 2020 Summer Paralympics and won two medals: a bronze in the 400m freestyle S13 and a silver in the 200m medley S13.[5][6] In September 2021, he was honored with the Ordre national du Mérite from the president.[7]
In 2022, Portal won four medals, including a gold, at the World Para Swimming Championships.[1] The following year, he won three gold medals and a silver at the world championships.[1] In the 400m freestyle event, in which he won gold, his brother Kylian also competed and won bronze.[8]
In December 2023, Portal and his brother received scholarships from the city of Saint-Germain-en-Laye for €5,000.[9] In 2024, a sign was installed at the entrance of the city to celebrate the two brothers' accomplishments.[9] At the 2024 European championships, Alex won four medals.[1] Both he and his brother were selected for the 2024 Summer Paralympics.[9] At the Paralympics, Alex won four medals – silver in the 100m butterfly, silver in the 400m freestyle, silver in the 200m medley and bronze in the 100m backstroke.[10] In the 400m freestyle, he placed one spot above his brother Kylian, the bronze medalist.[11][12]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g "Portal Alex". Olympics.com.
- ^ "Jeux paralympiques : portraits des deux frères nageurs Alex et Kilian Portal" [Paralympic Games: portraits of the two swimming brothers Alex and Kilian Portal] (in French). France Info. 8 October 2022.
- ^ "JOP Paris 2024 : Kylian Portal, médaillé de bronze et étudiant à l'EMLV" [JOP Paris 2024: Kylian Portal, bronze medalist and student at EMLV] (in French). Ecole de Management Léonard De Vinci. 18 September 2024.
- ^ Pineau, Arthur (16 December 2020). "Qui est Alex Portal, ce nageur handisport qui fait tomber des records du monde ?" [Who is Alex Portal, this disabled swimmer who is breaking world records?]. Ouest-France (in French).
- ^ Gerber, Louise (27 August 2021). "Paralympiques 2021 : le nageur français Alex Portal décroche le bronze sur le 400 m nage libre" [Paralympics 2021: French swimmer Alex Portal wins bronze in the 400m freestyle] (in French). France Info.
- ^ Nony, Celine (30 August 2021). "Alex Portal en argent sur 200m 4 nages (S13) aux Jeux Paralympiques de Tokyo" [Alex Portal wins silver in 200m medley (S13) at Tokyo Paralympic Games]. L'Équipe (in French).
- ^ "Décret du 8 septembre 2021 portant promotion et nomination dans l'ordre national du Mérite" [Decree of September 8, 2021 on promotion and appointment to the National Order of Merit]. Légifrance (in French). 10 September 2021.
- ^ Nony, Celine (5 August 2023). "Alex Portal en or, son frère Kylian en bronze sur 400 m aux Mondiaux de para-natation" [Alex Portal in gold, his brother Kylian in bronze in the 400m at the World Para-swimming Championships]. L'Équipe (in French).
- ^ a b c Roudeillat, Philippe (14 August 2024). "Jeux paralympiques 2024 : les nageurs Alex et Kylian Portal sur les traces des Lebrun et de… Léon Marchand" [2024 Paralympic Games: Swimmers Alex and Kylian Portal in the footsteps of Lebrun and… Léon Marchand]. Actu.fr (in French).
- ^ Joly, Gabriel (3 September 2024). "Paralympiques 2024 : Alex Portal prend l'argent sur le 200 m 4 nages, sa quatrième médaille dans ces Jeux" [Paralympics 2024: Alex Portal takes silver in the 200m medley, his fourth medal in these games] (in French). France Info.
- ^ Myers, Paul (31 August 2024). "Medalling brothers: Portals take honours in same race at Paris 2024 Paralympics". Radio France Internationale.
- ^ Kaufman, Sophie (31 August 2024). "2024 Paralympics: French Brothers Alex and Kylian Portal Share Podium, Three More WRs Fall". SwimSwam.
External links
edit
- Alex Portal at the International Paralympic Committee
- Alex Portal at IPC.InfostradaSports.com (archived)
- Alex Portal at Équipe de France (in French)
- Alex Portal at France Paralympique (in French)
- Alex Portal on Instagram
