Dimitrios Karypidis – Greece.

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Dimitrios Karypidis was born in Tomsk, Siberia in 1989, living there until 1993 when he immigrated to Greece with his mother. As a baby, doctors discovered he was suffering from severe osteogenesis imperfecta type III, a disorder characterised by spontaneous rupturing of bones, often with little or no obvious cause. His fractures quickly amounted to hundreds through to his adolescence, resulting in noticeable bone deformity and more than 50 corrective interventions. The Primary Health Committee concluded that he was suffering from functional paraplegia due to a severe form of osteogenesis imperfecta at a rate >80 %, and a lifelong condition. After many years of physiotherapy and swimming during the summer months, he started swimming more intensively for health reasons, including weight loss, limb fitness and to improve his quality of life. Ιt was George Tyligadas, his current coach, who pushed him to start swimming professionally. The endorsement was reason enough for Dimitrios to start his professional career. His achievements include 4th, 5th and 6th placements at the Paralympic Games (Rio and Tokyo), 1st (two events) at the World Para Swimming Championship, Berlin, and many others. Dimitrios is currently a student at the Pedagogical Department of Primary Education, Democritus University of Thrace.

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