Paris 2024: Italy's Para swimming couple buoyed by baby at pool

Stefano Raimondi and Giulia Terzi, Italy's sweethearts with nine medals combined from Tokyo 2020, plan on adding many more at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games with their six-month-old baby watching poolside.

Raimondi has already started on his hoped Paris 2024 medal haul with a gold in the 100m breaststroke SB9 on 31 August. The 100m breaststroke is a particularly special event for the couple, as it was immediately after winning his Tokyo 2020 gold in this category that Raimondi announced his relationship with Terzi openly in the pool.

The couple have gone from strength to strength since Tokyo, with Raimondi clinching world championship golds in Manchester in 2023, Terzi studying law and business, and most recently growing their family with the birth of their son Edoardo on 26 February 2024.

First medal as a father feels like the first medal ever

Raimondi's podium finishes in Tokyo were only matched by one other athlete: Para swimmer Maksym Krypak of Ukraine. While he's competing in less events this Games, Raimondi has already started strong with a medal on day two of the competition.

His medal in 100m breaststroke came after a fourth place finish in the freestyle S10, but this position didn't discourage him.

"It actually gave me a better idea of my current physical condition and it helped me evaluate better how to handle the next competition," Raimondi told the IPC. 

"Getting the gold having here Giulia and Edoardo with me has a different value, it feels like the first ever."

"Indeed when I was on the podium it was actually difficult to hold my tears back. I pushed a lot in the last 50 metres and it was challenging, but hearing the crowd in the background was amazing."

As Tokyo 2020 was Raimondi's Paralympic debut, he has been enjoying the crowds in Paris.

"Right after me the French athlete entered the pool and the crowd was shouting, it actually gave me goosebumps and a lot of energy for my competition as well," he said.

Terzi not giving up on a medal

Terzi, who also gained a doctorate of law and an MBA while training, is no stranger to setting herself big goals, and her current goal six-months post-partum of winning a Paralympic medal is no different.

She got back to the pool as soon as possible, and gained a bronze medal in the S7 100m freestyle at the 2024 European Open Championships in Madeira only two months after giving birth to their son.  

"I was lucky to have a very calm pregnancy with no issues and it allowed me to keep swimming until December, even though clearly not as much as before. Then I managed to go back to the pool 40 days after Edoardo was born," she explained.

"Of course I understand that it’s already a big success to be here after the past months but I don’t want to give up on the idea of also getting a medal here!"

Until December, Terzi trained through her pregnancy, but had to make some alterations.

"I used to train like 10-11 times per week before and reduced to 3-4 sessions a week. But I also reduced the distances because, obviously with the pregnancy, I was struggling with breathing.

"I also skipped the world championships last year in Manchester because I was already pregnant, but at the same time, I didn't have the summer break that the other athletes had, because I wanted to keep being constant," said Terzi.

Legacy in the pool

Edoardo has been with grandparents for the first couple days of the Games, and they will all visit the Paralympic Village and the pool for the first time on 1 September. 

"Of course I know I will be emotional, but I don't really know how I will react. It will be special having him there," said Raimondi.

Edoardo is no stranger to the swimming pool, having started swimming lessons at three months old. When asked if he would go on to be a professional swimmer, they said they will leave it up to him to choose.

"Of course, we will try to invest in him to do sport as a positive thing for his life, but we don't necessarily want him to have the pressure to go to elite level or whatever," said Terzi.

The pool offers a space for the family, 'a moment of calm where we can all be together', explained Terzi.

Advice to other athlete parents

With their story being public the couple wanted to reassure other families like them.

"It's not easy, but we take this role as athletes as a job, and all parents who have jobs, they work anyway, so it's like, it's okay. Whether training or working another way. It's the same thing of trying to balance family time and work time," said Terzi.

It can even be a benefit, Raimondi suggested, saying:

"Actually, the idea of having Eduardo at home waiting can actually be stimulating, so we swim faster to go home faster."

Raimondi's next competition is the 100m freestyle S10, starting at 09:38 CET at Paris La Defense Arena. Terzi starts her competition on 2 September with the 400m freestyle S7.