Highbridge swimmer Anthony Stephens just missed out on a medal at the Paralympics in London on Saturday evening (September 1st).
The 26 year-old, who lives in Burnham Road, Highbridge, qualified for the final of the 200m freestyle (S5) on Saturday morning in fourth place with a season’s best time.
In the final on Saturday evening, he finished in fourth place, just six seconds behind the bronze medal winning finisher.
His time of 2:49:83 was a season’s best performance and Anthony said afterwards that he “gave it all I had and couldn’t of done anymore.”
Anthony was cheered on by his family and supporters from Highbridge, who were delighted with his performance.
He will next be in action again on Thursday when he will be competing in the 50m backstroke. At this year’s
British Championships in London, Anthony won a bronze medal in the 50m backstroke and he has hopes of more success.
He went to school at Highbridge’s King Alfred School and still has many friends and relatives in the Burnham-On-Sea area.
He was born with no legs and just one fully developed arm, but has never let this get in his way, and has been swimming from the age of three and breaking records since he was 10.
Anthony took part in the Paralympics in Beijing in 2008 where he won a bronze medal in the 200m Freestyle. He was also sixth in the 50m Freestyle and fourth in the 100m Freestyle.
In the 2004 Paralymics in Athens he won a bronze medal in the 50m Freestyle, a bronze in the 100m Freestyle and a silver in the 200m Freestyle.
