Background
Slater was born in 1991 in Preston, England and began swimming from the age of three.
Slater was born in 1991 in Preston, England and began swimming from the age of three.
Slater began her sporting career as an able bodied athlete, but after suffering nerve damage to her left arm she switched to parasport. In 2013 she qualified for the Swimming in Montreal. A talented swimmer as a youth, Slater challenged as an able bodied athlete and began entering British Championships from 2006.
Specialising in the breaststroke, she continually improved during the British Championships, finishing 4th in the 100 m breaststroke final in 2009.
While training at Team Great Britain’s Intensive Training Centre in Swansea, she experienced severe weakness and intense pain to her left arm while swimming. The injury did not clear and she was forced to pull out from her goal of making the.
After two years of several tests and scans, it was diagnosed that Slater had suffered nerve damage to her brachial plexus which ended her career as an able-bodied athlete. Slater also suffers from a degenerative eye condition affecting both eyes.
She also has a leg length discrepancy.
Slater returned home to Preston to her family after her condition had been diagnosed, and having been a games maker at the London 2012 Paralympics in the Aquatics Centre, this inspired her to return to the pool as a para-swimmer. In December 2012 she began entering events as a para-swimmer. She entered the British International Disability Swimming Championships in Sheffield in April 2013.
There she set a British and European record when she recorded a time of 1:11.03 in the 100 m Butterfly S8.
Not only did she take the gold medal with this record time, but she also qualified for her first in Montreal. At the IPC Swimming in Montreal 2013, Slater competed in the Women"s 200m IM SM8, Women"s 100m Breastroke SB8, Women"s 100m Butterfly S8 and the Women"s 34pt 4 × 100 m Medley Relay.
Women"s 200m IM SM8 - Silver - 2.40.73 - European record Women"s 100m Breaststroke SB8 - 5th - 1.26.34 Women"s 100m Butterfly S8 - Silver - 1.10.12 - European record Women"s 34pt 4 × 100 m Medley Relay (Butterfly Legal) - Gold - 4.46.21 - world record 2014 After the, Slater will be heading to the IPC European Championships, in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, in August. She secured five European Championship selection times.
Stephanie had a very successful debut at the IPC European Championships in Eindhoven.
She competed in 5 individual events and two relay swims. Women"s S8 100m Butterfly - 1.08.20 - GOLD - World Record Women"s S8 50m Freestyle - 30.44 - GOLD - European Record Women"s S8 100m Freestyle - 1.07.03 - GOLD Women"s S8 100m -Backstroke - 1.17.42 - GOLD Women"s SM8 200m Individual Medley - 2.41.73 - GOLD Women"s 34pt 4 × 100 m Medley Relay (Butterfly leg) - 4.46.89 - GOLD Women"s 34pt 4 × 100 m Freestyle Relay - 4.27.21 - GOLD.