15 Things you don’t know about Natalie du Toit

1.  Natalie du Toit was born 29 January 1984 in Cape Town

2.  Natalie du Toit began competing internationally in swimming at the age of 14

3.  In February 2001 Natalie du Toit’s left leg was amputated at the knee after she was hit by a car while riding her scooter back to school after swimming practice

4.  Natalie du Toit completed her scholastic education at the Reddam House in Cape Town after which she studied for a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Cape Town, specializing in genetics and physiology

5.  In her free time she does motivational speaking

6.  Natalie du Toit also made sporting history by qualifying for the 800 m able-bodied freestyle final – the first time that an athlete with a disability had qualified for the final of an able-bodied even

7.  In 2006 Natalie du Toit also won six gold medals at the fourth IPC World Swimming Championships, finishing third overall in a race which included 36 males and 20 females

8.  South Africa’s Olympic Committee chose Natalie du Toit to carry their flag at the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, making her the first athlete to carry a flag in both Olympics and Paralympics in a single year

9.  Natalie du Toit was voted 48th in the Top 100 Great South Africans in 2004 by the South African Broadcasting Corporation

10.  In August 2002 Natalie du Toit was awarded the Western Cape Golden Cross. During the award ceremony Western Cape Premier Marthinus van Schalkwyk said she had gone “beyond gold and swam her way into the hearts of not only South Africans but the whole world”

11.  In December 2009 Natalie du Toit received the Order of Ikhamanga in Gold “for her exceptional achievements in swimming.”

12.  On 10 March 2010, Natalie du Toit was awarded the Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability for “breaking down the barriers between disabled and able-bodied sport”

13.  Natalie du Toit has one major dream at this stage to be able to run

14.  Natalie du Toit became the first amputee ever to qualify for the Olympics, where she placed 16th in the 10K, “Marathon”

15.  On 27 August 2012, just three days before the start of the 2012 Summer Paralympics, she announced her intention to retire at the end of the event