| Leo McCrea | |
| Nationality: | British, Swiss |
| Birth Date: | 9 November 2003 |
| Birth Place: | England |
| Sport: | Paralympic swimming |
| Disability: | Achondroplasia |
| Event: | freestyle, individual medley, breaststroke |
| Disability Class: | S5, S6 |
Leo McCrea (9 November 2003)[1] is a British-Swiss Paralympic swimmer. He represented Switzerland at the 2024 Summer Paralympics, where he won a gold medal in the 100 metre breaststroke SB5 event.[2] [4] He started his competitive career at age 8, with Val Simmonds, Ellie Simmonds' mother, recommending that he join a club.[1] [5] He won multiple honours at the 2011 World Dwarf Games.[4] McCrea is a Bournemouth University student.[2]
Since April 2019, McCrea has represented Switzerland in international competitions.[1] He competed in the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships in London, where he participated in the 50 m freestyle S6, 100 m breaststroke SB6, 100 m freestyle S6, 100 m freestyle S6, 200 m individual medley SM6, and 400 m freestyle categories. He finished 8th in the final of the 400 m freestyle.[6] McCrea competed in the 2020 World Para Swimming European Open Championships in Funchal, Portugal, where he entered the 50 m freestyle S6, 100 m breaststroke SB5, and 400 m freestyle S6 categories. He reached the finals in all of these events.[6]
McCrea qualified for the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, Japan. He participated in the 100 m freestyle S6, 100 m breaststroke SB5, 200 m individual medley SM6, and 400 m freestyle S6 events. He reached the final of the 100 m breaststroke SB5 event, where he placed 5th.[6]
He competed at the 2022 World Para Swimming Championships in Madeira, Portugal, in the 50 m freestyle S6, 100 m breaststroke SB5, and 100 m freestyle S6. He earned a silver medal in the 100 m breaststroke SB5 and reached the finals in the 100 m freestyle S6.[6] At the 2023 World Para Swimming Championships in Manchester, England, McCrea participated in the 100 m breaststroke SB5, where he won a silver medal, and the 100 m freestyle S6 events.[6]
At the 2024 World Para Swimming European Open Championships in Funchal, he won a bronze medal in the 100 m breaststroke SB5 event and he competed in the 200 m individual medley SM6 event.[6] He qualified for the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, France. He won a gold medal in the 100 m breaststroke SB5 event and he competed in the 200 m individual medley SM6 event.[6]
McCrea was born on 9 November 2003 with achondroplasia. He is from Poole, England; his father is from England and his mother, Corinne, is from Switzerland. He started swimming at the age of 6, inspired by his older sister, Jasmine.[2]