Ellie Robinson Mbe

Ellie Robinson MBE, born on August 29, 2001, in Northampton, England, is a British Para swimmer specializing in S6 classification events. She learned to swim at age four and joined Northampton Swimming Club in 2012. After a brief hiatus due to a Perthes hip disease diagnosis in November 2012, she returned to competitive swimming in 2014 and was enrolled in British Swimming’s World Class Podium Potential Programme. Robinson made her senior international debut in 2015 at the International Deutsche Meisterschaften in Berlin, where she set a world record in the 100m butterfly with a time of 1:26.30, earned silver in the 50m butterfly, and bronze in the 200m butterfly.

Robinson’s career progressed significantly in 2016, leading up to the Rio Paralympics. She improved her British 50m butterfly record to 36.34 and secured a place in the Paralympic team. At the 2016 IPC Swimming European Championships in Funchal, she won bronze medals in the 50m, 100m, and 400m freestyle events, and a silver in the 50m butterfly, finishing behind Oksana Khrul with a time of 35.66. Her performance at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games was a highlight, where she claimed a gold medal in the S6 50m butterfly event, setting a new Paralympic record of 35.58 seconds, and a bronze medal in the S6 100m freestyle. For her achievements, Robinson was recognized in the 2017 New Year Honours List, receiving an MBE.

Following her Paralympic success, Robinson continued to compete at a high level. In 2018, she won her first Commonwealth title in the S6/S7 50m butterfly at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. Later that year, at the European Para Swimming Championships in Dublin, she secured gold in her favored S6 50m butterfly, silver in the S6 100m freestyle with a British record, and bronze in the 50m freestyle. Her 2019 season included a silver medal in the S6 50m Butterfly at the World Para Swimming Championships in London. In 2021, she competed at the Tokyo Paralympics, finishing fifth in the S6 50m butterfly final, and subsequently announced her retirement from competitive swimming in October 2021. She is now pursuing studies in history and politics and exploring media opportunities.