Mark Malyar

Mark Malyar (Hebrew: מארק מליאר; born 5 March 2000) is an Israeli Paralympic champion and world champion para swimmer.^[5] As of 2024, he had won four world championships and set four world records. At the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, he won two gold medals while setting two world records. He is competing for Israel at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, and has won a bronze medal.

Early life

Malyar was born with cerebral palsy at Bnei Zion Medical Center in Haifa, Israel.^[6] His parents are Alex and Diana, and he has an identical twin brother, Ariel Malyar, who is also a Paralympic swimmer and also competed in the Tokyo Paralympics and is competing in the Paris Paralympics.^[6] He grew up in Kiryat Motzkin, Israel.^[7]^[8]

Swimming career

Malyar began swimming at age 5 with his brother as part of hydrotherapy treatment.^[6] Later, he joined the ILAN Haifa swimming team. ^[6] He trains at the ILAN pool in Kiryat Haim, and is coached by Yaakov Benenson.^[6] He was named the 2017 Athlete of the Year by the Israeli Paralympic Committee.^[9]

At the 2017 World Championships in Mexico, at 17 years of age, he won a bronze medal in the 100-meter backstroke.^[10] At the 2018 European Championships in Dublin he won the silver medal in the 400-meter freestyle, and bronze medals in both the 100-meter breaststroke and the 100-meter backstroke^[10]. At the 2019 World Championships in London, he won the gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle (setting a new world record of 4:33.64), and the silver medal in the 200-meter individual medley.^[10]

Malyar represented Israel at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics at 21 years of age, and won gold medals in the 200 metre individual medley SM7 (in 2:29.01) and the 400 m freestyle S7 (in 4:31.06), setting new world records in both, and the bronze medal in the 100 m backstroke S7.^[1] He said: "I’m happy that I succeeded..., I’m very tired. I didn’t feel that I was even going that fast, but it worked and my body is just about done."^[7]

2024-present; Paris Paralympics

As of August 2024, he held world records in the 400-meter, 800-meter, and 1,500-meter freestyle and 200-meter individual medley, and had won four world championship medals.^[11]

He is competing for Israel at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Malyar won a bronze medal in the 100-meter backstroke in the S8 disability.^[12] He dedicated his medal to the Israel Defense Forces soldiers fighting to protect Israel, and said: "I want to thank the soldiers and everyone who protects us, thanks to them we can train and we can get to this point, we’re able to live thanks to them."^[13]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Mark Malyar". Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
^ "Results Archive - Tokyo 2020 - Swimming - Men S 200 M Individual Medley Sm7". paralympic.org. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
^ "Results Archive - Tokyo 2020 - Swimming - Men S 400 M Freestyle S7". paralympic.org. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
^ "Results Archive - Tokyo 2020 - Swimming - Men S 100 M Backstroke S7". paralympic.org. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
^ "Mark Malyar". paralympic.org. International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Israeli Swimmer Mark Malyar Wins 2nd Gold Medal, Breaks World Record in Paralympic Games," Jewish Press.
^ ^a ^b "Shattering another world record, swimmer Mark Malyar wins his second Tokyo gold," The Times of Israel.
^ "Israeli Paralympic swimmer Mark Malyar wins bronze in Paris," Ynet.
^ "Israeli Paralympic swimmer wins gold, sets world record in Tokyo Games," Ynet.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Israeli Paralympic swimmer Mark Malyar wins bronze in Paris," Ynet.
^ "Israeli Paralympic swimmer Mark Malyar wins bronze in Paris," Ynet.
^ "Israel’s Mark Malyar wins bronze medal in swimming at Paralympic games," The Times of Israel.
^ "Israeli swimmer clinches bronze at Paris Paralympics, nation’s third medal so far," The Times of Israel.