Alex James Harris (3 January 1975 – 27 October 2009) was an Australian

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Kore ...

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

, who represented Australia at the

2000 Summer Paralympics The 2000 Summer Paralympic Games or the XI Summer Paralympics were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, between 18 and 29 October. The Sydney Paralympics was the last time that the Summer Paralympics were organized by two different Organ ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

and the

2004 Summer Paralympics The 2004 Summer Paralympics (), the 12th Summer Paralympic Games, were a major international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the International Paralympic Committee, held in Athens, Greece, from 17 to 28 September ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. Harris was born in

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

, Victoria, and attended Western Heights College where he was a champion sportsman and

school captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. In 1993, aged 18, he was involved in a

traffic collision A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. Tr ...

Breamlea Breamlea is a locality in Surf Coast Shire, Victoria, Australia. It is located on the south coast of the Bellarine Peninsula, 18 kilometres south of Geelong, and halfway between Barwon Heads and Torquay. It is divided between the City of Greate ...

when the car in which Harris and several friends were travelling was struck by another vehicle. One of the car's occupants was killed, and Harris was pulled from the car by a volunteer firefighter who heard the crash. He was airlifted to

The Alfred Hospital The Alfred Hospital, (also known as The Alfred or Alfred Hospital) is a leading tertiary hospital in Melbourne, Victoria. It is the second oldest hospital in Victoria after Melbourne Hospital which is still operating on its original site. The ...

in Melbourne, and was not expected to live. The accident left him with a

closed head injury Closed may refer to: Mathematics * Closure (mathematics), a set, along with operations, for which applying those operations on members always results in a member of the set * Closed set, a set which contains all its limit points * Closed interva ...

to his brain. Whilst undergoing

physical therapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...

to enable him to walk again, Harris discovered that he could still swim very well. Harris was selected to represent

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in swimming at the

. He won a silver medal in the 100 m freestyle S7 and was a member of the 4 × 100 m freestyle 34 pts relay team which also won a silver medal. He won bronze medals in the 50 m freestyle S7 and in the 4 x 100 m medley. He competed in the

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002, were an international multi-sport event for the members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Manchester, England, ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, coming 6th and 10th in the 50 m and 100 m freestyle MD events respectively. At the

, Harris competed in four events (100 m breaststroke SB7, 100 m freestyle S7, 50 m butterfly S7, 50 m freestyle S7) but did not win further medals. He also participated in the

2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006, were an International sport, international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Melbourne ...

in Melbourne. Harris was due to undergo

deep brain stimulation Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a type of neurostimulation therapy in which an implantable pulse generator is stereotactic surgery, surgically implanted subcutaneous tissue, below the skin of the chest and connected by Lead (electronics), leads ...

surgery in October 2009, which would have involved insertion of electrodes into his brain to calm his uncontrollable movements. On 27 October 2009, days before the operation was scheduled, Harris took his own life by being struck by a train on a level crossing at

Lara, Victoria Lara is a town in Victoria, 18 km north-east of the Geelong CBD, inland from the Princes Freeway to Melbourne. Its population at the 2021 census was 19,014. History Lara and its surrounding land was occupied for tens of thousands of y ...

. Harris was a member of the Australian swimming community known for both his swimming achievements and for his efforts outside the pool, inspiring and motivating other swimmers.Hundreds farewell Geelong Paralympian Alex Harris - Local News - Geelong, VIC, Australia
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References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Alex 1975 births 2009 suicides 2009 deaths Australian male freestyle swimmers Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Male Paralympic swimmers for Australia Medalists at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Paralympic medalists in swimming Paralympic silver medalists for Australia Paralympic bronze medalists for Australia Swimmers at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Swimmers at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Victorian Institute of Sport alumni Sportspeople from Geelong Suicides in Victoria (state) Australian sportspeople who committed suicide Suicides by train Commonwealth Games swimmers for Australia S7-classified para swimmers Sportsmen from Victoria (state) 20th-century Australian sportsmen