Aged only 19, Olivia Newman-Baronius has already accomplished more than most athletes can only dream of.
A world-class para-swimmer, Paralympic champion and advocate for neurodiversity, she has won medals at the highest level of international sport.
But swimming has always been much more to her than winning medals – it has given her confidence, helped her through some incredibly difficult times and given her a place where she feels comfortable being herself.
Showing talent from an early age, Olivia started swimming competitively at the aged just five. Growing up in Leighton Buzzard and training with Maxwell Swim Club in Aylesbury, she quickly progressed and began making her way towards the international stage.
At the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, Olivia won gold as part of Great Britain’s mixed 4x100m freestyle relay team, as well as an individual bronze in the S14 100m backstroke.
But it wasn’t a straightforward path.
During the Covid pandemic, Olivia became seriously ill with sepsis. She lost a significant amount of muscle strength and was later diagnosed with gastroparesis - a condition affecting how quickly her stomach empties. Around the same time, she was also facing challenges at school before being diagnosed with autism.
It was a difficult period and she had to dig deep to find the confidence to keep moving forward. The pool became a place where she found peace.
“When I’m in the pool I feel calm because everything is quite quiet. It’s something I’m good at and people are positive around it, rather than it being a negative, which is reassuring.”
For Olivia, success isn't just measured in medals - what matters most to her is her family, who have supported her all the way.
“Getting good times and winning medals is obviously amazing, but I just like to make sure that my family are just proud of me. And if they are then I know that I’ve done a good job.”
That perspective also shapes the message she wants to share with other young people. Having had people make assumptions about what she could and couldn’t achieve, Olivia encourages others not to let those assumptions define them.
Her advice to graduates is simple: “Don’t listen to people when they don’t believe in you. Anyone can do anything, if you just really, really want to do it.”
In recognition of her achievements, Olivia has received an honorary award from Bucks, which she says is ‘really nice’ because it gives her the opportunity to recognise her achievements and the impact her journey has had on others.
“This award means a lot to me because at my level I’m surrounded by amazing people who are really good at swimming all the time. So I forget that not everyone is like that and it’s really nice to hear that people are inspired by what I’ve done.”