“I actually kind of got into swimming by accident,” Jessica Long said in a promotional video for the Paris Paralympics on Aug 25. Well, for someone who got into the sport by accident, the Paralympian has done well. And that was a gross understanding because Long might just be the greatest Paralympic swimmer in history.

Long has almost as many medals as she is old. The 32-year-old earned her 30th Paralympic medal after winning gold in the Women’s 400m freestyle S8 finals on September 4. Here’s a look at the extraordinary journey of a trailblazing American Paralympian who was born in a different country.

Who is Jessica Long, and how did she begin her swimming journey?

Today, Team USA’s star swimmer has 17 Paralympic golds, 8 silvers, and 5 bronze medals under her belt. Besides surpassing Olympic legend Michael Phelps in total medal count, the swimmer also has 54 world championship medals. With yet another gold to her name, Long has now won at least one gold at every edition of the Games since making her debut at Athens 2004.

However, none of this would’ve been possible if the athlete’s adoptive parents didn’t bring her to the United States. Jessica Long was born on February 29, 1992, to Tatiana Olegovna Kirillova in Siberia. However, her disability was the only challenge the future Paralympic legend faced. Kirillova, a young single mother, was unable to care for her baby, and Long was put up for adoption.

After 13 months, Beth and Steve Long adopted the child and brought her to Maryland, USA. And although Jessica Long had found a home, her challenges had only begun. The Paralympic champion suffers from a congenital defect called fibular hemimelia, which affects the development of her fibular bone in both extremities.

Yet it didn’t hinder the Long family from supporting their adoptive daughter. “It didn’t matter what the disability was, what the problems were. We were just ready, and we just knew she was meant for us.” Beth Long told TODAY in 2021. Thus began the grueling journey of undergoing surgeries to improve the child’s long-term health and quality of life.

At just 18 months old, Jessica Long underwent her first surgery. 25 more surgeries would follow, with the final procedure happening in her 20s. However, these obstacles didn’t dampen the sports of the double amputee. While the Paralympian had no intentions of competing when she first started swimming at 10, she found a different kind of joy.

“For me, it (swimming) was a place where I didn’t have to wear my heavy prosthetic legs,” said champion said in the Paris 2024 promo video. The activity also gave the then 10-year-old the freedom to move in a way she had never experienced before. Long didn’t need assistance to move with grace in the water and within two years, the swimmer won her first Paralympic gold at 12.

While the surgeries kept stacking up and the size of her prosthetic legs kept changing, Jessica Long never changed her mind about swimming. On the contrary, she became incredibly competitive and considered any less than gold as a “failure.” The Paralympic champion’s medal tally reflected that mindset.

The Paralympic champion’s record-breaking career so far

Jessica Long had a stellar start to her career at the 2004 Athens Paralympics. The then 12-year-old swimmer earned three freestyle swimming gold medals in the 100m, 400m, and 4×100 m relay. However, it wasn’t until 2006 that the swimmer showed the world what she was capable of. Long earned a mind-boggling nine gold medals at the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Swimming World Championships.

After Athens, Long worked her versatility, medaling in several different events. No technique seemed beyond her mastery as she won gold in freestyle, butterfly, individual medley, backstroke, and breaststroke events. Awarded Disabled Swimmer of The Year by Swimming World magazine, the Paralympic champion broke several world records in 2006.

The medals kept flowing in for the swimmer as she bettered her performance at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics. While Jessica Long won three gold in Athens, she won four gold in China and broke three world records. In 2012, she upped the gold medal tally by one, winning five Paralympic golds. And although the 32 didn’t quite hit the gold medal mark at Rio 2016 with just one to her name, the silver and bronze medals counts went up.

However, despite COVID-19 lockdown challenges, Jessica Long bounced back with three gold medals. Heading into the women’s 400m freestyle S8 finals in Paris, the champion swimmer had 16 golds. So it’s only fitting that her milestone 30th Paralympic medal is also a gold one. “I really wanted to get to the 30 medal count.” said the swimmer after her victory.

However, the Paralympic champion is not done swimming yet. She’ll continue to compete for the next four years before taking part in the seventh Olympic Games of her career. “I do plan to end my career in Los Angeles in 2028 on home soil. I think that it will be really special having my next four years as my farewell,” the champion said at a press conference in Paris on Tuesday. Do you think she’ll set even more records in LA 2028? Let us know in the comments below!