Paralympic swimmer Kirill Shumeiko says success takes hard work

Kirill Shumeiko, a young Israeli swimmer with cerebral palsy, says his day starts before sunrise with early practice and a routine that already resembles that of a professional athlete. He is featured in ynet and Telma’s project highlighting promising Israeli sportsmen and women, teenagers from across the country who combine school with intense training in Olympic and Paralympic sports.

Shumeiko has been swimming for 10 years, since he was 6. He says he first came to the pool for hydrotherapy, but discovered that swimming was his strongest suit and eventually moved up through the ranks to the Paralympic national youth squad. He trains with Ilan Sport Haifa and follows a demanding schedule of 10 pool sessions and three gym workouts each week. Each practice lasts about two hours, split between technique work and timed, high-intensity sets.

For Shumeiko, swimming is both sport and treatment. He says it gives him room to move freely, the feeling that he is “like everyone else,” and helps him build confidence while coping with cerebral palsy. He adds that the discipline keeps him physically fit and that in swimming, where races can be decided by a hundredth of a second, every result matters. “אין ברירה, כדי להיות אלוף צריך להשקיע,” he says, meaning there is no choice, to become a champion you have to invest effort.

He credits his father, grandmother, and coach Yaakov Beninson for supporting him, noting that his family gets up at 5 a.m. to drive him to the pool. He says the coach is a major part of his success and that he loves nothing more than getting into the water. After a recent competition in which he posted one of his best times, though not his personal record, he said he was proud and very satisfied. His goal is clear, to reach the podium at the Paralympic Games, and he also dreams of winning Olympic gold.