Jesse Reynolds is a Para swimmer and former representative Wheelchair basketball player from Hamilton.
Jesse took up swimming at age 11. He was a natural in the water. Only two years later, on his international debut, he grabbed a bronze medal in the 400m freestyle S9 at the Melbourne 2009 Paralympic Youth Games.
Jesse made his senior debut for New Zealand at the 2013 IPC Swimming World Championships in Canada, placing sixth in the 400m freestyle S9.
Jesse went on to have four fourth-place finishes at the 2015 Pan Pacific Para Swimming Championships in the USA. He finished fifth in the 400 metre Freestyle S9 at the Glasgow 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships.
Jesse competed in his first Paralympic Games at the Rio 2016 Paralympics. He swam a personal best time in the 100 metre Butterfly S9 final and finished seventh in the 100 metre Backstroke S9 in a time of 1:05.57, shattering his previous personal best time. Jesse found the experience of his very first Paralympic Games final to be exhilarating.
Jesse was part of New Zealand’s most successful Paralympic team ever. The team of 31 Paralympians in Rio broke three world records, secured 21 medals (9 gold, 5 silver and 7 bronze) and finished first in the world per capita and 13th in the world overall on the medal table (previous best: 16th).
Jesse was part of the New Zealand Commonwealth Games Team that competed in the Gold Coast in 2018. Jesse had three outstanding swims, including missing a bronze medal by the narrowest of margins on two occasions.
Jesse made his second Paralympic appearance at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. He competed in four events and set a personal best time of 1:04.58 in the Men’s 100m Backstroke S9.
Jesse officially received his ‘numbered’ Paralympic pin as part of The Celebration Project in Auckland in May 2019.
Jesse was part of the NZ Team which went to the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, winning silver in the 100m backstroke S9. In 2023, Jesse placed fourth in the world in the same event at the 2023 World Para Swimming Championships.
Making his third Paralympic Games appearance at Paris 2024, the Waikato-based athlete finished seventh in the Men’s 100m Backstroke S9 final.
