Yaseen El-Demerdash

Yaseen El-Demerdash

Personal information
Nationality	American
Born	(2003-09-12) September 12, 2003 Houston, Texas, U.S.
Height	6'2
Sport
Sport	Paralympic swimming
Disability	Poland syndrome
Disability class	S10, SB9, SM10
Medal record Men's paralympic swimming Representing the United States Parapan American Games 2023 Santiago 100 m backstroke S10 2023 Santiago 100 m freestyle S10 2023 Santiago 4 × 100 m freestyle relay 34 pts 2023 Santiago 50 m freestyle S10

Yaseen El-Demerdash (born September 12, 2003) is an American Professional Swimmer. He represented the United States at the 2024 Summer Paralympics.

Early life and education

El-Demerdash attended Blue Valley Southwest High School where was a high school All-American in 8 individual events, was named The Kansas City Star Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2021, The 2024 Crawford Johnson Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation scholar, and, having skipped a grade, graduated high school at 17. He is an alumnus of the University of Kansas.

Career

On August 1, 2021, El-Demerdash was named to his first US National Team after setting his first American Record in the LCM 200 breaststroke at the Jimi Flowers Classic at the OPTC in Colorado Springs, Colorado. This was his first Paralympic competition. He later joined the Resident Training Program at the OPTC to prepare for the 2024 Paralympic Games.

On September 25, 2023, El-Demerdash was named to team USA's roster to compete at the 2023 Parapan American Games. At the Parapan American Games he won a gold medal in the 100 meter backstroke, silver medals in 100 meter freestyle and 4 × 100 m freestyle relay and a bronze medal in the 50 meter freestyle S10 event.

On June 30, 2024, El-Demerdash was named to team USA's roster to compete at the 2024 Summer Paralympics.

Personal life

El-Demerdash was born to Dina Massoud and Aref El-Demerdash and has three siblings, Maryam, Yusuf and Adam. He was born with Poland syndrome, which stunted the development of his right hand and arm and left him without a right pectoral muscle.

In 2019, as a participant in FIRST Robotics, Yaseen El-Demerdash’s community team #6547 won the FIRST Tech Challenge World Championship in his birthplace, Houston, Texas. Inspired by that experience, he co-founded the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Heartland STEM Inc. the following year, which works to increase access to quality STEM education and resources in underserved communities.

In 2025, following his participation in the Paralympic Games, El-Demerdash founded a second 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Ripple Affect Inc. With a board of active and retired Olympians and Paralympians, Ripple Affect leverages the platforms and lived experiences of elite athletes to promote accessibility and sustainability in sports across the United States.