The Wonderful Wilma Wong In, Around and Near Water

“Service is a noble cause with reward beyond recompense,” wrote Jamal Hill of Swim Up Hill Foundation in his action plan to supporters and volunteers.

“We’re here to swim,” he wrote about his flagship swimming program. “Our mission is to increase swim equity and end avoidable drownings in underserved, limited-resourced communities, prioritizing Black families through environmentally and culturally influenced swim education using the Swim Up Hill method.

Wilma Wong (@healingwithwilma) is a high performance coach to Olympic and Paralympic athletes, an always inquisitive biohacker, and a technologist extraordinaire. Hill was one of her athletes in Paris. She has mentored Hill for years.

Wong also helped American para swimmer Christie Raleigh-Crossley who raced 9 times (including preliminary heats and finals) at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. She won gold in 100m S9 backstroke, gold in the 100m S9 butterfly, silver in the 100m S9 freestyle, silver in the 50m S10 freestyle, and 6th in the 4 x 100m mixed medley relay.

Small in stature, but oozing in wisdom, curiosity, and insightfulness, Wong always goes the extra step – an extra mile – for her athletes. “I love being around people hungry to learn and humble enough to know we don’t know it all. We collaborate and share ways to improve.”

But Raleigh-Crossley has three young children, all who wanted to enjoy Paris and cheer on their mother at the Paralympics. By her nature and with her ingenuity, Wong took on an additional coaching role: as a nanny. From morning to night, while she juggled her coaching duties, she kept the active Raleigh-Crossley brood fed, rested, entertained, disciplined, and organized. Tirelessly and singularly, Won managed many roles in Paris: guide, protector, scheduler, cook…and coach.

For her work and unique cooperation, Wong was awarded the Order of Ikkos, a symbol of coaching excellence and an expression of heartfelt gratitude from podium-finishing athletes and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, presented to coaches, mentors, or other individual who have been instrumental in their success.

The Order of Ikkos is named after Ikkos of Tarentum, the first recorded Olympic coach in ancient Greece. His coaching led multiple Tarentine athletes to gold medals in the pentathlon, and his legacy is honored through this award.

Each medalist is allowed to present only one medal to a selected recipient. The medallion is often given to an influential coach, but the athlete is free to select the recipient of their choice.

Coach Wong stepped up in numerous roles in Paris…as she always does.