Para swimmer Elena Krawzow has made history by becoming the first female Paralympian to make the cover of Playboy Magazine after making her debut in the German edition of the publication.
The German, who specializes in breaststroke and freestyle, is a two-time Paralympian.
Krawzow won silver in the women’s 100 meters breaststroke SB13 at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London, before falling just short of the podium at Rio 2016.
She is classified as visually impaired due to Stargardt disease, a genetic eye disorder.
“Yes it’s true, I am the first female Paralympic athlete on the Playboy cover,” Krawzow, who has three percent vision, wrote on Instagram.
“I couldn’t turn down this possibility and I am very grateful for the request from @playboygermany.
“With the shoot, I want to set an example for more tolerance in society – so that people with a disability can create anything and not hide, even if you are not like most, because not every disability is seen at first glance.
“Diversity is part of society and tolerance helps us all.”
Although she is the first Paralympic athlete to feature in the magazine, she is not the first swimmer to make the front page.
Other swimmers to have featured in Playboy include three-time Olympic champion Katinka Hosszú in Playboy Hungary, 2012 Olympian Angela Maurer for Playboy Germany and seven-time Olympic medallist Amanda Beard, who appeared in the main American edition of the magazine in 2007.
Olympic US silver medallist Haley Cope also appeared in 2004, while Poland’s Luiza Hryniewicz, a 2005 European junior champion was featured in the magazine in 2011.
Playboy has acted like an adult men’s leisure and entertainment magazine since 1953.
Krawzow hopes to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, scheduled to take place from August 24 to September 5, 2021.
The Games were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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