Inbal Pezaro

Inbal Pezaro was born in 1987 in Yizre'el

Pezaro was born on 26 March 1987 and grew up on Kibbutz Yizre'el. At birth she had a complication in blood vessels of her spinal cord, which left her lower limbs paralyzed. At age 5 she began training in swimming at the ILAN center in Haifa.

She later began competing in national events, and from age 12 she competed internationally. Although exempt from military service, she volunteered for the IDF. She was certified as a swimming instructor at the Wingate Institute and served in that role.

Pezaro won a gold medal in the 100 meter breaststroke at the 2002 world championship in Mar del Plata. She competed at the Paralympics in Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2016, winning medals at each. In Beijing she won 3 silver medals, and she also won world championship gold in 2006 and 2010.

She lit a torch at the national Independence Day ceremony in 2002. The Israeli Association for Disabled Sports named her Sportswoman of the Year in 2007 and 2012. In July 2020 she announced her retirement from competitive swimming.