Bulkley Valley Paralympian Jonathan Dieleman announced his retirement Monday morning (Jan 27).
The paralympic swimmer made the announcement on social media early in the morning.
Dieleman said it was a long and hard decision to make.
“It ultimately came down to what was best for my mental health and financial situation. I can honestly say that I have felt much better over the last couple of months of not worrying about how my performance was going to be this spring,” he said.
Dieleman recently was hoping to make it on the podium for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic games. In December, he started a GoFundMe page for the games which raised $470.
Dieleman also reflected on his time competing at the 2016 Rio Paralympic games and the 2015 Toronto Parapan American Game.
“I never would have thought in my life that I would’ve made it to the Paralympic Games and Rio 2016 was one of the coolest experiences I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” he said.
His plan now is to spend more time at home and to travel with his girlfriend.
Dieleman won 5th in the 50m breaststroke at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games and won 2nd in the 50m breaststroke in the 2015 Toronto Parapan American Games.