Australia at the Winter Paralympics

Last updated

Australia at the
Paralympics
Flag of Australia.svg
IPC code AUS
NPC Australian Paralympic Committee
Website www.paralympic.org.au
Medals
Gold
12
Silver
6
Bronze
14
Total
32
Summer appearances
Winter appearances
Australian at the 1988 Paralympics Xx0188 - 1988 winter paralympics - 3b - scans (12).jpg
Australian at the 1988 Paralympics

Australia has competed in every Winter Paralympics. In 1976, the first Games, Australia's sole competitor was Ron Finneran, but he was not an official entrant. [1] In 1980, Kyrra Grunnsund and Peter Rickards became the first official competitors, in alpine and cross-country skiing. [2] [3] The number of Australian athletes increased to three, five, five and six at the next four games, respectively, and all of the athletes were alpine skiers. The participation decreased to four in 1998 and climbed back up to six in 2002. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] Australia won its first Winter Paralympic medals in 1992, and has medalled at every games since then. [2] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] All of the medals have been won in alpine skiing. [9] [10] [11] [12]

Contents

Australia won four Winter Paralympic medals in 1992—one gold, a silver and two bronze. Michael Milton, an amputee alpine skier, won gold in slalom and silver in super-G. David Munk, a paraplegic sit-skier, won bronze in super-G. Michael Norton, a paraplegic sit-skier, won bronze in the downhill. [12] In 1994, Australia won nine medals, three gold, two silver and four bronze. [13] Milton won gold in the giant slalom, silver in slalom and bronze in downhill and super-G. Norton won gold in the slalom and super-G. James Patterson, a skier with cerebral palsy, [12] won silver in downhill and bronze in giant slalom. Munk won bronze in giant slalom. Different disabilities have separate events, which is why Patterson and Munk both won bronze in giant slalom. In 1998, two medals were won, both by Paterson: gold in downhill and bronze in slalom. [12]

In 2002, the medal haul was seven, consisting of six gold and one silver. [13] Milton made a clean sweep, winning gold in the downhill, super-G, giant slalom and slalom. [14] Bart Bunting, a vision-impaired skier guided by Nathan Chivers, [15] won gold in the downhill and super-G, and silver in the giant slalom. [14]

In 2006, Australia sent its first female Winter Paralympian, Emily Jansen, a below-knee amputee alpine skier. [16] James Millar, who was born without his right forearm, [17] competed in the cross-country and the biathlon, [17] becoming the first Australian to compete in an event outside alpine skiing. [2] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] Milton attended his last Paralympics. [18] A target of two medals was set, which took into account the consolidation of disability classes. [19] Australia met this target, with Milton winning silver in the downhill and Toby Kane winning bronze in super-G. [18]

At the 2010 Vancouver Games, Jessica Gallagher became the first female Australian Paralympian to win a medal with a bronze medal in the Women's Vision-Impaired Slalom event. [20]

Summary

[21]

GamesGoldSilverBronzeTotalRankCompetitorsOfficialsFlag Bearer OpeningFlag Bearer Closing
1980 Geilo 0000-2
1984 Innsbruck 0000-3
1988 Innsbruck 0000-5
1992 Tignes-Albertville 1124125
1994 Lillehammer 324996
1998 Nagano 1012164 James Patterson
2002 Salt Lake City 610787 Michael Milton Bart Bunting
2006 Turin 01121310 Michael Milton Toby Kane
2010 Vancouver 01341612 Toby Kane Cameron Rahles-Rahbula
2014 Sochi 00221911 Cameron Rahles-Rahbula Ben Tudhope
2018 Pyeongchang 10341515 Joany Badenhorst Melissa Perrine
2022 Beijing 0011
Total1261735

Australian Winter Paralympic medalists 1976–2014

Updated after 2014 Games

AthleteGoldSilverBronzeTotal
Michael Milton 63211
Bart Bunting/Nathan Chivers (Guide)2103
Michael Norton 2013
James Patterson 1124
Marty Mayberry 0101
David Munk 0022
Cameron Rahles-Rahbula 0022
Toby Kane 0022
Jessica Gallagher 0022

Training facility

The primary location for Australian-based training for the Winter Paralympians is in the Snowy Mountains at Thredbo and Perisher. There is a facility called the Jindabyne Winter Academy of Sport where the athletes train. When they are actively training, they may be skiing by 6am and doing conditioning in other sports during the afternoon. [22]

Athlete support

In 1993, Michael Milton was the first Winter Paralympian to receive a scholarship from the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS). [23] In 2001, the AIS and Australian Paralympic Committee formally established a skiing program for athletes with a disability. [24] All Australian Winter Paralympic Games medals have been won by AIS scholarship holders. [25] AIS athletes receive access to training camps, support for international training and competition, strength and conditioning, sports medicine and psychology services. [26] New South Wales Institute of Sport [27] and the Victorian Institute of Sport [28] offer assistance to Paralympic alpine skiers. The Australian Paralympic Committee supports three Winter Paralympic disciplines - alpine skiing, cross-country skiing and para-snowboard through the delivery of the Paralympic Preparation Program (PPP). [29]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Paralympic Games History - Winter" Archived 5 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine , Australian Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  3. ↑ "2010 Vancouver Games Media Guide" (PDF). Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  5. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  6. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  7. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  8. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  10. 1 2 3 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  11. 1 2 "Athlete Search Results". International Paralympic Committee . Retrieved 21 July 2010.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Andrews, p. 469.
  13. 1 2 "Past Games, Winter". Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 12 September 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  14. 1 2 "2002 Salt Lake City Paralympic Games Australian Medalists" (PDF). Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 September 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  15. ↑ "Bart Bunting". Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 13 September 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  16. ↑ "Emily Jansen". Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 13 September 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  17. 1 2 "James Millar". Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original on 13 September 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  18. 1 2 "2006 Torino Paralympic Games Australian Medalists" (PDF). Australian Paralympic Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 September 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  19. ↑ "Aussie Paralympians expect fewer medals". Sydney Morning Herald. 8 March 2006. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
  20. ↑ "Jessica Gallagher". Australian Paralympic Committee website. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  21. ↑ "Australia Winter Paralympic Games History". Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
  22. ↑ Nihil, G. (2006). Australian Institute of Sport : celebrating excellence. Focus Publishing. p. 87. ISBN   1-921156-16-3.
  23. ↑ Excellence : the Australian Institute of Sport. Canberra: Australian Sports Commission. 2002. ISBN   174013060X.
  24. ↑ Annual Report 2000/2001 (PDF). Canberra: Australian Sports Commission. 2001. p. 48. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  25. ↑ "AIS Roll of Honour for the Winter Olympics and Paralympics". Australian Sports Commission website. Archived from the original on 5 May 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  26. ↑ "Paralympic alpine skiing". Australian Sports Commission website. Archived from the original on 5 October 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  27. ↑ "Athletes with Disabilities". New South Wales Institute of Sport website. Archived from the original on 3 April 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  28. ↑ "Elite Athletes with a Disability". Victorian Institute of Sport Website. Archived from the original on 10 April 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  29. ↑ "Winter Sports". Australian Paralympic Committee Website. Archived from the original on 1 December 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
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