George Dunstan | |
---|---|
Born | George Colliver Dunstan 12 May 1938 |
Nationality | Australian |
Occupation | sports administrator |
Known for | development of Paralympic sport in Australia |
George Colliver Dunstan, AM (born 12 May 1938) is an Australian sports administrator who has played a leading role in the development of Paralympic sport in Australia particularly in terms of sport administration.
Dunstan was born in Sydney on 12 May 1938. [1] He trained as a physical educator. In 1975, he was appointed Head Physical Educator at the Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre, Royal Adelaide Hospital. [2] During his career, he has encouraged many disabled people, particularly those with spinal injuries, to become involved in sport. [2]
Dunstan was Australian Team Manager at the 1980 Arnhem Games and 1984 Stoke Mandeville Games. [2] At the 1988 Seoul Games, he was the Australian Team Manager of the Wheelchair Sports Section. [2] He was the Chef de Mission for the Australian Team at the 1992 Barcelona and 1996 Atlanta Games. [3] He was a Board Member of the Organising Committee for the 2000 Sydney Paralympics. [3]
Dunstan was Australian Team Manager at the 1977 and 1986 FESPIC Games. [2] From 1989 to 2002, he was the International Paralympic Committee South Pacific Representative on FESPIC. [4] He was Vice-President of the Sports Committee of FESPIC from 1984 to 2000. [4] He was the FESPIC 2006 Kuala Lumpur Games Liaison Committee Chairman from 2002 to 2006, and was awarded the FESPIC Order in the latter year. [4]
Dunstan has been involved in an administrative capacity with several Australian disability sport organisations. He was Technical Advisor at the 1st Australian Wheelchair Games held in Melbourne in 1985. [2] He was an Australian Paralympic Committee board member from 1992 to 1996. [2] [5] He has been a board member of the Australian Wheelchair Sports Federation and Wheelchair Sports Association of South Australia. [2]
Dunstan has received the following honours in recognition of his work for disability sport and sports administration:
Kurt Harry Fearnley, is an Australian wheelchair racer, who has won gold medals at the Paralympic Games and 'crawled' the Kokoda Track. He has a congenital disorder called sacral agenesis which prevented fetal development of certain parts of his lower spine and all of his sacrum. In Paralympic events he is classified in the T54 classification. He focuses on long and middle-distance wheelchair races, and has also won medals in sprint relays. He participated in the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016 Summer Paralympic Games, finishing his Paralympic Games career with thirteen medals. He won a gold and silver medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and was the Australian flag bearer at the closing ceremony.
Alix Louise Sauvage, OAM is an Australian paralympic wheelchair racer and leading coach.
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Paralympics Australia (PA) previously called the Australian Paralympic Committee (APC) (1998–2019) is the National Paralympic Committee in Australia for the Paralympic Games movement. It oversees the preparation and management of Australian teams that participate at the Summer Paralympics and the Winter Paralympics.
Australia competed at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Games in London, United Kingdom, from 29 August to 9 September 2012. The London Games were the biggest Games with 164 nations participating, 19 more than in the 2008 Beijing Paralympic. Australia has participated at every Summer Paralympic Games and hosted the 2000 Sydney Games. As such, the 2000 Sydney Games, regarded as one of the more successful Games, became a point-of-reference and an inspiration in the development of the 2012 London Games.
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Dr John MacDonald Falconar Grant, AO, OBE was an Australian neurosurgeon and disability sport administrator. He was President of the 2000 Sydney Paralympic Games Organising Committee. He played a leading role in the development of disability sport in Australia.
Robert McCullough OAM was a leading Australian sport administrator particularly in the area of disability sport. He was President of the Australian Paralympic Federation and the International Stoke Mandeville Wheelchair Sports Federation.
Barbara Elizabeth Worley, AM was an Australian sports administrator who played a leading role in the development of Paralympic sport in Australia particularly in terms of sport administration.
Kevin Wayne Bawden AM is an Australian Paralympics competitor in six sports and a leading disability sports administrator in Australia.
Keith Bremner was an Australian Paralympic Shooter, who participated in other sports at International Paralympic Games. He competed at four successive Summer Paralympics from 1984, FESPIC Games, International Stoke Mandeville Games, World Shooting Championships, Oceania and Korean Shooting Championships for the Disabled. He was Chairman and long-term member of the Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Association of New South Wales, and long-term member of Wheelchair Sports New South Wales.