Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nationality | British | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Bristol, England | 3 January 1986|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Country | England, Great Britain | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Athletics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event(s) | Wheelchair rugby Discus Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Club | Disability Sport Wales, Cardiff | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coached by | Anthony Hughes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Paralympic finals | 2008, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal best(s) | Discus: 7.09m Club: 14.60m | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
|
Josie Rachel Pearson MBE (born 3 January 1986) is a Paralympian wheelchair rugby player and athlete from England. Pearson represented Great Britain in the 2008 Summer Paralympics, becoming the first women to compete in wheelchair rugby for her country at the Paralympics. After competing as a sprint athlete, Pearson switched to throwing events and qualified for the 2012 Summer Paralympics in both discus and club throw in the F51 class, eventually taking the gold in discus with a world record distance.
Pearson was born in Bristol in 1986 to Philip and Sue. The younger of two daughters, Pearson grew up in the village of Brilley, Herefordshire. [1] She later moved to Hay-on-Wye on the Welsh border, where her mother runs a fashion and lifestyle shop with Josie's older sister Freya (b. 1977). [2] A keen show jumper, she was involved in a head-on car collision near Goytre in Wales in May 2003. [2] The accident, in which her boyfriend died, resulted in Pearson breaking two bones in her neck and permanent spinal damage. [2] Her legs were paralysed but she retained some use of her arms. [2]
While Pearson at first wished to continue riding, her injuries made that course difficult. She continued her sporting endeavours and along with appearing in a dressage exhibition in 2005, she also trained as a wheelchair racer in 100, 200 and 400m events. [3] She began wheelchair rugby while studying neuroscience at Cardiff University, and while there she contacted the local club, Cardiff Pirates. Accepted into the team, she decided to leave university after a year to concentrate on making the Paralympic squad, a goal she had followed since watching the Athens Games. [4] In November 2006 she was selected to represent Great Britain at the 2008 Summer Paralympics. The team finished just outside the medals, after losing to Canada in the bronze medal decider. [5]
In 2011 at the IPC Athletics World Championships in New Zealand she finished 5th in both the 100m and 800m events and was disqualified in both the 200m and 400m races. [6] Frustrated by her performance, Pearson decided to leave wheelchair racing and switched to throwing events. [1] She took up discus and the club throw, and in 2011 came first in the F51 discus in the Czech Open with a distance of 4.42 and second in the F51 club throw, recording 8.81m. [6] In 2012, she improved on her personal bests, throwing 12.81m in the club and a world record of 6.66m in the F51 discus. [7] These results were enough to qualify for the 2012 Summer Paralympics in both events. [8]
On 7 September 2012, Pearson won gold at the 2012 Paralympic Games, breaking the F51 discus world record in the process. [9] As part of the Olympic and Paralympic home-nation celebrations, the Royal Mail issued a stamp of each of the gold winning medalists, as well as painting a post-box in their home town gold. Pearson chose Hay-on-Wye as the location for her golden post-box. [10] Pearson was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to athletics. [11]
In 2013 Pearson qualified for the discus and club throw as part of the British team for the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon, France. In the discus Pearson threw a distance of 7.09m, setting a new world record and securing the gold medal. [12] Four days later she recorded a personal best in the club throw, and secured the bronze medal.
In 2014, Pearson won silver in the club throw at the IPC European Championships in a GB & NI one, two, three (Jo Butterfield, Josie Pearson, Gemma Prescott).
After a restructuring to the Paralympic programme in the run-up to the 2016 Summer Paralympics, in April 2015 it was announced that Pearson had joined British Cycling's Paralympic Podium Programme in order to compete in handcycling. [13]
Stephen James Miller MBE is a British athlete who competes in the fields of Paralympic club and discus throwing. He has won three gold, one silver, and one bronze medal in the F32/51 club throw at the Paralympics. In Paralympic F32/51 discus he won one bronze medal.
The men's discus throw at the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships was held at the QEII Stadium from 22 to 28 January.
Raoua Tlili is a Paralympian athlete from Tunisia competing mainly in category F41 shot put and discus events and is a multi gold medalist at the Paralympics.
Katherine Proudfoot is a cerebral palsy athlete from Australia competing mainly in throwing events. She competed in the F36 classification at the 2008, 2012 and the 2016 Summer Paralympics, winning medals at each Game. Following a medical review request in early 2017, she now competes in seated throws in the F32 classification. At the 2017 Australian Athletics Championships she threw 7.04m in the Women's Shot Put Secured event, bettering the Women's F32 shot put world record mark of 6.55m.
Ntombizanele Situ, better known as Zanele Situ, was a South African Paralympian athlete competing mainly in category F54 throwing events. Specialising in the javelin throw, Situ was a two-time gold medalist at both the Paralympics and the IPC Athletics World Championships and was the first female South African black athlete to win a Paralympic gold medal.
Brydee Moore is an Australian athlete with cerebral palsy that competes in the shot put, discus and javelin. She won a silver medal at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships. She represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics in athletics.
Hollie Beth Arnold, is a British parasport athlete competing in category F46 javelin. Although born in Grimsby, she now lives and trains in Loughborough. She represents Wales in the Commonwealth Games.
Aled Siôn Davies is a Welsh Paralympian athlete competing mainly in category F42 throwing events. In 2012 he became the world record holder of the F42 shot put and in the 2012 Summer Paralympics he took the bronze medal in shot put and gold in the discus. In 2013 Davies took the World Championship gold in both the shot put and discus in Lyon. He won double gold in his home country at the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships in the shot put and discus. This followed his silver medal in the F42-44 discus from the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow where he represented Wales. Davies also took part in the Channel 4 TV series Celebrity SAS: Who dares wins
Kyron Duke is a Welsh powerlifter and Paralympian track and field athlete competing in category F41 throwing events. Duke has represented Wales in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in powerlifting. In 2012 he qualified for the 2012 Summer Paralympics in javelin and shot put.
Beverley Jones is a Paralympian from Wales competing in category F37 throwing events. Jones won a bronze medal at the 2006 Commonwealth Games as an EAD in the 100m sprint. Jones has qualified for four Summer Paralympics from 2000 to 2012 finishing fourth twice, in the sprint in 2000 at Sydney and in the shot put at Athens in 2004.
Daniel West is a British Paralympian track and field athlete competing mainly in category F34 throwing events. He has represented Great Britain in four Paralympic Games and has qualified for the team for a fifth time at the 2012 Summer Paralympics. West has two bronze Paralympic medals and one silver, all in the shot put, and has medalled in the IPC World Championships and the Commonwealth Games.
Kieran Tscherniawsky is a Paralympian athlete from England competing mainly in category F33 discus. In 2011, he became the World Junior Champion in the discus and qualified for the Great Britain team at the 2012 Summer Paralympics. He was a repeat member of the team at the 2016 Summer Paralympics.
Gemma Louise Prescott is a British Paralympian track and field athlete competing in F32 throwing events. Prescott represented England in the 2010 Commonwealth Games, taking the bronze medal in the SP shot put. She has represented the Great Britain team twice in the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing and the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London.
The 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships was the biggest track and field competition for athletes with a disability since the 2012 Summer Paralympics. It was held in Lyon, France, and lasted from 20 to 28 July. Around 1,100 athletes competed, from 94 different countries. The event was held in the Stade du Rhône located at the Parc de Parilly in Vénissieux, in Lyon Metropolis.
Mohamed Zemzemi is a Paralympian athlete from Tunisia competing mainly in category F51.
The 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe, plus Azerbaijan and Israel. It was held in Swansea, Wales and lasted from 18 to 23 August. The competition was staged at Swansea University Stadium. Approximately 550 athletes from 37 countries attended the games.
Joanna Butterfield, is a British parasport athlete who competes in the F51 club and discus throw. In 2014 Butterfield set a European record in the club while winning the event at the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships. The following year she added the World title at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Qatar, securing a place at the 2016 Paralympic Games. She went on to set a World record in the Club throw event while winning Gold at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio. In 2023 She switched sport to Wheelchair Curling.
Robert Jachimowicz is a Paralympian athlete from Poland competing in category F53 throwing events. He has competed at one Summer Paralympics, in Sydney 2000 and at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha he won the silver medal in the discus throw.
Catherine O'Neill born 4 December 1975) is a former Paralympian athlete from Ireland who competed mainly in category F51 track and field events.
Zoia Ovsii is a Ukrainian Paralympic athlete competing in F51-classification throwing events. She won the gold medal in the women's club throw F51 event at the 2020 Summer Paralympics held in Tokyo, Japan. She also won the bronze medal in the women's discus throw F53 event. She won two medals at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.