The British Paralympic Association (BPA) have announced that 41 athletes have been added to the line-up for track and field in Rio as a number of Paralympic, World and European medallists were selected to ParalympicsGB.
Among the 21 returning Paralympians are London 2012 gold medallist Jonnie Peacock, Beijing and London Paralympic medallist Libby Clegg, and Stephen Miller, the most experienced athlete named today set to compete at his sixth consecutive Paralympic Games.
Libby Clegg will compete at her third Games in Rio, and her first with guide Chris Clarke. Crowned Commonwealth Champion in 2014, Libby had to miss a number of major competitions this cycle through illness and injury. She was reclassified as a T11 sprinter earlier this year and went on to set a world record in the T11 200m at Saturday’s IPC Athletics Grand Prix Final, the same venue where she won silver in 2012.
Clegg said: “I’m delighted to be selected for my third Paralympic Games. It’s been a whirlwind of a journey since London after a number of injuries but it’s great to come through the other side and be a part of a really strong ParalympicsGB team heading out to Rio.
“Having changed classification recently, Saturday’s performance in London was beyond our wildest expectations. However, we are now focused to getting amongst the medals and we can’t wait to get going.”
Clarke added: “This is a totally new experience for me and a complete learning curve. To be able to go to a major Games is a dream come true and we are going into Rio with a lot of confidence.”
New faces include former serviceman David Henson who took up sport following his rehabilitation from injury in Afghanistan in 2011, T44 sprinter Laura Sugar, who was talent-spotted at a ParalympicsGB Sports Fest at the end of 2012 and teenager Kare Adenegan who completed GB’s podium domination in the T34 800m with a bronze medal at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha.
Speaking today, Henson said:
“It’s always an honour to represent your country and I’m so proud that I will be making my Paralympic debut in Rio. This is the real pinnacle of our sport and a huge amount of hard work has gone on behind the scenes day in and day out to make this happen. I can’t wait to go out and compete in Brazil and give a lifetime-best performance on the track.”
Adenegan, the youngest track and field athlete to be selected today, added:
“I loved watching the London 2012 Paralympics and I can’t quite believe that four years later I’m part of the team! It is really exciting and I’m so ready to go out there and race, but I’m just going to focus on my performance and make it the best it can be.”
Penny Briscoe MBE, Chef de Mission for ParalympicsGB, said:
“This is a formidable line-up and I’m really excited to welcome these athletes to the team today. With a mix of experienced names and new faces, we can look forward to some really exciting performances in Rio and more memorable moments from our track and field athletes.
“This is set to be the most competitive Paralympics ever but I know there is serious medal potential here and it pays testament to the hard work of Paula Dunn and her team at British Athletics. I’d like to wish the athletes all the very best with their final preparations for the Games.”
Paula Dunn, Team Leader and British Athletics’ Paralympic Head Coach, said:
“I’m so proud of all the athletes selected today, and of the incredibly strong team of track and field athletes that we are taking to compete in Rio in just a few weeks’ time. There is some incredible talent here and the athletes have put everything into their training to ensure we are a world class team. We will be a force to be reckoned with once competition begins.”
Thirteen athletes, all gold or silver medallists at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships were selected in June of this year, including Hannah Cockroft, David Weir and Richard Whitehead, taking the total number of track and field athletes to 54.
Today’s announcement takes the number of selected athletes to 256 from 19 sports.
Selected athletes are:
Kare Adenegan
Home town: Coventry
Main training base: Warwick University
Graeme Ballard
Home town: Chorley
Main training base: Robin Park Wigan
Olivia Breen
Home town: Liphook
Main training base: Lee Valley London
Mickey Bushell
Home town: Telford
Main training base: Telford / London
Richard Chiassaro
Home town: Harlow
Main training base: Mark Hall Sports Centre, Harlow
Chris Clarke (guide to Libby Clegg)
Home town: Milton Keynes
Main training base: Loughborough
Libby Clegg (guided by Chris Clarke)
Home town: Newcastleton / Bollington
Main training base: Loughborough
Kadeena Cox
Home town: Leeds
Main training base: Manchester
Vanessa Daobry
Home town: Haringey, London
Main training base: Lee Valley Athletics Centre
Kyron Duke
Home town: Cwmbran
Main training base: Welsh Institute of Sport / Uwic Cyncoed
Sabrina Fortune
Home town: Mold
Main training base: Wrexham / Deeside
Toby Gold
Home town: Thames Ditton
Main training base: Kingsmeadow Athletics Track
Dan Greaves
Home town: Loughborough
Main training base: Loughborough
Kylie Grimes
Home town: Farnham
Main training base: Lee Valley Athletics Centre
David Henson
Home town: Southampton
Main training base: Mountbatten Centre, Portsmouth
Claire Harvey
Home town: Gillingham
Main training base: Ashford, Kent
Jordan Howe
Home town: Cardiff
Main training base: Loughborough University
Abbie Hunnisett
Home town: East Grinstead
Main training base: The Welsh Institute of Sport
Mo Jomni
Home town: London
Main training base: Kingston
Jade Jones
Home town: Middlesbrough
Main training base: Middlesbrough
Rhys Jones
Home town: Tonypandy
Main training base: Cardiff
Sophie Kamlish
Home town: Bath
Main training base: University of Bath
Samantha Kinghorn
Home town: Gordon
Main training base: Glasgow
Simon Lawson
Home town: Maryport
Main training base: Maryport / Carlisle
Nathan Maguire
Home town: Chester
Main training base: Liverpool
Polly Maton
Home town: Devizes
Main training base: Bath
Stephen Miller
Home town: Cramlington
Main training base: Gateshead
Steven Morris
Home town: Cardiff
Main training base: UWIC Cardiff
Holly Neill
Home town: Dorchester
Main training base: Yeovil College
Stephen Osborne
Home town: Longfield
Main training base: Lee Valley Athletics Centre
Jonnie Peacock
Home town: St Ives, Cambridgeshire
Main training base: Loughborough
Gemma Prescott
Home town: Warrington
Main training base: Basildon Sporting Village
Derek Rae
Home town: Kirkcaldy
Main training base: St. Andrews
Stef Reid
Home town: Auckland, New Zealand
Main training base: Loughborough University
Julie Rogers
Home town: Bedford
Main training base: Bedford International Athletics Stadium
Ben Rowlings
Home town: Newport, Shropshire
Main training base: Coventry
Sam Ruddock
Home town: Rugby / Grantham
Main training base: Loughborough
Andrew Small
Home town:
Main training base:
Laura Sugar
Home town: Cambridge
Main training base: Loughborough
Isaac Towers
Home town: Garstang
Main training base: Liverpool
Kieran Tscherniawsky
Home town: Sleaford
Main training base: Loughborough
