Sam Harding (athlete)

Sam Harding

2012 Australian Paralympic Team portrait of Harding
Personal information
Nationality  Australia
Born (1991-05-11) 11 May 1991
Perth
Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Sport
Club Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra
Medal record
Representing  Australia
Men's Track and Field
Australian Athletics Championships -
2013 Sydney Men's 800m Ambulant
2014 Melbourne Men's 400m Ambulant
IPC Athletics Grand Prix -
2015 Brisbane Men's 400m Ambulant

Sam Harding is an Australian Paralympic athlete . His classification is T13 and competes in 400m and the 800m events.[1] Harding represented Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics.[1]

Personal

Harding was born in Perth on 11 May 1991.[2] He has a visual impairment called Choroideremia, which is a hereditary condition and has resulted in him losing most of his peripheral vision.[1] Harding attended Wesley College in Perth [1] where he competed in rowing and completed a course in massage therapy.[3]

Sporting career

Harding began his sporting career as a tandem cyclist competing for Western Australia.[3] He then switched to running after winning three gold medals, in the 400m, 800m and 1500m, at the 2009 Paralympic Youth Games in Melbourne.[3] After this success, Harding was recognised by the Australian Paralympic Committee's Paralympic Talent Search Program and fast-tracked into a talent development camp held in Canberra.[4]

Between 2010 and 2012, Harding received a dAIS scholarship[5] and moved to the Australian Institute of Sport to train.[1]

man in profile
Paralympic athlete Sam Harding at the AIS Track and Field

In 2010, Harding competed in the 2010 national championships where he won bronze in the 800m.[3] He was then selected to represent Australia at the 2011 International Paralympic Committee Athletics World Championships, in Christchurch, where he achieved a personal best[1] and German Nationals where he finished fifth in both 800m events.[3]

Harding was selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympic Games.[2] However, he fell ill prior to his event, the T13 800m, and was unable to compete.[6]

He competed at the 91st and 92nd Australian Athletics Championships where he won silver in the men's 800m and 400m respectively.[7][8]

In 2015, Harding won silver in the Men's 400m at the 2015 IPC Athletics Grand Prix held in Brisbane.[9]

Harding is aiming to compete at the 2016 Summer Paralympics held in Rio de Janeiro.[10]

He is coached by Iryna Dvoskina at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra who he has described, along with Australian Paralympians Evan O'Hanlon and Heath Francis, as being influential to his sporting career.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "IPC Biography". IPC. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Sam HARDING (WA)". Australian Athletics Historical Results. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sam Harding". APC. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  4. ↑ "The Bulletin" (PDF). Statewide Vision Resource Centre. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  5. ↑ "dAIS Athlete Grant". AIS - Grant Funding Report. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  6. ↑ "WAIS Annual Report" (PDF). The Western Australian Institute of Sport. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  7. ↑ "91st Aust Athletics Champs". Athletics Australia. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  8. ↑ "92nd Australian AthleticsChampionships" (PDF). Athletics Australia. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  9. ↑ "QLD Track Classic & IPC Grand Prix". QLD Athletics. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  10. ↑ "A Canberra start for record holders Alex Rowe & Evan O'Hanlon". The Runner's Tribe. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
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