With the dust now settled on the 2024 Paris Olympic Games after the closing ceremony, the attention of the sporting world now turns to the Paralympic Games. Set to commence on August 29th in the French capital, Great Britain will soon be hunting for gold medals in wheelchair rugby.
Team GB are the reigning world champions from the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics, and are amongst the favourites for a place upon the Parisian podium. The wheelchair rugby action commences on the first day of the Games, with the sport formerly known as ‘murder-ball’ amongst the first medal contentions for Great Britain & Northern Ireland.
GBWR head coach Paul Shaw has made the difficult decision of selecting his 12-player squad, with the preparations all but finalised ahead of the flight to France. This past six months has seen Team GB cut their teeth against top opposition, beginning in Denmark’s Musholm Cup competition. The annual Quad Nations tournament then in Cardiff, before Shaw’s men wrapped up their readiness at the Canada Cup back in June.
Due to the ripple effect caused by the Covid Pandemic, GBWR only had three years to prepare for the 2024 Paris Paralympics as the Tokyo games were a year delayed. Now the first match of the tournament draws ever closer, as Great Britain take on Australia to commence the action in Pool B, before additional group stage matches against Denmark and the reigning European champions France. On the opposite side of the bracket sits underdogs Germany, Quad Nations rivals Japan, and the North American rivals of Canada and the USA.
So, with all the Paralympic wheelchair rugby action set to get underway at the end of August, lets have a look at who will be flying the Union Jack in the French capital. Here is a recap of the 12-player squad, selected for Great Britain’s Wheelchair Rugby team that is heading out to Paris later this month.
PARALYMPIC TEAM GB WHEELCHAIR RUGBY SQUAD
Information, images and bios courtesy of Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby
Jonathan Coggan MBE (London Wheelchair Rugby Club)
Jonny was injured in a car crash in 2000, where he suffered a spinal injury. A keen footballer, he watched the Sydney Olympics from his bed and, during his rehab at Stoke Mandeville, he was introduced to a number of Paralympic sports and chose wheelchair rugby. Jonny has played club rugby since 2001 and was invited to go on a World Rugby Tour with the GB development squad in 2002.
He gained his first full international cap in Athens in 2004 and, since then, has been a constant fixture in the GB squad. Now regarded as one of the most senior members of the team, Jonny is a role model within the squad and is also recognised as one of the best in the world in his classification. Paris will be Coggan’s sixth Paralympic games, an incredible record which is the best longevity of the current squad.
PREVIOUS PARALYMPICS: 5 (Athens 2004 – 4th, Beijing 2008 – 4th, London 2012 – 5th, Rio 2016 – 5th, Tokyo 2021 – 1st)
WHEELCHAIR RUGBY HONOURS: 5x European Championships (2005, 2007, 2015, 2017, 2019), 2016 Rio Paralympics Test Event Winners, 2021 Quad Nations Winner, Tokyo 2021 Paralympics Gold Medal,
Nick Cummins MBE (Leicester Tigers Wheelchair Rugby Club)
Nick enjoyed watching the Beijing Paralympics, and went on to try wheelchair basketball before finding his calling in rugby. He started playing in the Great Britain development team aged 24 and was invited to the GB squad in 2014, making his first debut at the BT World Wheelchair Rugby Championships in 2015.
Nick also competed at the Rio Test Event in 2016 Nick recently completed a PhD in History at Leicester University. His disability is a result of contracting meningitis, and Cummins is proudly supported by the Boost Charitable Trust, which backs disadvantaged athletes.
PREVIOUS PARALYMPICS: 1 (Tokyo 2021 – 1st)
WHEELCHAIR RUGBY HONOURS: 2016 Rio Paralympics Test Event Winners, 3x European Championship Winner (2015, 2017, 2019), 2021 Quad Nations Winner, Tokyo 2021 Paralympics Gold Medal
Kieran Flynn (Leicester Tigers Wheelchair Rugby Club)
Kieran was a talented rugby player, playing centre for his local team Crewe and Nantwich. Following a tackle during a match in 2013, he sustained a spinal injury. After several months of rehab in hospital, Kieran returned to university to complete his degree in law.
His love for sport remained strong and he was keen to get back to be active so joined his local wheelchair rugby team RGC, after a year there he moved to Leicester Tigers. Kieran quickly caught the attention of the GB Talent coach and in 2018 was invited onto the GB Talent pathway. His debut for GB was at the European Championships in Paris in 2022, where he was part of the team that won a silver medal.
PREVIOUS PARALYMPICS: 0 (Debut Paris 2024)
WHEELCHAIR RUGBY HONOURS: 2x European Championship Runner-Up (2022 & 2023), 2022 Quad Nations Runner-Up
Dan Kellett (West Coast Wheelchair Rugby Club)
Dan’s active lifestyle growing up included a passion for motocross. In 2012, his life changed significantly when he suffered a spinal injury in an accident at work. It was during his rehabilitation that he discovered wheelchair rugby and was immediately drawn to the contact and pace of the game. Dan’s love for the sport grew, and he began to excel as a player. The game provided him with a new outlet for his competitive nature.
Following the 2016 Rio Paralympics, Dan was invited onto the GB talent pathway, becoming part of the GB long squad in 2019. He made his international debut at the European Championships in Paris in 2022, where he was part the team who won silver.
PREVIOUS PARALYMPICS: 0 (Debut Paris 2024)
WHEELCHAIR RUGBY HONOURS: 2x European Championship Runner-Up (2022 & 2023)