DIAMOND Beach athlete and Paralympic champion James Turner has been named the Paralympic Rookie of the Year at the Australian Paralympic Awards in Sydney last night (Thursday, December 8).
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Also nominated for the Male Paralympian of the Year award, which was won by wheelchair tennis golden boy Dylan Alcott, Turner exceeded all expectations at his first Paralympic Games when he surged to Paralympic gold in the 800m T36 event for athletes with neurological conditions.
With a time of 2:02.39, 20-year-old Turner blew away his rivals on the final night of athletics competition, leading dual 800m world champion Paul Blake by 7.26 seconds and shaving nearly three seconds off the world record.
“I think I can speak for the whole of Australia when I say that James’ performance in the 800m was one of the most memorable of the Australian Paralympic team’s Rio campaign,’’ Australian Paralympic Committee (APC) chief executive, Lynne Anderson said.
“His determination to succeed, even with an unassailable lead, was incredibly inspiring and exciting to watch.
“With a perfect Paralympic Games debut, it only makes sense that James be named rookie of the year.”