HALL OF FAME
Graeme Ballard
Cerebral Palsy Sport is delighted to announce that Graeme Ballard has been inducted into the Cerebral Palsy Sport Hall of Fame 2018 at the 2018 Sports Awards held on Word CP Day for his incredible achievements in para athletics and services to the charity.
It is fitting in the year where Graeme hung up his competitive spikes after 14 years of international para athletics, that we honour him with the Hall of Fame award.
Read more of Graeme’s incredible athletics career below. After taking up athletics at the age of 19 through a Cerebral Palsy Sport athletics event, Graeme’s para athletics career has gone from strength to strength.
Graeme first ran the Cerebral Palsy Sport nationals in September 1999 and has been a member of CP since then. He competed at CPISRA games in 2001 and gained 3 medals – 2 individual medals and 1 relay.
His roll of achievements are recorded as:
- 2002 World Championships in Lille 1 Bronze medal
- 2003 European Championships in Assen 2 silver and 1 bronze
- 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens – won 1 bronze
- 2005 Combined World & European Championships in Espoo – won 2 Gold medals and 1 recognised for World and 1 for European
- 2006 World Championships in Assen – won 1 Silver
- 2012 European Championships in Holland – won 1 silver 1 bronze
- 2012 Broke the world record 11.98 and won Paralympics Silver medal
- 2013 World Championships – won 1 Bronze
- 2014 European Championships in Swansea – 2 Silvers
- 2016 European Championships in Grossetto 2 silver
Although Graeme missed out on medals in 2008 and 2016 he was still a member of the British Para Athletics team and also a member of the team at the World Championships in Christchurch, Doho and London where he came in 4th at all three competitions only just missing out on the medals.
After missing out on the medals in Doha at the worlds in 2015, the Chorley-based athlete won double silver at the Europeans in June 2016. Now coached by Trevor Painter and training in the same group as Olympian Jenny Meadows, Ballard hope for more success at his fourth Paralympic Games. In July 2016 Graeme was named as part of the Great Britain team for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Sadly the podium was not to be in Rio for Graeme placing 5th in the Paralympic 100m final.
In 2017 Graeme came back storming to a silver in the T36 100m at the World Para Athletics Championships in London and also took silver in the 200m.
In August 2018 Graeme won an incredible Gold medal at the World Para Athletics European Championships in Berlin for the T36 100m with a season’s best time of 12.32 seconds seeing him ease to the line clear of the rest of the field. A incredible achievement for Graeme!
Graeme also capped off 14 years of international competition with a bronze medal in the men’s T36 200m before announcing that he was retiring from international athletics.
Graeme spoke of his pride of receiving this honour. He said: “It is a great honour and a privilege to be nominated into the Hall of Fame. I hope that I can do justice to the role and look forward to seeing everyone at weekend.”
Graeme Ballard
Cerebral Palsy Sport is delighted to announce that Graeme Ballard has been inducted into the Cerebral Palsy Sport Hall of Fame 2018 at the 2018 Sports Awards held on Word CP Day for his incredible achievements in para athletics and services to the charity.
It is fitting in the year where Graeme hung up his competitive spikes after 14 years of international para athletics, that we honour him with the Hall of Fame award.
Read more of Graeme’s incredible athletics career below. After taking up athletics at the age of 19 through a Cerebral Palsy Sport athletics event, Graeme’s para athletics career has gone from strength to strength.
Graeme first ran the Cerebral Palsy Sport nationals in September 1999 and has been a member of CP since then. He competed at CPISRA games in 2001 and gained 3 medals – 2 individual medals and 1 relay.
His roll of achievements are recorded as:
- 2002 World Championships in Lille 1 Bronze medal
- 2003 European Championships in Assen 2 silver and 1 bronze
- 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens – won 1 bronze
- 2005 Combined World & European Championships in Espoo – won 2 Gold medals and 1 recognised for World and 1 for European
- 2006 World Championships in Assen – won 1 Silver
- 2012 European Championships in Holland – won 1 silver 1 bronze
- 2012 Broke the world record 11.98 and won Paralympics Silver medal
- 2013 World Championships – won 1 Bronze
- 2014 European Championships in Swansea – 2 Silvers
- 2016 European Championships in Grossetto 2 silver
Although Graeme missed out on medals in 2008 and 2016 he was still a member of the British Para Athletics team and also a member of the team at the World Championships in Christchurch, Doho and London where he came in 4th at all three competitions only just missing out on the medals.
After missing out on the medals in Doha at the worlds in 2015, the Chorley-based athlete won double silver at the Europeans in June 2016. Now coached by Trevor Painter and training in the same group as Olympian Jenny Meadows, Ballard hope for more success at his fourth Paralympic Games. In July 2016 Graeme was named as part of the Great Britain team for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Sadly the podium was not to be in Rio for Graeme placing 5th in the Paralympic 100m final.
In 2017 Graeme came back storming to a silver in the T36 100m at the World Para Athletics Championships in London and also took silver in the 200m.
In August 2018 Graeme won an incredible Gold medal at the World Para Athletics European Championships in Berlin for the T36 100m with a season’s best time of 12.32 seconds seeing him ease to the line clear of the rest of the field. A incredible achievement for Graeme!
Graeme also capped off 14 years of international competition with a bronze medal in the men’s T36 200m before announcing that he was retiring from international athletics.
Graeme spoke of his pride of receiving this honour. He said: “It is a great honour and a privilege to be nominated into the Hall of Fame. I hope that I can do justice to the role and look forward to seeing everyone at weekend.”
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