Normanton's Jamie heading for Tokyo after earning GB selection for Paralympics

Normanton wheelchair athlete Jamie Stead is putting the finishing touches to his preparations for the Tokyo Paralympics after being selected for the Team GB wheelchair rugby squad.
Tokyo bound: Jamie Stead, who has been selected for the Team GB Wheelchair Rugby Squad that is set to compete in the Tokyo Paralympics.Tokyo bound: Jamie Stead, who has been selected for the Team GB Wheelchair Rugby Squad that is set to compete in the Tokyo Paralympics.
Tokyo bound: Jamie Stead, who has been selected for the Team GB Wheelchair Rugby Squad that is set to compete in the Tokyo Paralympics.

It will be Jamie’s second Olympic appearance after he was part of the GB team that finished in fifth place in Rio in 2016 and he is currently doing additional strength and fitness training at Lock Lane Community Sports Centre – a not run for profit rugby league and sports club in Castleford, using the sports hall to practice and train.

The 27-year-old, who has cerebral palsy, is supported by Get Kids Going! – a national charity that gives disabled children and young people the opportunity of participating.

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He has always been a keen sportsman and tried a number of sports before settling on wheelchair rugby.

That decision has proved to be a great one as Jamie has gone on to play for the Leicester Tigers Wheelchair Rugby Club and has a number of honours in the sport.

He made his international debut at the Canada Cup in 2014 and has represented GB at European and World level, one of the first highlights being winning the European Championships in Finland in 2015.

Jamie has continued to grow as a player and has since won two more gold medals as an integral member of the GB team that defended the European title in 2017 in Germany and won it once more in Denmark in 2019.

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He was in the British team that won the Paralympic Test Event in Rio before making his Paralympic debut for real in Brazil in 2016.

Team GB face a tough challenge to improve on their 2016 effort, but are going all out for a medal. They have experience of playing in Tokyo after the side, with the Normanton man in their ranks, finished in fourth place in the World Wheelchair Rugby Challenge in the Japanese city in 2019.

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