2:09:81! On March 10, 24-year-old Australian Josh Hanlong made his Winter Paralympic debut in the men's giant slalom (sitting) event in alpine skiing at the Beijing Winter Paralympic Games. He was 15.61 seconds behind the norwegians who won the tournament and ranked 11th out of all 40 players in the competition.
Josh was born in 1997 in the small town of Isali, New South Wales. Just four years ago, he was a highly potential member of the AFL Western Sydney Giants youth team. Australian rugby is Australia's most popular sport, and Josh aspires to be a professional player and compete in the star-studded AFL.
However, everything about this sunny, tall youth changed forever at the age of 20. Severe bacterial infections caused by sepsis and toxic shock, which caused Josh to amputate his legs below the knee and lose his right hand.
During the three months of hospitalization, Josh celebrated his 21st birthday. It took him two weeks to practice walking under the ground with a prosthetic limb. At that time, he proudly told the people around him, "I got my leg and walked out".
The devastation of life did not crush the Australian boy. In 2019, he joined the Australian Paralympic Alpine Skiing Development Team. Unlike athletes from Europe and the United States, who have unique training conditions, Australia's professional skiers go abroad to train for four or five months a year, and the same is true for paralympic athletes like Josh who aspire to become top athletes. While abroad, Josh and his teammates had to say goodbye to their families, suspend their normal lives, and devote themselves to training and competition.
In January of this year, before the Beijing Winter Paralympic Games, Josh finished 16th in the alpine skiing giant slalom at the first World Para skiing championships in Lillehammer, Norway. Previously, he also reached the top 10 twice in World Cup matches.
Kate McLovrin, head of the Australian delegation at the Beijing Winter Paralympics, said of Josh Hanlon: "He's such a good athlete. From a former rugby player, he easily transformed into a skier. He has fulfilled his dream of participating in the Winter Paralympic Games and is looking forward to achieving great results at the next Milan/Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Paralympic Games. We are looking forward to Josh's future. ”
On March 13, the last competition day of the Beijing Winter Paralympic Games, Josh will also appear in the alpine skiing men's slalom (sitting) competition.
On a personal page on the Australian Paralympic Committee website, Josh Hanlon describes his goal this way: "To be an Australian Paralympic player. Won the Paralympic gold medal. "Now, the first goal has been achieved.