Eliza Ault-Connell, (née Stankovic; born 19 September 1981) is an Australian

wheelchair racer Wheelchair racing is the racing of wheelchairs in track and road races. Wheelchair racing is open to athletes with any qualifying type of disability, amputees, spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy and partially sighted (when combined with another ...

, who competed at

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

and

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

. She survived

meningococcal disease Meningococcal disease describes infections caused by the bacterium ''Neisseria meningitidis'' (also termed meningococcus). It has a high mortality rate if untreated but is vaccine-preventable. While best known as a cause of meningitis, it can al ...

and plays a major role in improving the Australian community's awareness of the disease.

Early life

Eliza Jane Ault-Connell was born in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, New South Wales, on 19 September 1981. In 1997, at the age of 16, she nearly died from

. She had both her legs amputated above the knees two days after contracting the disease. She said "Amputation wasn't a decision I had to make: I was in a coma at the time. Mum and Dad were told that's what had to be done to save my life, so in that sense there was no choice." Later she had to make the decision to have most of the fingers on each hand removed. She was in hospital for six months and in 1998, she acquired prosthetic legs. She is the Director of Meningococcal Australia and is involved in promoting the awareness of meningococcal disease in the Australian community.

Athletics career

Before her illness, Ault-Connell excelled in netball and basketball. In 1998, she started running using her prosthetic legs and was classed T44 athlete. However, she moved to wheelchair racing as a T54 athlete due to a problem with the bone in the stump. Ault-Connell's first major international competition was

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...

where she won the bronze medal in the Women's Wheelchair 800m. At the 2002 IPC Athletics World Championships, she competed in three events and won a silver medal in the Women's 400m T54 event. At the

2004 Olympic Games The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

, she finished second in the demonstration sport of Women's 1500 m wheelchair and the Women's 800 m wheelchair. She also participated in the

2004 Summer Paralympics ) , nations = 136 , athletes = 3,806 , events = 519 in 19 sports , opening = 17 September , closing = 28 September , opened_by = President Costis Stephanopoulos , cauldron = Georgios Toptsis , stadium = Olympic ...

. At the

2004 Athens Paralympics ) , nations = 136 , athletes = 3,806 , events = 519 in 19 sports , opening = 17 September , closing = 28 September , opened_by = President Costis Stephanopoulos , cauldron = Georgios Toptsis , stadium = Olympic ...

, she competed in five events and did not medal. Ault-Connell won three consecutive

Oz Day 10K Wheelchair Road Race Oz Day 10K Wheelchair Road Race is held on Australia Day in The Rocks, Sydney and is marquee event on the international wheelchair racing calendar, attracting prominent international and Australian athletes. History The inaugural race was held in ...

from 2004 to 2006. She won a bronze medal in the Women's 800m T54 at the

2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006 (Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm 2006'' or ''Naarm 2006''), was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth held ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. At the 2006 IPC Athletics World Championships, she competed in three events and won a bronze medal in the Women's 800m T54. At the

2019 London Marathon The 2019 London Marathon was the 39th running of the annual marathon race in London, United Kingdom, which took place on 28 April. The elite men's race was won by Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge, who took his fourth London Marathon victory in a time of ...

which was also the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships marathon event, she finished fourth in the Women's T46. At

2019 World Para Athletics Championships The 2019 World Para Athletics Championships was a Paralympic track and field event organised by the World Para Athletics subcommittee of the International Paralympic Committee. It was held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from 7 to 15 November 2019 ...

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

, she won the bronze medal in the Women's 800m T54. She was made a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours "for significant service to community health, and as a Paralympic athlete." Marathon Tokyo MM edit

Ault-Connell competed at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Paralympics, her second Summer Paralympics, In the T54 events she qualified for the finals and came 8th in the

100m The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

and 7th in the

400m The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics (sport), athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor runn ...

. and 13th in the

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

Family

Ault-Connell was previously married to Gold Medal-winning Australian Paralympic athlete

Kieran Ault-Connell Kieran John Ault-Connell, OAM (born 30 July 1981) is an Australian Paralympic athlete. He was born in Melbourne, and has cerebral palsy. He took up athletics after watching the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics. At the 1998 IPC Athletics World Champ ...

and they have two daughters and a son.

Recognition

* NSWIS Ian Thorpe Grand Slam International Outstanding Achievement Award * 2002 Australian Junior Paralympian of the Year * 2003 Newcastle Young Citizen of the Year * 2007 Victorian State Finalist Young Australian of the Year 2007 * 2019

References

External links

Eliza Ault
at

Athletics Australia Athletics Australia is the national sporting organisation (NSO) recognised by Sport Australia for the sport of athletics in Australia. First founded in 1897, the organisation is responsible for administering a sport with over 16,000 registered ...

Eliza Ault-Connell (Stankovic)
at Australian Athletics Historical Results * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ault-Connell, Eliza 1981 births Olympic wheelchair racers of Australia Wheelchair racers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Living people Australian female wheelchair racers Paralympic wheelchair racers Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Paralympic athletes of Australia Australian amputees Wheelchair category Paralympic competitors Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Australia Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Members of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian women 21st-century Australian women Medallists at the 2018 Commonwealth Games