Dr John MacDonald Falconar Grant, AO,

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(14 August 1922 – 10 November 2013) was an Australian neurosurgeon and disability sport administrator. He was President of the 2000 Sydney Paralympic Games Organising Committee. He played a leading role in the development of disability sport in Australia.

Personal

Grant was born on 14 August 1922 in Sydney. His parents were Chesborough Grant Falconar Grant and Henrietaa Thelma Leary. In 1945, he married Enid Llewlyn at

St John's, Ashfield St John the Baptist Anglican Church is an active Anglican church located between Alt and Bland Streets, Ashfield, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1840, on land donated by Elizabeth Underwood, the church building is ...

. They had three children: Stuart, Mandy and Catherine. Grant was on the Worker's Party New South Wales Senate ticket at the

1975 Australian federal election The 1975 Australian federal election was held in Australia on 13 December 1975. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives and all 64 seats in the Senate were up for election, due to a double dissolution. Malcolm Fraser had been commissione ...

. He was put on the ticket due to a misunderstanding with John Singleton and asked to be taken off the ticket. Grant was left on the ballot but was not elected. His autobiography ''Different theatres : from neurosurgery to sport for people with disabilities'' published in 2005 provides his insight into his medical and disability sport endeavours.

Education

Grant attended Roseville Public School, Chatswood Intermediate School and North Sydney Boys High School. In 1945, he graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery with Second Class Honours. Further education included Master of Surgery of the University of Sydney, Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Fellowship of the

American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913.American College of Surgeons Online "What is the American College of Surgeons?"/ref> See also *American College of Physicians The American College o ...

, and Fellowship of the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine in the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.

Medical career

Grant was a resident medical officer at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney where he undertook specialist training in general surgery and orthopaedic surgery followed by intensive training in neurosurgery. In 1952, he was appointed to Royal North Shore Hospital where he helped to establish its Department of Neurosurgery and Spinal Injuries Unit. He provided neurosurgical consultations to several acute hospitals in New South Wales, as well as to the rehabilitation programs at Mt Wilga Rehabilitation Centre and the Spastic Centre of New South Wales. He retired from operative surgery in 2002.

Disability Sport career

Grant's interest in the role of sport in the rehabilitation for people with spinal injuries can be linked to the work of Sir Ludwig Guttman, neurologist from Stoke Mandeville Hospital. In 1957, he visited the hospital and observed the role of sport in rehabilitation. In 1958, he played a major role in organising the First Royal North Shore Hospital Games for spinal injury patients. The Games were held at the

Gore Hill Gore Hill is an urban locality on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Gore Hill is located within the southern part of the suburb of Artarmon, and the north-west of the suburb of St Leonards. History It takes its n ...

Oval near the hospital. Grant also played a role in the inclusion of sport in rehabilitation programs at

Mount Wilga House Mount Wilga House is a heritage-listed former residence and rehabilitation hospital at 2a Manor Road (Rosamond Street), Hornsby in the Hornsby Shire local government area of New South Wales, Australia. Its design is attributed to Henry Marcus ...

. It held annual Sports Days. The Australian Team to the 1960 Rome Paralympics included eight competitors who had been patients at Mt Wilga Rehabilitation Centre and trained by Kevin Betts and

Eileen Perrottet Eileen Mary Perrottet (24 December 1917 – 23 November 1973) was an Australian physiotherapist, noted for her contributions to the Australian Paralympic Movement, a senior physiotherapist at Mount Wilga Rehabilitation Hospital in the Sydney su ...

. In 1961, he co-founded with Jack Ferguson the Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Association of New South Wales. He was president from 1968 to 2000. While President of this Association, he was instrumental in the establishment of the Junior National Wheelchair Games. He was the Medical Officer and Team Manager of the Australian teams that competed at the

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

and

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...

Commonwealth Paraplegic Games. Grant and compatriate Graham Pryke were founding members of the

FESPIC Games The FESPIC Games or the Far East and South Pacific Games for the Disabled, was a multi-sport event in Asia and the South Pacific region which is considered to be a precursor to the Asian Para Games, as two of its edition games in 1999 (7th) and ...

. In 1977, he was Chairman of the Organising Committee for the 2nd FESPIC Games held in Sydney. In 1980, he wrote to the Minister for Sport, Bob Ellicott stating the case for a national policy on sport for people with disabilities. Subsequently, the Australian Government established a national advisory committee on sport for disabled persons of which he was a member. In 1993, he was a Chairman of the Sydney Bid Committee for the

2000 Paralympic Games The 2000 Summer Paralympic Games or the XI Summer Paralympics were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, between 18 and 29 October. The Sydney Paralympics was last time that the Summer Paralympics which were organized by two different ...

. The successful bid led to Grant becoming President of the Sydney Paralympic Games Organising Committee 1994–2000. Grant held leadership positions with several international disability sports organisations: President of International Stoke Mandeville Wheelchair Sports Federation, Chairman of the International Co-ordinating Committee of World Sports for the Disabled and Member of the

International Paralympic Committee The International Paralympic Committee (IPC; german: Internationales Paralympisches Komitee) is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and fun ...

Recognition

General

*1973 – Order of the British Empire – Officer (Civil) (OBE) for service to the community *1992 – Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for service to sport for disabled people *2002 – Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for service to sport, particularly through the Sydney Paralympic Organising Committee, and to people with disabilities as a contributor to improving the range and quality of medical, social and sporting rehabilitation services

Medicine

*2001 – Best Individual Contribution to Healthcare Award 2001 by the

Australian Medical Association The Australian Medical Association (AMA) is an Australian public company by guarantee formed as a professional association for Australian doctors and medical students. The association is not run by the Australian Government and does not regul ...

*2001 – ESR Hughes Medal by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons *2007 – Doctor of Medicine (honoris causa), University of Sydney

Disability Sport

*1988 – Maengho Medal presented by the President of South Korea *1992 – Sir Ludwig Guttman Award for significant contribution to Wheelchair Sport in Australia *2002 – FESPIC Order *2002 – Gold Paralympic Order by the International Paralympic Committee *2009 – Wheelchair Sports New South Wales Champion Award