Katrina Lea Webb-Denis, OAM (born 22 May 1977) is an Australian Paralympic athlete with

cerebral palsy Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sensa ...

. She has won Gold, Silver and Bronze medals in athletics at three Paralympic Games.

Personal

201000 - Opening Ceremony athletics competitor Katrina Webb torch 2 - 3b - 2000 Sydney opening ceremony photo

141100 - Athletics track Katrina Webb auographs flag for kids - 3b - 2000 Sydney candid photo

Webb has a mild form of

which was diagnosed when she was two years old. Her parents did not tell her of the disability. Her cerebral palsy was diagnosed again when she won an

Australian Institute of Sport The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is a high performance sports training institution in Australia. The Institute's headquarters were opened in 1981 and are situated in the northern suburb of Bruce, Canberra. The AIS is a division of the ...

netball scholarship. AIS staff found a weakness in her right leg, which was shorter than her left leg. She was then encouraged to become involved in disability sport. After winning the 100m at the

1996 Atlanta Games The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

, she faced criticism over her legitimacy to compete at the Games. She has a physiotherapy degree from the University of South Australia. Her father Darryl played league football for North Adelaide Football Club. Her cousins are Olympic basketballer

Rachael Sporn Rachael Pamela Sporn (born 26 May 1968, in Murrayville) is an Australian former basketball player and three time Olympian. Sporn was Development Executive for the Australian Melanoma Research Foundation but has since left the organisation. C ...

and AFL players Kieran and Trent Sporn. She married former Australian Olympic water polo player

Eddie Denis Eddie Denis (born 14 October 1970) is an Australian water polo player who competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics. See also * Australia men's Olympic water polo team records and statistics * List of men's Olympic water polo tournament goalkeepers ...

. Her first child Sebastian Zavier Denis was born on 27 December 2007. She was the first torch bearer to enter the Olympic Stadium for the Opening Ceremony of the

Sydney 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 ...

. In 2006 Katrina was selected to present on behalf 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 ...

to the United Nations in New York. In November 2017, Webb was inducted into the South Australian Sports Hall of Fame.

Athletic achievements

* 1994 all Australian Netball Squad 17 & under * 1995

Netball Scholarship * 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Games: Gold 100m, Gold 200m, Silver Long Jump * 1997 Medal of the Order of Australia for her gold medals in Atlanta *

1998 IPC Athletics World Championships 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

: Silver 400m, Silver 100m & Gold Javelin & WR * 1997–2000 South Australian Athlete Ambassador for Health & Disabilities *

2000 Sydney 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 ...

: Silver 400m, Silver 100m and Bronze 200m; Australian Sports Medal * 2001

Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or go ...

* 2002 World Athletic Championships: Silver 100m and Silver 400m * 2004 New World record for the 200m T38 class * 2004 Athens Paralympic Games: Gold 400m and Paralympic Record * 2004 South Australian Sports Institute Female Athlete of the Year * 2005 Australian Institute of Sport Athletics Scholarship Canberra *

2006 Melbourne 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 i ...

Silver 100m

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Webb, Katrina 1977 births Living people Paralympic athletes of Australia Cerebral Palsy category Paralympic competitors Track and field athletes with cerebral palsy Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Medalists at the 1996 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Paralympic gold medalists for Australia Paralympic silver medalists for Australia Paralympic bronze medalists for Australia Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Australia Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia Recipients of the Australian Sports Medal Recipients of the Centenary Medal Sportswomen from South Australia Australian Institute of Sport netball players Australian female javelin throwers Australian female long jumpers Australian female sprinters Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Sportspeople with cerebral palsy Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Australian netball players Netball players from South Australia