Neroli Susan Fairhall (26 August 1944 – 11 June 2006) was a New Zealand athlete, who was the first
paraplegic competitor in the
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 vari ...
.
Biography
Born in
Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...
in 1944, Fairhall took up
archery following a motorbike accident that paralysed her from the waist down, ending her previous athletic career. She was able to compete in the
1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games
The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...
, shooting for New Zealand and finishing in 35th place. Fairhall was the first paraplegic to compete in the Olympic Games.
Fairhall won gold when archery was first introduced to the
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...
in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
in
1982.
A national champion for many years, Fairhall won medals and held titles at the
Paralympics, IPC-Archery World Championships and many international tournaments. She participated in four Summer Paralympics, in 1972, 1980, 1988, and 2000. At her first Paralympic Games she competed in
track and field athletics
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...
. At the
1980 Games, she took part in both athletics and archery, winning a gold medal in the latter sport. At the
1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...
and
2000 Paralympics she competed in archery only.
In the
1983 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 1983 were appointments by most of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other countries ...
, Fairhall was appointed a
Member of the Order of the British Empire
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 ...
, for services to archery and the disabled.
She continued to coach at her
Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...
archery club after retiring from shooting. She died on 11 June 2006, aged 61, due to illness arising from her disability.
See also
*
List of athletes who have competed in the Paralympics and Olympics
References
Sources
*
External links
*
archive
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fairhall, Neroli
1944 births
2006 deaths
New Zealand female archers
Olympic archers of New Zealand
Archers at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Archers at the 1982 Commonwealth Games
Commonwealth Games gold medallists for New Zealand
Paralympic archers of New Zealand
Archers at the 1980 Summer Paralympics
Archers at the 1988 Summer Paralympics
Archers at the 2000 Summer Paralympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Paralympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1980 Summer Paralympics
Paralympic gold medalists for New Zealand
Wheelchair category Paralympic competitors
Medalists at the 1980 Summer Paralympics
New Zealand Members of the Order of the British Empire
Commonwealth Games medallists in archery
Paralympic medalists in archery
People with paraplegia
Wheelchair discus throwers
Wheelchair shot putters
New Zealand wheelchair racers
Paralympic discus throwers
Paralympic shot putters
Medallists at the 1982 Commonwealth Games