Sabrina Fortune (born 25 May 1997) is a British Paralympic track and field athlete from Wales competing in category F20 throwing events. Fortune won a bronze medal at the

2016 Summer Paralympics ) , nations = 159 , athletes = 4,342 , opening = 7 September , closing = 18 September , opened_by = President Michel Temer , cauldron = Clodoaldo Silva , events = 528 in 22 sports , stadium = Maracanã , sum ...

in the

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

, a gold medal at the

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 ...

, also in shot put, and a gold medal at the

2024 Summer Paralympics The 2024 Paralympic Games, Summer Paralympics (french: Jeux paralympiques d'été de 2024), commonly known as the Games of the XVII Paralympiad, and commonly known as Paris 2024, is an upcoming international Multi-sport event, multi-sport paraspo ...

in shot put.

History

Fortune, who comes from

Bryn-y-baal Mynydd Isa (; cy, Mynyddisa) is a village in Flintshire, in north-east Wales. It lies between the county town of Mold, and Buckley (which it is contiguous with) in the community of Argoed which had a population of 5837 according to the 2011 cen ...

, Mold in north Wales, has speech dyspraxia which makes communication difficult for her. Her condition resulted in a mild

intellectual impairment Developmental disability is a diverse group of chronic conditions, comprising mental or physical impairments that arise before adulthood. Developmental disabilities cause individuals living with them many difficulties in certain areas of life, espe ...

. She attended

Argoed High School Argoed High School is a secondary school in Flintshire, Wales. In January 2022, a proposal for a new superschool was accepted, incorporating nearby Ysgol Mynydd Isa. History It was built in Bryn-y-baal in 1978 as the then Clwyd County's first ...

, after which she studied hospitality management at Coleg Cambria in Wrexham.

Athletics career

Fortune became inspired to take up athletics after watching her brother compete. She joined a club at the age of eleven in 2008 and began competing at local meets. In 2014, she travelled to São Paulo to take part in the Brazilian Paralympic School Games, winning gold in the F20 shot put. That year she also took part in her first IPC Grand Prix, in Grosseto, Italy. The following year Fortune was selected for the Great Britain team to compete at the

2015 IPC Athletics World Championships The 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships were a Paralympic track and field meet organized by the World Para Athletics subcommittee of the International Paralympic Committee. The event was the 7th edition of what is now known as the World Para ...

in Doha, entering the shot put event. Her throw of 12.14 m saw her finish just outside the medal positions in fourth place. In 2016, in the buildup the

Rio Paralympics The 2016 Summer Paralympics (), the 15th Summer Paralympic Games, were a major international multi-sport event for disabled sports, athletes with disabilities governed by the International Paralympic Committee, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, fro ...

, Fortune travelled back to Grosseto, this time to compete in the

2016 IPC Athletics European Championships The 2016 IPC Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe, plus Israel. It was held in Grosseto, Italy and too ...

. A distance of 12.14 m saw her again finish fourth in the

. Fortune's results saw her selected for Team GB at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, competing in the shot put. She competed in the final on 10 September throwing a personal best of 12.94 m to win the bronze medal, becoming the first Welsh athlete of the games to reach the podium. Fortune won the gold medal in shot put F20 at

2018 World Para Athletics European Championships The 2018 World Para Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe, plus Azerbaijan and Israel. It was held in ...

in Berlin, with a championship-record throw of 13.30 m. Fortune won the gold medal in shot put F20 at

in Dubai, with a championship-record throw of 13.91 m. In June 2021 she was among the first dozen athletes chosen for the UK athletics teams at the postponed

2020 Paralympics The , branded as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, was an international multi-sport parasports event held from 24 August to 5 September 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. They were the 16th Summer Paralympic Games as organized by the International Paralympic ...

in Tokyo. She came fifth in the 2020 Paralympic F20 Shot Put, with a distance of 13.56 m.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fortune, Sabrina 1997 births Living people Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Track and field athletes with disabilities Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Paralympic athletes for Great Britain Paralympic gold medalists for Great Britain Paralympic bronze medalists for Great Britain Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the World Para Athletics Championships World Para Athletics Championships winners Sportspeople from Wrexham Sportswomen with disabilities Welsh female discus throwers British female discus throwers Welsh female shot putters British female shot putters Welsh Paralympic competitors 21st-century British sportswomen