Stephen "Steve" Morris (born 13 September 1988) is a

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 ...

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

from

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

, Wales. He competes in middle distance events in the T20 classification and represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London.

Personal history

Stephen Morris was born in Cardiff in 1988. He was diagnosed with dyspraxia at the age of three. He attended

Whitchurch High School , established = , closed = , type = , religious_affiliation = , president = , head_label = Head teacher , head = Mark Powell , ad ...

in Cardiff, in the same year group as Wales and British Lions captain Sam Warburton and Wales footballer Gareth Bale.

Athletic career

Morris first became involved in athletics while at school and began competing in 2006. Due to the events caused by the Spanish basketball team at the Sydney Paralympics, Morris' classification was removed from the Summer Games itinerary. T20 athletes were reintroduced for the

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Summer Paralympic Gam ...

in London, and Morris was selected to represent

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

in the 1,500-metre race. There were no heats for the race and the final was held on 4 September in a field of 11 athletes. Morris finished sixth with a time of 4:02.50. His personal best of 3:58.93, that he set two months earlier at the BMC Grand Prix in Stretford, would have been good enough for the silver medal position. In 2013 Morris was again chosen to represent Great Britain, this time at the IPC World Championships in Lyon in the 1,500m (T20), finishing in eighth place. Although Morris did not attend 2014 European Championships, he was selected for 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 ...

in Grosseto. He competed in both the

800 metres The 800 metres, or meters ( US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of an outdoor (400-metre) track and has been an Olympic event since the ...

and 1,500m finishing fourth and fifth respectively. In the build up to 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 Rio, Morris recorded personal bests in the 800m (1:56.06) (British Record) and 1,500m (3:56.24) (European Record) both set in July. In late July Morris was confirmed as a member of the Great Britain team to compete at the Rio Paralympics.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Stephen Paralympic athletes for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Welsh male middle-distance runners British male middle-distance runners Living people 1988 births Sportspeople from Cardiff Welsh Paralympic competitors