Jo Pitt (22 February 1979 – 2 May 2013) was a Scottish equestrian

Paralympian 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 ...

Early life

Pitt came from

Huntly, Aberdeenshire Huntly ( gd, Srath Bhalgaidh or ''Hunndaidh'') is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, formerly known as Milton of Strathbogie or simply Strathbogie. It had a population of 4,460 in 2004 and is the site of Huntly Castle. Its neighbouring settlement ...

, and studied at Oatridge College, West Lothian. She had right-sided

hemiplegic Hemiparesis, or unilateral paresis, is weakness of one entire side of the body ('' hemi-'' means "half"). Hemiplegia is, in its most severe form, complete paralysis of half of the body. Hemiparesis and hemiplegia can be caused by different medic ...

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 sens ...

Career

Pitt represented

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 i ...

at the 2004 Athens Paralympics. She won

British Dressage British Dressage is the organisation which oversees all affiliated dressage competitions and training in the United Kingdom. British Dressage is a member of the British Equestrian Federation. In addition to the usual dressage competitions, Brit ...

's winter championship title in April 2013. She was in the para-equestrian dressage team that won gold at the 2010 World Equestrian Games.

Death

Pitt died 2 May 2013. She had been living with pulmonary

veno-occlusive disease Hepatic veno-occlusive disease (VOD) or veno-occlusive disease with immunodeficiency is a potentially life-threatening condition in which some of the small veins in the liver are obstructed. It is a complication of high-dose chemotherapy given bef ...

. She had recently moved to

Dereham, Norfolk Dereham (), also known as East Dereham, is a town and civil parish in the Breckland District of the English county of Norfolk. It is situated on the A47 road, about 15 miles (25 km) west of the city of Norwich and 25 miles (40&nb ...

to live with her fiancé, Rory.

References

1979 births 2013 deaths People from Huntly People from Dereham Equestrians at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Paralympic equestrians of Great Britain Sportspeople with cerebral palsy Scottish disabled sportspeople Sportspeople from Aberdeenshire Alumni of Scotland's Rural College {{UK-equestrian-bio-stub