World Championship first for University of East London para-athlete
High performance scholar, Vanessa Wallace, wins her first bronze medal at the World Championships in Dubai
University of East London high
performance athletics scholar Vanessa Wallace has just scooped a bronze,
winning her first world championship medal in the F34 Shot Put at the World
Para Athletics World Championships in Dubai on 12 November.
Vanessa (42) who is currently
studying Sports and Exercise Science at the University has experienced a
meteoric rise in the sport, having taken it up in late 2014 and then going on
to compete at the 2016 Paralympics in Rio just 18 months later.
She said after the win, “I’m a little
bit shocked. It’s been a long time coming but it feels so good. I’m really
proud of myself.
“My coach told me to get the other
contestants a little bit worried early on. I did my best and it came through.”
Vanessa, a former wheelchair racing
coach and athletics activator for England Athletics, has been supported by the
University of East London for the last three years and is one of the leading
athletes on the high performance programme at East London Sport. She also supports
other athletes on the high-performance programme at the University.
“I am so grateful for the help and
support that I have had from the University of East London throughout my
three-year course and my training,” Vanessa added. “Their solid backing has helped
me to believe that I can do this and can achieve reaching the top of my game. I
feel now that the Tokyo Paralympics could be my time!
“It’s been an interesting year and a
really good year. It’s been an experience competing at this level, but it
shows, with the right preparation, anything can happen and it can go really
well.”
Vanessa,
who also trains with Enfield and Haringey Athletics Club, was fifth at the Rio
2016 Paralympics and then won gold at the 2018 European Championships. She has
a neurological condition called Dystonia as well as a muscular-skeletal
condition, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which affects her connective tissues, giving
her severe joint issues, chronic fatigue and pain.
“Training
for my event was the only thing that got me out of bed during tough times,” she
recalled. “But getting to my sessions and doing something gave me such a sense
of achievement.”
In Dubai Vanessa threw consistently
throughout the competition, with her best coming in round five when she
launched a fantastic 7.66 metres, a lifetime best by 2cm. The European champion
opened with a throw of 7.25 metres, which left Vanessa top of the leader board
with seven other competitors to follow.
After coming fifth at Rio 2016,
Vanessa added the European champions title in 2018. With a bronze medal at the
World Championships now under her belt, she is building up quite a collection.
Matthew Tansley, Director of Sport at
the University of East London said, “This has been a remarkable achievement for
Vanessa and congratulations to her for such a fantastic win. We are proud to
have supported her throughout her training and all her hard work and
persistence in training has really paid off.”