UNITE AND INSPIRE
PARALYMPIC STAR KNOWS THE GAMES ARE ABOUT MORE THAN MEDALS
They might be blown away and change their idea of what is possible. Curtis McGrath
Paralympian Curtis McGrath has achieved the pinnacle of his chosen sport 10 times over and proudly carried the Australian flag into the Tokyo Paralympic closing ceremony, but there remains one sporting dream he’s yet to fulfil.
McGrath has never competed at the Commonwealth Games.
He will get a mere taste of that experience in Birmingham when he joins the Channel 7 commentary team, but it’s the yearning to be a competitor in world sport’s most inclusive Games that has the paracanoeist dreaming of 2026 and the hope his sport can gain inclusion into the Victoria Commonwealth Games.
This year’s Commonwealth
Games will feature one of the biggest offerings of Paralympic sports in the event’s history – including the new category of vision impaired paratriathlon.
Australia will take 76 para-athletes to the Games, including a host of debutants., and their stories will inspire the next generation.
“It is exciting to see the para movement growing and the athletes having more opportunities to compete and perform on the world stage,” McGrath said.
“We witnessed last year at the Tokyo Games how amazing parasports are and I think it is going to give a really great platform for those athletes.
“There are a lot of new faces and it is exciting to see. Some of the athletes have only been doing the sport for eight months or so and they’ve made it on to the Australian Commonwealth Games team.
“It is exciting for them to get a taste of international competition and hopefully go all the way to standing on top of the podium.”
Unlike the Paralympics the Commonwealth Games para-sports program is integrated into the event – with able bodied and para-athletes competing side-by-side.
It is that inclusive nature of the event that has inspired so many paraathletes, including Paralympic champion Ellie Cole who has extended her illustrious career one more year just so she can exit the pool alongside her able-bodied swim team friends.
McGrath believes these Games evoke the greatest aspects of the human spirit.
“It draws the comparison that we are all trying to compete to be the best in our field regardless of our ability and disability and being together in one team is a really great feeling,” McGrath said.
“Having that at a world stage and such a monumental event like the Commonwealth Games shows that we are all working towards a common goal and trying to get on top of that podium.”
For those watching at home it is a chance to see there are no limits.
At the 2018 Gold Coast Games Para-athletes won 16 of Australia’s 80 gold medals with swimmers Timothy Disken and Lakeisha Patterson and athletics star Madi de Rozario winning two golds each.
All three went on to win medals at the Tokyo Paralympics and will be racing in Birmingham.
The inclusion of para-athletes in these Games and the support shown towards Australia’s competitors from the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics has raised the profile on not just their sports but the athletes themselves.
“It is great to raise awareness of Paralympic sports and the disability sports out there and show what is possible,” McGrath said.
“I think that is one of the great things para-sports bring to the table, despite what you may be missing or your impairment you are still able to do amazing things and the Games are a chance to show that off to people who aren’t necessarily aware or who have the wrong perception of disability sport. They might be blown away and change their idea of what is possible.”
With new classifications for paracycling and triathlon the Australian team includes a number of debutants.
But there are still a number of well-known stars, like McGrath, who will miss out on a chance to compete and represent the green and gold.
One of them is para-cyclist Darren Hicks.
Hicks, 38, a promising BMX cyclist, had his right leg amputated above the knee after a horror car crash in 2014.
His left leg was also fractured and C2 vertebra so severely broken it required a surgical fixation.
Hicks turned his attention to paracycling – making his way on to the team bound for Tokyo, finishing second in the men’s 3000m individual pursuit.
While the para-cycling classifications have been expanded for the Commonwealth Games – Hicks still isn’t eligible to compete.
With the Games returning home to Victoria in 2026 McGrath said it was a perfect opportunity for organisers to once again expand the program.
McGrath is a triple Paralympic gold medallist and 10-times world champion, but a Commonwealth Games gold medal would be something he’d cherish forever.
“My sport of para-canoe is an optional sport but it would be nice to have it as a Commonwealth Games event,” McGrath said.
“I don’t think that will happen because of the infrastructure that is required but I think expanding the current programs and having more para-sport classifications so we can grow, make it bigger and incorporate more athletes.
“The more athletes, the bigger the competition and that would be exciting to see.”