Paul Blake (athlete)

Paul John Blake MBE (born 15 January 1990) is a British athlete who competes in T36 middle-distance events. Blake competed at the 2012 Summer Paralympics where he won a silver and bronze medal in the 400m T36 and 800m T36 respectively.[3][4] He followed this up with two gold medals at the 2013 and 2015 World Championships, both in his favoured 800m event.

Paul Blake
MBE
Blake during the 2013 World Championships
Personal information
Birth namePaul John Blake[1]
NationalityBritish
Born (1990-01-15) 15 January 1990
Dorchester, Dorset, England
Sport
CountryUnited Kingdom
England
SportT36 athletics
Event(s)400m, 800m and 1500m
ClubDorchester Athletic Club
Coached byRob Ellchuk[2]
Medal record
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Paralympic Games 1 1 1
World Championships 4 4 0
European Championships 0 2 2
Athletics
Paralympic Games
Gold medal – first place2016 Rio de Janeiro400m T36
Silver medal – second place2016 Rio800m T36
Silver medal – second place2012 London400m T36
Bronze medal – third place2012 London800m T36
IPC World Championships
Gold medal – first place2011 Christchurch400m – T36
Gold medal – first place2013 Lyon800m – T36
Gold medal – first place2015 Doha800m – T36
Silver medal – second place2011 Christchurch800m – T36
Silver medal – second place2011 Christchurch1500m – T36
Silver medal – second place2013 Lyon400m – T36
Silver medal – second place2015 Doha400m – T36
IPC European Championships
Silver medal – second place2012 Stadskanaal400m – T36
Silver medal – second place2014 Swansea400m - T36
Bronze medal – third place2012 Stadskanaal800m – T36
Bronze medal – third place2014 Swansea100m - T36
Updated on 31 December 2016.

Personal history

Born in Dorchester, Dorset, Blake developed cerebral palsy after being deprived of blood in the womb.[5][6] Blake's father, also called Paul, is an actor, best known for playing the bounty hunter Greedo in Star Wars (1977), while his mother Kate is a former ballet dancer with the Royal Ballet.[6][3]

Career history

Blake competed for Great Britain at the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships where he won a Gold in 400m and silver in 800m and 1500m. And at the 2012 IPC Athletics European Championships he won two medals (a silver and Bronze) and has been selected for the British team at the 2012 Summer Paralympics doing the 400m and 800m in T36. He also has the World Record in the T36 800m (2:08.02) and 1500m (4:34.42).[7] At the London 2012 Paralympic Games, Blake won silver in the 400m T36, in a personal best time of 54.22,[8] and bronze in the 800m T36.[9]

In 2013 Blake represented Great Britain at the IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon. There he took part in the 400m and 80m T36 events. In the 400m he finished second behind Russia's Evgenii Shvetcov, but then secured his first major international gold with a win in the 800m.

At the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships, Blake enjoyed a medal winning championships. He started it off with a bronze medal in the T36 100m behind his teammate, Graeme Ballard. Blake had only started competing over the 100m competitively in 2014 and won a medal in Swansea after his victory over the distance at the Sainsbury's Anniversary Games prior to the championships. Blake followed his 100m success with a silver medal in the 400m in south Wales.

At the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships held in Doha, Blake was given the role of co-captain for the Great Britain team along with sprinter Laura Sugar.[10] He successfully defended his 800m World title with a win over Russian rival Artyom Arefyev.[11] Blake added a silver in the 400m, equaling his achievements from 2013 in Lyon.

Blake completed his set of medals with a gold at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, triumphing in the men's 400m T36.[12] He also took silver in the men's 800m T36.[13]

Blake was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to athletics.[14][1]

Blake won Gold for 800m at the 2019 Athletics World Championships held in Dubai.

References
  1. "New Year's Honours list 2017" (PDF). Gov.uk. Government Digital Service. 30 December 2016. p. 47. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  2. Anderson, Katy. "Paralympian Paul Blake: 'I used to run and I liked doing that...'". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 12 November 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  3. Gibson, Owen (4 September 2012). "Paralympics 2012: Paul Blake makes supreme effort to secure silver". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  4. "ParalympicsGB's London 2012 medal roll of honour". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  5. "Paul Blake". British Paralympic Association. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  6. Davies, Gareth (29 August 2012). "Paralympics 2012: Paul Blake dreaming of two golds in his first Games". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  7. "Blake sets new world record". TeamBath. University of Bath. 16 May 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  8. "Blake storms to silver". Team GB. 4 September 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  9. "A brace of bronzes for Rushgrove and Blake at London 2012". TeamBath. University of Bath. 6 September 2012. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  10. Hudson, Elizabeth (26 October 2015). "IPC World Athletics: Paul Blake retains T36 800m world title". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  11. "Results - Men's 800m T36 Final". International Paralympic Committee. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  12. "Men's 400m - T36 - Final". Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 24 October 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  13. "Men's 800m - T36 - Final". Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 24 October 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  14. "No. 61803". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2016. p. N16.
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