Rio 2016

It was a summer to remember for University of Bath-based athletes past and present at Rio 2016.

Fifteen athletes currently training at the Sports Training Village competed at the Olympic Games, bringing home six medals between them.

It was then the Paralympians’ turn to shine, with five University-based athletes bringing home four medals between them – including gold and silver for Paul Blake.

Blake, coached by Rob Ellchuk, stormed to T36 400m gold and was only denied a second title in the 800m by a world record. He is the third athlete to be crowned as Paralympic Champion while training at the University, emulating the success of swimmers Sascha Kindred and Matt Walker at Sydney 2000.

Training partner Sophie Kamlish (right) broke the T44 100m world record in qualifying for her Paralympics final, where she missed out on a podium place by just six-hundredths of a second, while 16-year-old Polly Maton – coached by Colin Barros – reached the final of both the T47 100m and long jump on her Paralympic debut.

Piers Gilliver, one of nine MJ Church sporting ambassadors, won GB’s first wheelchair fencing medal for 24 years after claiming silver in the Category A epee, missing out on gold by just two points.

And Sports & Exercise Science graduate Nicole Walters, who still trains at the University, guided visually-impaired Melissa Reid to an exciting bronze medal in the PT5 para-triathlon.

The Olympic Games saw swimmers from the British Swimming National Centre Bath excel, with Jazz Carlin (below, left) winning superb silver medals in both the 400m and 800m freestyle.

Siobhan-Marie O’Connor was also runner-up in the 200m individual medley and Chris Walker-Hebborn helped the GB men’s 4x100m medley relay team secure silver. Andrew Willis was only denied a 200m breaststroke medal by eight-hundredths of a second – all are coached by Dave McNulty and Graeme Antwhistle.

On the athletics track, Eilidh Doyle – coached by Malcolm Arnold – and Emily Diamond formed half of the women’s 4x400m relay quartet that won bronze. Eilidh also reached the women’s 400m hurdles final, while Jazmin Sawyers was seventh in the long jump on her Olympic debut.

Also competing at the Olympic Games were Andrew Pozzi (athletics); Ben Fletcher (judo); Joe Choong, Jamie Cooke, Kate French and Samantha Murray (modern pentathlon); Marcus Daniell (tennis); and Sonny Webster (weightlifting).

University of Bath graduates also impressed at the Games, with Hall of Fame for Sport member Heather Stanning (Sport Technology) successfully defending her rowing women’s pair title with Helen Glover – both learnt to row at the University.

At the Paralympic Games, Alexandra Rickham (Natural Sciences) and sailing partner Niki Birrell won bronze in the SKUD18 two-person keelboat for a second successive Games.

The Games

Videos

Paralympians Paul Blake, Sophie Kamlish and Piers Gilliver prepare for Rio 2016

 

British athletics champions training for Rio 2016 at University of Bath

 

Swimmers tell us what they love about their University of Bath training base

Team Bath Judo’s Ben Fletcher selected for Rio 2016 Olympic Games

 

Olympian Joe Choong on training and studying at the University of Bath

 

Features

Competing at an Olympic Games: Psychology

Competing at an Olympic Games: Nutrition

Preparing for a Paralympic Games: Physiotherapy

Selected athletes

Athletics

Badminton

Judo

Modern Pentathlon

Para-triathlon

Rowing

Rugby sevens

Sailing

Swimming

Tennis

Weightlifting

Wheelchair Fencing

Wheelchair Tennis