Shawn Russell
 Portrait of Shawn Russell taken at team processing session for shadow members of 2016 Australian Paralympic team | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nickname | Huss |
| Nationality |  Australia |
| Born | 15 June 1987 |
| Sport | |
| Position | Forward |
| Disability class | 4.0 |
| Club | Wollongong Roller Hawks |
Shawn Russell(born 15 June 1987) is a4.0 pointwheelchair basketballplayer from Australia. In 2016, he was selected as part of theRollersfor the2016 Summer ParalympicsinRio de Janeiro.
Biography
[edit]Shawn Russell was born on 15 June 1987, with one leg shorter than the other. When he was 16, it was amputated.[1]He was visited by Eino Okkonen, an amputee himself, and the founder of the Wollongong Roller Hawks, a team in theNational Wheelchair Basketball League(NWBL). Okkonen tried to persuade Russell to take upwheelchair basketball,but Russell saw himself as aswimmer,and initially declined the offer. Undaunted, Okkonen convinced Russell to attend a Roller Hawks training session, and Russell joined the team in 2004.[1][2]It went on to win back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2012.[3]
Russell made his international debut with the U23 team (the Spinners) at the FisBIT Games in Kuala Lumpur in 2007, and in 2009 he was part of the team at theIWBF U23 World Wheelchair Basketball ChampionshipinParis.Later that year he made his debut with thesenior national team(the Rollers) at the Asia-Oceania Zone Championship, won by the Rollers. He played overseas in Spain in 2010 and 2011. Moving to Victoria, he joined the Kilsyth Cobras, who win the league title in 2015 and 2016.[1][3]In June 2016, he toured Great Britain for the 2016 Continental Clash against Canada, Great Britain, Japan, the Netherlands and the United States.[4]The Rollers were defeated by the United States, and won silver.[1]In July 2016, he was selected for the2016 Summer ParalympicsinRio de Janeiro.[5]He was one of five Rollers selected for their first Paralympics[5]where they finished sixth.[6]
References
[edit]- ^abcd"Shawn Russell".Australian Paralympic Committee.Retrieved20 July2016.
- ^"Inspiration drives Shawn Russell to world titles".Basketball Australia.Retrieved20 July2016.
- ^ab"Award Winners - National Wheelchair Basketball League (NWBL)".Fox Sports.Retrieved20 July2016.
- ^"Australian Rollers Name Team for 2016 Continental Clash".Basketball Australia.6 June 2016.Retrieved20 July2016.
- ^ab"Australian Rollers ready for Rio 2016 revenge".Australian Paralympic Committee.19 July 2016.Retrieved20 July2016.
- ^"Hosts shock Rollers to end Rio campaign".Australian Paralympic Committee.Retrieved29 September2016.
