Impairment Information |
Type of Impairment |
Limb deficiency |
Origin of Impairment |
Congenital |
Classification |
SB-UL |
Further Personal Information |
Residence |
Broadstairs, ENG |
Occupation |
Athlete |
Languages |
English |
Sport Specific Information |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
He began snowboarding in 2010 in Bulgaria, where he was on holiday with friends. He tried the sport again in the Netherlands, where he met British Para snowboarder Owen Pick, who encouraged him to get in contact with the British national team. |
Why this sport? |
"Having skateboarded and surfed all my life, I took to snowboarding like a duck to water. I grew up in Ramsgate and Broadstairs [England], going to school in Broadstairs where I gained work experience at the local skate park and a passion for being on a board. I then went on a snowboarding holiday and found that all my experience on a skateboard gave me confidence and the ability to snowboard well." |
Training Regime |
"I spend all [northern hemisphere] summer training hard both in the gym and on the slopes. This is when all the big changes in my riding happen, and I work with a big team of people to get fit. In particular, I work with the English Institute of Sport. We do lots of testing at the beginning of the summer to figure out what weaknesses I need to work on. On the snow, we go back to basics and slowly build it up so that by September time we are back to riding full courses." |
General Interest |
Nicknames |
Stubba [given to him by brother Olly and childhood friend Ben Wilkes. "We were in a car driving somewhere and Shabba Ranks' [song] 'Mr. Loverman' came on. [Ben] started shouting 'Stubba' between every line and it stuck from there."] (sidewalkmag.com, 01 Jan 2015) |
Memorable sporting achievement |
Competing at the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. (chillypowder.com, 04 May 2020) |
Most influential person in career |
His mother. (sportsaid.org.uk, 01 Jan 2015) |
Hero / Idol |
British Para snowboarder Owen Pick. (sportsaid.org.uk, 01 Jan 2015) |
Injuries |
He suffered a broken collarbone in January 2019, which took him three months to recover from. (chillypowder.com, 04 May 2020; Twitter profile, 12 Jan 2019; Facebook profile, 12 Jan 2019)
He broke his leg at the end of the 2015/16 season. He recovered in time for the start of the 2016/17 season. (reds10.com, 20 Sep 2016) |
Milestones |
At the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang he became the first British Para snowboarder to compete at a Paralympic Winter Games. He was the first British athlete to start during the first qualification run for the men's SB-UL snowboard cross event in Pyeongchang. (paralympic.org, 12 Mar 2018; gbsnowsport.com, 01 Apr 2018) |
Ambitions |
To win a medal at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing. (chillypowder.com, 04 May 2020) |
Impairment |
He was born without a right hand. (sidewalkmag.com, 21 Oct 2015) |
Other information |
STOLEN EQUIPMENT
In October 2017 he had 10,000 GBP worth of equipment belonging to him and his coach stolen from his van overnight, including his custom-made snowboards. He set up a funding page to help replace his equipment in time for the new season. "I don't think they were targeting me, there's not a lot they can do with my stuff, it's not your usual snowboards. It's no good to anyone else." (bbc.co.uk, 31 Oct 2017)
EMERGENCY ACTING
He has worked for the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence as a casualty role-play actor, helping train soldiers in field surgery and trauma first aid. "Someone who was working for the [emergency simulation] company rang me when I was in the pub and she tried to explain the job to me, saying I had to pretend my hand from my stub had been blown off. Obviously I thought she was taking the piss so I hung up on her. Luckily she rang me back the next day and explained it again when I was sober, so I went up and met her and loved it." (sidewalkmag.com, 01 Jan 2015)
SENSE OF HUMOUR
While he was given the nickname 'Stubba', his twin brother Olly became known as 'Two Hands'. "He's been called Two Hands for a while now. If he's out and people mistake him for me he waves both his hands at them." He treats his limb deficiency with a sense of humour when he is among friends. "Stub Roulette [is] when we are out drinking, I get spun round with a menu in front of me, then I stop and stub it and whatever drink the stub is on is what we all drink. There is Stub Rodeo too, where mates see who can hold the stub for the longest, which is harder than it sounds. And also Stubaoke, where everyone uses the stub as a microphone and sings into it." (sidewalkmag.com, 01 Jan 2015) |
