Could a future Australia Paralympic gold medallist be discovered at the Invictus Games?
There is no competitive medal tally at the Invictus Games.
Medals are awarded, but these Games transcend a scoreboard obsessed over gold, silver and bronze.
Competitors, not athletes, participate in an event that supports rehabilitation and recovery for wounded, injured and ill service members and veterans and their families.
But among the 72-strong Australian team, there is sporting talent. Talent that could see them go on to represent their nation at the ultimate event for athletes with a disability — the Paralympic Games.
"We're always looking for individuals who could make the transition across a range of Paralympic sports with that elite mindset that are eligible," said the Australian Paralympic Committee's (APC) performance talent specialist Tim Matthews.
"The Paralympic Games is an elite sporting event: It's not about disability — of course, the participants have a disability — but first and foremost it's about elite sport."
Matthews should know. A triple Paralympic gold medallist, he has spent the past 10 years scouring the nation for the APC for emerging, elite talent.
In Sydney for the Invictus Games, Matthews is more than just an interested spectator as he assesses those within the Australian team who could take the next step.
"The experience that the individuals and their families have at Invictus Games … is the priority," he said.
"So I'm certainly not going to be jumping all over them and say: 'Hey, come to the Paralympics, you're the next big thing'.
"Being eligible for Paralympic sport is the first step. However, it'll be as much about the attitude and willingness to commit to something which determines how far an athlete progresses."
Eligibility is where it starts and sometimes ends
Invictus Games representation does not guarantee eligibility for para-sports.
Of Australia's current Invictus team, approximately 20 would be eligible, around 15 to 20 could be depending on their medical condition and how it affects them, while the rest of the team would be ineligible for the Paralympics.
While Invictus uses a more open 'categorisation' process where, once categorised, all competitors are open to participate in all events, para-sports adopts a stricter and more stringent 'classification' procedure for each of its sports.
Paralympics essentially works on three pillars of eligibility: physical, visual or intellectual impairment that leads to a "permanent activity limitation".
"PTSD is a mental health condition and that is not an eligible category for the Paralympic Games. Athletes with an intellectual impairment are eligible for Paralympic sport, however that needs to be diagnosed prior to the age of 18 years," Matthews said.
The relationship with Defence and the APC already exists
There is already a history of athletes from a defence services background who've gone on to participate in para-sports, including the Paralympics.
Invictus Games ambassador, Curtis McGrath, is the prime example.
McGrath, who stepped on an improvised explosive device while serving in the Army in Afghanistan in 2012, took up the para-canoe as he recovered from his life-changing accident.
The double-leg amputee has represented Australia at the Invictus Games.
In 2016, he won a gold medal in para-canoe KL2 class at the Rio Paralympic Games. A medal earned after many years of training and dedication.
"There are a lot of challenges and hurdles to make it onto a [Paralympic] team," McGrath said.
"The amount of training required to get to that next level — it's six days a week, twice a day. It's pretty tough."
McGrath said that some of the current Invictus competitors already had the Paralympic dream in their sights.
Australia's current Invictus Games co-captain Matt Brumby and fellow competitor, Private Nathan Whittington, have already been classified for para-sport.
External Link: Invictus Games Damien Thomlinson Instagram
That dream of becoming an Australian Paralympian is one that Damien Thomlinson also knows well.
In 2009, the elite Army Commando was severely injured while serving in Afghanistan.
Sport played a pivotal role in the rehabilitation of the double-leg amputee, in particular para-snowboarding, with the sport making its Winter Paralympic debut in 2014.
But a training accident ended his hopes of representing his country at the Sochi Games.
"I wanted to give it a go, I wanted to see what I could do and then ended up breaking my back in Utah," Thomlinson said.
The veteran did get that chance to wear the green and gold when he competed at two Invictus Games.
"Invictus changes people's lives. It changed mine," he said.
And while Invictus puts mateship over medals, Thomlinson said the event was the ideal gateway for those who had the drive to perform at the next level. Albeit a next level that's an "absolutely massive" step up.
"Paralympians are full-time athletes. They're full-time professionals and some of them have been doing it for their life … and they're just phenomenal."
"You have to be in the top end of your game. Make no mistake, those who compete are for real and they are talented."
Turning casual competitors into elite athletes
Thomlinson, who is a panellist on the ABC's Invictus Games Today program, sees some "strong standouts" in the current Australian Invictus team.
"One of the beauties of being in the military, serving at any level, it reinforces that never-quit attitude," he said.
"They're used to training, they're used to creating successful mindsets … but there are people they'll have to knock off to get here."
And while Invictus plays down the notion of competition, he said those involved still have that inherent desire to win.
"There's a competitive nature but it doesn't take away from that camaraderie at all. But you play for keeps once you get there."
To become a successful Paralympian takes time.
It could take up to two Paralympic cycles — potentially eight years — before the medal potential of a "transition" athlete is fulfilled, if at all.
"Participating in the sport, being progressive through the pathway, and ultimately being selected for an Australian Paralympic team is, for some, a large step," Matthews said.
"There are some events and some classifications in the Paralympics, across a range of sports that are elite — really, really elite.
"The reality is that it's not easy to gain selection for a Paralympic team. But we'd love to assist those who are eligible and have the talent and desire to make it."
[contf]
[contfnew]
ABC .net
[contfnewc]
[contfnewc]
