LATEST NEWS Part 4
Richard Whitehead Stated That His Lifetime Achievement Honour Is Mind Blowing
The triple world and double Paralympic champion from Nottingham, Richard Whitehead was left speechless when he received the Lifetime Achievement award at the 2016 Nottingham Sports Awards.
Whitehead was honoured for his enduring success that has inspired many people. Some of the previous winners of this prestigious award are Notts cricket star Basher Hassan, the Notts County all-time top scorer – Les Bradd, and the Nottingham Forest European Cup winners Martin O’Neill and John Robertson.
The 40-year-old’s achievements from the last several years are simply astonishing. He won a gold medal at the Rio 2016 Paralympics in the T42 200m and managed to defend his title from London 2012.
Whitehead, who is a double leg amputee has achieved incredible success by overcoming every barrier that was placed in front of him. He set a marathon and half-marathon world records by running 40 marathons in 40 days.
There was a video which highlighted his career, which was played on huge screens at the award ceremony before he took the stage to accept his accolade. The event took place at the East Midlands Conference Centre. The star athlete stated that he is speechless, which does not usually happen as he always has something to say. Understanding that he has this type of support was mind blowing. He spoke about the challenges he had to overcome during his life as well as his success on the track. Whitehead added that the East Midlands and Nottingham had supported him and the challenges he had to go through and even celebrated his success.
According to the honoree, it is imperative to have a strong network of people around you. He has that with his coaches and people all over, which are not only supportive of him but the entire Paralympic movement, which is important. The star athlete spoke about how important is that they can have the platform to celebrate the successes that are not in this country, for example, the once in Rio. However, they are also able to give back to the community and show them that they care and such awards mean quite a lot to them.
Whitehead added that this award is great for both him and his entire family. He wants to continue for as long as he can and as long as his body and mind let him, but this is definitely one of the highlights. The athlete added how important it was for him as a Paralympic person and as a disabled person overall to be honoured in such a way. Whitehead stated that it means that the Paralympic sports have a high regard in the country and he believes that has changed over the years. He thinks that these games were seen as people with disabilities just having a go, but now everything is different. The athlete feels that him, Sophie Hahn, Ollie Hynd and Charlotte Henshaw are the pioneers for Paralympic sports in Nottinghamshire and this is because they have people who support them. He concluded by saying that it has always been a privilege to receive an award, but when it is from your homeland, it means so much more.
