Ben Lucas (wheelchair racer)

Lucas grew up in Blenheim, New Zealand. He was very active as a teenager and pursued many outdoor activities.[1] In 1989 aged 24, he crashed his motorbike into a u-turning van[2] and broke his L3 lumbar vertebrae which left him paralysed.[3] At the time, he had been studying towards a New Zealand Certificate in Science.[2] His first wheelchair race was the 1990 Blenheim-Woodbourne half-marathon.[2] In 1991, he competed at a race in Japan. He was nominated for the 1992 Summer Paralympics in Barcelona with less than a year of racing history, but he ended up not going.[1] He did represent New Zealand at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in 800 m and the wheelchair marathon and won a bronze medal in the latter event.[3][4] He represented New Zealand at the Summer Paralympic Games in 1996 in Atlanta, and in 2000 in Sydney. At both Paralympic Games, he was the team captain and the flagbearer.[3] In Atlanta, he reached the semi-finals in the 5,000 m and 10,000 m races, and came in place eight in the wheelchair marathon.[2] At the 1999 World Wheelchair Games in Christchurch, he won a gold medal in wheelchair marathon.[1] He retired from competitive racing after the 2000 Sydney Games.[2]

Lucas worked for Sports Marlborough where he organised the recreation programme for CCS (the Crippled Children Society). He then took on a role with Parafed Canterbury prior to the 2000 Sydney Games. He became a trustee of the Halberg Disability Sport Foundation and from 2008 to 2012, he was on the board of Paralympics New Zealand.[2] For four years, Lucas was the chief executive of the New Zealand Spinal Trust.[5] It was announced in September 2013 that Lucas would succeed Duane Kale as chef de mission for the 2016 Summer Paralympics.[6]

• Ben Lucas at Paralympics New Zealand
• Ben Lucas at the International Paralympic Committee
• Ben Lucas reflects on Christchurch 5 years on on YouTube