Jason Lees, OAM is a wheelchair rugby player from Victoria and was a member of the Australian Steelers that won the gold medals at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Paralympics and competed at the 2020 Summer Paralympics.[1][2]
 2016 Australian Paralympic team portrait of Lees | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| National team | Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 1 March 1977 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Wheelchair rugby | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability class | 1.0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
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Lees life changed in June 2000. Lees a mechanic at the time was on a motocross circuit in Laverton, Victoria when his bike ran off the track and the resultant accident led to him breaking his neck.[3] He is paralysed from the chest down but has recovered some mobility, improving to a point where he can 'stand a bit and use my arms a bit.'[3] His partner is Melanie Josephs and they have two girls.[4] He who works part-time for Disability Sport and Recreation,
In 2002, Lees started playing wheelchair rugby on the social, non-competitive level.
In 2009, he made his debut for the Victoria state team and the Australian Steelers. He competed in the 2010 World Rugby Wheelchair Championships, where his team captured a silver medal.[5]
Lees was a member of the Steelers that won the gold medal at the 2012 London Paralympics. He was a member of the Australian team that won its first world championship gold medal at the 2014 World Wheelchair Rugby Championships at Odense, Denmark.[6]
He was a member of the team that retained its gold medal at the 2016 Rio Paralympics after defeating the United States 59–58 in the final.[7]
At the 2018 IWRF World Championship in Sydney, Australia, he was a member of the Australian team that won the silver medal after being defeated by Japan 61–62 in the gold medal game.[8]
At the 2020 Summer Paralympics, the Steelers finished fourth after being defeated by Japan 52–60 in the bronze medal game.COVID travel restrictions led to Steelers not having a team training since March 2020 prior to Tokyo.[9]
Lees was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in the 2014 Australia Day Honours "for service to sport as a Gold Medallist at the London 2012 Paralympic Games."[10]
Lees announced his retirement from the Steelers in November 2021 and moving to a Development Coach with Paralympics Australia.[11]
References
edit- ^ "Steelers aim to maintain their reign in Rio". Australian Paralympic Committee News. 25 July 2016. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ^ "Steelers Eyeing Paralympic History… Again". Paralympics Australia. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ a b Paxinos, Stathi (11 August 2012). "Set for some hell on wheels". The Age. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
- ^ Spits, Scott (30 November 2019). "Australia's Jason Lees is chairman of the board at Murderball Inc". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- ^ Australian Athletes with a Disability. "Jason Lees (VIC)". Archived from the original on 3 October 2011.
- ^ "Australia wins first ever IWRF World Championship". Australian Paralympic Committee News. 11 August 2014. Archived from the original on 27 August 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
- ^ Lees, Chris (19 September 2016). "Steelers double up with Paralympics gold". Sunshine Coast Daily. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
- ^ "Results". IWRF Wheelchaair Rugby World Championships website. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- ^ "Australia names wheelchair rugby team of 12 for Tokyo 2020". Inside The Games. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
- ^ "Australia Day honours list 2014: in full". Daily Telegraph. 26 January 2014. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
- ^ "Steelers' Golden Era Stars Announce Retirement". Paralympics Australia. 22 November 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
