Jonathan Broom-Edwards
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | British |
| Born | 27 May 1988 (age 36) Colchester, England |
| Home town | Loughborough, England |
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) |
| Weight | 78.5 kg (173 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Country |  Great Britain |
| Sport | Athletics |
| Disability | Talipes Equinovarus & Clubbed Foot |
| Disability class | T44, T64 |
| Event | High Jump |
| Club | Newham & Essex Beagles |
| Coached by | Graham Ravenscroft 2018-22 Bethan Patridge/Miller 2022- Deirdre Elmhirst 2024- |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal best | 2.15m |
Medal record | |
Jonathan Broom-Edwards MBE (born 27 May 1988) is a British para-sport athlete who competes mainly in the T44/T64 classification High Jump. Born with clubbed foot, he was a county level basketball player who found Para-High Jump after 2012.
In 2013 he won his first major international medal with a silver medal at the IPC Athletic World Championship. After navigating a potentially career ending injury in 2018, he turned a string of silvers medals into World Gold in 2019 and turn his 2016 Paralympic Silver into Paralympic Gold in 2021. He is now three times World Champion (2019, 2023, 2024) and Paralympic Champion (2021).
After Tokyo 2020 Paralympic he featured on Channel 4's Celebrity SAS Who Dares Wins.
Jonathan competed at Paris 2024 Paralympics to defend his title. He placed 5th after going against the odds to return from a broken ankle that he experienced 6 weeks out from the games.
Personal life
[edit]Broom-Edwards was born in Colchester in 1988.[1] He was born with congenital talipes equinovarus (clubbed foot) in his left foot which leaves him with muscular dystrophy of his calf muscles as well as fusion and restricted range of motion of his left ankle. He also has problems with his right foot, a weak right knee and a muscular imbalance throughout his body.[2] He matriculated to Loughborough University where he studied aeronautical engineering. Following university, Jonathan became a therapist and now specialises in soft tissue release, gait analysis and postural realignment. On the side, Jonathan is also a motivational speaker.[3]
Sport career
[edit]Broom-Edwards was a basketball player as a youth and he played for Loughborough students while at university. A friend suggested that they should try out high jump to help them in their basketball leaps.[4] He competed at county level and university meets in the high jump, with a personal best of 2.03m in 2009.[5] In 2010 he left the sport.
Although Broom-Edwards understood he had an impairment, he never considered himself as disabled, but after watching the London 2012 Summer Paralympics he realized that he could be eligible to be classified as a para-sport competitor.[3][4] He was classified in 2013 as a T44 athlete and that year he qualified for the British team with a personal best of 2.06 at the Bedford International Games in May.[5] His first major international competition was at the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon. There he competed in the T42/T44 high jump event where he took silver, losing to world record holder Maciej Lepiato of Poland.[3] The next year Broom-Edwards and Lepiato met at the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships in Swansea. Despite Broom-Edwards recording a personal best of 2.15, a world record height that would have won gold at the 2012 Paralympics, he was again pushed into second place as Lepiato recorded another new world record of 2.17.[6] After returning from injuries, Jonathan posted another silver medal in the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Dubai. At the 2016 IPC Athletics European Championships in Grosseto, Jonathan was pushed into a Bronze medal position in the mixed class competition due to a change in Razza points system. However, at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Jonathan achieved a seasons best of 2.10m to achieve Silver in his Paralympic debut.
Broom-Edwards was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to athletics.[7][8]
References
[edit]- ^ "Broom-Edwards, Jonathan". IPC. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
- ^ Hudson, Elizabeth (6 February 2014). "High jumper Jonathan Broom-Edwards aims for GB top 10". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
- ^ a b c "Broom-Edwards, Jonathan". IPC. Archived from the original on 4 October 2015. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
- ^ a b Hudson, Elizabeth (31 December 2013). "Paralympic sport's ones to watch for 2014". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
- ^ a b "Jonathan Broom-Edwards". thepowerof10.info. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
- ^ "Men's High Jump - T44". paralympic.org. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
- ^ "No. 63571". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 2022. p. N19.
- ^ "New Year Honours 2022: Jason Kenny receives a knighthood and Laura Kenny made a dame". BBC Sport. 31 December 2021.
External links
[edit]
- 1988 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Reading, Berkshire
- English male high jumpers
- British male high jumpers
- British disabled sportspeople
- Track and field athletes with disabilities
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Paralympics
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics
- Paralympic gold medalists for Great Britain
- Paralympic silver medalists for Great Britain
- Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field)
- Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics
- Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics
- Paralympic athletes for Great Britain
- Members of the Order of the British Empire
- 21st-century British sportsmen