It seems like it was just yesterday that we met for the first time and I thought to myself, “Wow he’s pretty courageous.” What I thought was courageous was the fact that he was willing to spend his life training and reaching for something that was in a way a gamble and difficult to achieve. I am glad though to be able to sit here today and write that my friend beat the odds and proved just how much hard work, dedication, and passion can accomplish. Without further introduction, the current 2017 Paralympic, double World Champion, my dear friend, James Ball.
At 25 years old, having been born with achromatopsia, a condition that affects the light-sensitive layer of the eye resulting in decreased vision, light sensitivity, and the absence of color vision, James Ball represents the UK Paralympic cycling division. Born in Ponthir, Wales, James has a long history of athleticism growing up, starting with swimming at the national level and then moving onto track and field. However, through his dedication to his athletic career, James did attend University and earned the equivalent of a Bachelor’s in Music. And all this time his parents supported him financially and emotionally, always believing in him and encouraging him every step of the way. Set to attend the 2012 London Paralympic games, James tore his hamstring and could not participate. After years of training and his leg not improving James made the difficult decision to quit, however lucky for him about 3 months later, he was approached by a UK Paralympic coach and 4 months following he received an official invite to join the team along with a move from Wales to Manchester, England. This meant James was finally sponsored and making strides in his career again, even better he would be paid through government funding. That is how in the following months James attended the 2016 World Championships in Italy, won Bronze and last minute was selected for the 2016 Paralympics in Rio!
At Rio James earned 5th place and returned home for a quick break and back to training. Finally, at this year’s 2017 Paralympic World Championships in Los Angeles, James and partner Matthew Rotherham, having only trained together for 7 weeks, took on double Gold. James currently hopes to achieve his goal of winning gold at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic games. For all those wondering if this successful hunk is available, he is not. He will soon be celebrating one year with lucky, Lauren Noon! Weren’t they lucky with those last names?