Rachel Henderson

Rachel Henderson

2012 Australian Paralympic Team portrait of Henderson
Personal information
Nationality Australia
Born (1992-09-08) 8 September 1992
Nuriootpa, South Australia
Sport
Country Australia
Sport Goalball
Event(s) Women's Team

Rachel Henderson (born 8 September 1992) is an Australian goalball player and is classified as a B2 competitor. While only starting playing the game in 2010, she made the national team in 2011 and competed in the 2011 IBSA Goalball World Cup and 2011 African-Oceania regional Paralympic qualifying competition. She was selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in goalball.

Personal life

Henderson was born in Nuriootpa, South Australia, on 8 September 1992.[1][2] She has the visual disability of retinitis pigmentosa, a heredity disease she was diagnosed with when she was four years old. As a child, Henderson was involved in javelin, and only stopped competing in 2010 following taking up goalball.[1] She was also involved in swimming, representing South Australia in a few national competitions, before leaving the sport at the same time she quit athletics.[1][3] She graduated from Nuriootpa High School in 2010.[2] As of 2012, she is studying with the goal of becoming a preschool teacher.[1]

Goalball

Henderson is a goalball player, and is classified as a B2 competitor.[1] She has a goalball scholarship with the South Australian Institute of Sport.[4] In 2011/2012, the Australian Sports Commission gave her a A$7,000 as part of their DAS grant program.[5] She does not play for a state team. Rather, she is coached by Australian Paralympic Committee (APC) Development Coordinator and athletics coach Cathy Lambert.[1][6] Having not even heard of goalball a few months before,[7] Henderson took up the sport in 2010 following an invitation to attend a team training camp.[1][3][7] She made the national team in January 2011 at the national trials,[3][7] and her national team debut in 2011 at the IBSA Goalball World Cup, where her team finished sixth,[1][3] and she scored four total goals.[1] Her team made it the quarter finals before losing to Russia 3–6. It then met the Spain women's national goalball team to try to earn a spot in the fifth/sixth place match, where Australia walked away 8–7 victors. In the fifth/sixth place match, it lost to the Israel women's national goalball team 6–8.[3] She played in the 2011 African-Oceania regional Paralympic qualifying competition and in its gold medal game against the New Zealand women's national goalball team,[8] which Australia won.[9]

Henderson was a named a member of the Aussie Belles that was going to the 2012 Summer Paralympics.[2][10][11] She was the youngest member of the team, and the only South Australian.[1][2] That the team qualified for the Games came as a surprise, as the Australian Paralympic Committee had been working on player development with the idea of qualifying for the 2016 Summer Paralympics.[11] An Australian team had not participated since the 2000 Summer Paralympics, when they earned an automatic selection as hosts, and the team finished last in the competition.[11][12] The country has not medalled in the event since 1976.[13] Going into the Paralympics, the team was ranked eighth in the world.[10] In the 2012 Summer Paralympics tournament, the Belles played games against Japan, Canada, the United States and Sweden. They lost every game, and did not advance to the finals.[14]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Rachel Henderson". Australia: Australian Paralympic Committee. 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 John Crawford (15 November 2011). "Nuriootpa teen's Aussie dream". Barossa & Light Herald. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "GOALBALL is set to get rolling in South Australia". Talent Times SA (PDF). South Australia. p. 1. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  4. ↑ "2012 Paralympic Games". Adelaide: Recreation and Sport South Australia. 5 July 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  5. ↑ "Grant Funding Report". Bruce, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Sports Commission. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  6. ↑ "APC staff recognised for women's sport contribution". Australian Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  7. 1 2 3 Elizabeth Henson (29 March 2011). "Nuriootpa teenager having fun". Barossa & Light Herald. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  8. ↑ "Aus goalballers play for London 2012 spots". Australia: Nine MSN. Retrieved 2012-07-09.
  9. ↑ FitzGerald, Deborah (24 November 2011). "London here we come". Inner West Courier. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  10. 1 2 Tilley, Andrew (22 May 2012). "News". Sydney: The University of Sydney. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  11. 1 2 3 Fife, Janet (14 June 2012). "Pride of Australia nominee Georgina Kenaghan is giving her team that ring of confidence". Sydney, Australia: Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2012-07-09.
  12. ↑ "Australian London 2012 athletes receive extra funding | London 2012 Paralympic news". insideworldparasport.biz. 29 June 2012. Retrieved 2012-07-09.
  13. ↑ "Meica, Nicole pack their bags for London". Sporting Wheelies. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  14. ↑ "Women's Goalball". Official site of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
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