Alistair Donohoe

Started: He began cycling at age 13 in Darwin, NT, Australia. (cycling.org.au, 15 Feb 2014) Reason: He was involved in triathlon when he was younger because his parents were triathletes, but in the end he decided to focus on cycling. "I did everything as a kid - athletics, rugby, mountain biking, BMX, road cycling and the velodrome. After my accident, I went more towards the velodrome than the road. In terms of an injury to get in a certain sport, I was lucky with cycling. As soon as my hand began working again, I was back on a bike." (sbs.com.au, 05 Nov 2019; paralympic.org.au, 01 Sep 2016; cycling.org.au, 15 Feb 2014) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (Victorian Institute of Sport Instagram profile, 28 Aug 2023) Awards: He was named Male Para Track Cyclist of the Year for 2021 by Cycling Australia. (Blackburn Cycling Club Facebook page, 12 Dec 2021) In 2019 he was named Elite Male Para Track Cyclist of the Year by Cycling Australia. (australiancyclingteam.com, 16 Dec 2019) He received the 2018 Para Athlete Award from the Victorian Institute of Sport [VIS] in Australia. (vis.org.au, 01 Nov 2018) He was named Elite Male Para Cyclist of the Year in 2014, 2015 and 2018 by Cycling Australia. (vis.org.au, 16 Nov 2015; commonwealthgames.com.au, 27 Nov 2018) He received the Para Performance of the Year award at the 2015 Australian Institute of Sport [AIS] Sport Performance Awards. (paralympic.org.au, 25 Feb 2016) He was presented with the 2015 Victorian Institute of Sport [VIS] 2XU Youth award in Australia. (paralympic.org.au, 24 Nov 2015) Additional Info: PARALYMPIC CRASHES He placed fifth in the men's C4-5 road race at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro after he collided with Ukrainian cyclist Yegor Dementyev in the final 200m ahead of the finish line. He was fifth again at the 2020 Games in Tokyo following another crash with Dementyev on a circuit that had become slippery following rain. "The road race still eludes me. But I still had so much fun out there. Even just crashing and getting back on, I was like, 'Oh, this is racing'. It adds a bit more fuel to fire for Paris 2024. That's not too long, is it?" (theguardian.com, 03 Sep 2021; dailytelegraph.com.au, 03 Sep 2021; au.movember.com, 22 Aug 2021)