Piers Gilliver

Started: He began wheelchair fencing in 2010. (gofundme.com, 02 Jul 2014) Reason: "When my disability progressed and affected my mobility I decided to look for a new sport. I had always wanted to fence when I was able-bodied but I was enjoying horse riding at the time and so never pursued it. When I lost my mobility I needed to look for a new sport in which wheelchair users could participate." (piersgilliver.co.uk, 08 Oct 2023; Athlete, 08 Mar 2016) Ambition: To defend his gold medal in the A category individual epee and to finish on the podium in sabre at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (teambath.com, 03 Jul 2024; bbc.com, 12 Dec 2022) Awards: He was named Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire [MBE] in the 2022 New Year Honours list. (britishfencing.com, 05 Jan 2022) He was named 2019/20 Wheelchair Athlete of the Year by British Fencing. (britishfencing.com, 08 Dec 2020) Additional Info: PARIS AMBITIONS He believes that he is in the best form of his career heading into the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, having won the A category individual epee title at both the 2020 Paralympic Games and the 2023 World Championships in Terni, Italy. "For me it [the world title] solidifies that I really am in a good position for Paris now. I've been fencing for a long time, but the last couple of seasons have been my best so far and it's a really exciting place to be, and one I never thought I'd be in to be honest. My goal is looking ahead to the Paris Paralympics, to defend my epee gold medal title. On top of that, I'm also looking to pursue a medal in sabre as well. I'm fairly new to this weapon so I've still got a lot to learn, but hopefully the [British National Training Centre] will really help my training in that." (SportsDeskOnline, 12 Dec 2023; bbc.com, 08 Oct 2023, 12 Dec 2022)

Sporting Relatives: His younger brother Miles has performed as a dancer with the Birmingham Royal Ballet. (X profile, 03 Mar 2021; teambath.com, 30 Sep 2019)