| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Graham Thomas Condon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | New Zealander | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1949-02-11)11 February 1949 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 8 September 2007(2007-09-08) (aged 58) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Graham Thomas Condon QSM JP (11 February 1949 – 8 September 2007) was a disabled athlete who won seven medals for New Zealand competing in Paralympic swimming and athletic events and a total of 36 medals in international competition overall. He was also a local-body politician and a disability advocate.
Condon was rendered a paraplegic after contracting childhood polio.[1] Condon was the only New Zealander to take part in six consecutive Paralympics.[2] He competed in the Paralympics in athletics and swimming at both the 1968 Tel Aviv and 1972 Heidelberg Games, and won a gold medal in the Men's Discus 3 event at the latter competition.[3] He participated in the 1976 Toronto Paralympics[1][4] and won a gold medal in the Men's Discus 2 event and a silver medal in the Men's Slalom 2 event at the 1980 Arnhem Games; he also participated in swimming at the 1980 games.[3] At the 1984 New York/Stoke Mandeville Games, he won two bronze medals in the Men's Marathon 2 and Men's Slalom 2 events.[3] During the Marathon, he was with a bloc of competitors from Australia, America, and Canada when he hit a pothole around the 20-kilometre (12 mi) mark, causing the competitor behind him, Robert McIntyre, to lose his balance and flip upside down. Condon helped McIntyre back into position and ended up coming third.[3][5] His final Paralympics were the 1988 Seoul Games, where he won a silver medal in the Men's Slalom 2 event.[3] He won a total of seven Paralympic medals and 36 medals in international competitions throughout his career.[6]
He was one of the founding members of Parafed Canterbury, which strives to boost sport and recreational involvement among disabled people.[7] He was also a board member of the national sports agency SPARC for five years.[8] Condon was elected as a Christchurch city councillor in 1995 and served four terms as a city councillor.[1][9] He was standing for re-election for the Shirley-Papanui ward in the October 2007 election.[1]
On Saturday 8 September 2007 the 58-year-old Condon was killed in an accident involving a car while riding his hand-propelled bicycle.[1] He was struck by a fifteen-year-old driver on Lower Styx Road, Brooklands.[10] The funeral was held at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament where hundreds of mourners paid their respects.[11] He was survived by his wife of 35 years, Kath, and his two children, Craig and Andrea.[1][12]
Condon was awarded the Queen's Service Medal for community service in the 1982 Queen's Birthday Honours,[13] and a New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal in 1990.[12]
The Graham Condon Recreation and Sports CentreinPapanui, which opened on 9 October 2011, is named after him.[14] Parafed Canterbury have also named a scholarship after him.[7]
