Ben Newton loves sport. He watches it, wants to work in it and in 2004 started playing it when he first took up wheelchair rugby.

He has since crafted a blossoming career in wheelchair rugby, having won the National Wheelchair Rugby League with New South Wales five times. In 2010 he relocated to Brisbane and was named in the All-Star 4, was then selected to the national squad and in 2011 made his international debut by helping Australia win the Great Britain Cup.

Ben’s greatest moment on the rugby court came at his first Paralympic Games, when after years of hard work, Australia won the team’s first ever gold medal. Strong role models played a part in the team’s success and as a passionate ice hockey fan, Ben finds the Chicago Blackhawks win in the 2010 Stanley Cup inspirational and looks up to their captain Jonathan Toews for the great example he leads on and off the ice.

Ben loves the film Blade Runner and tries not to dwell on the negatives but instead embrace the positives in his life. He tries to live a healthy life and hopes he has only just scratched the surface of his wheelchair rugby career.

On top of wheelchair rugby, Ben is studying Cert IV in Fitness to add to his psychology degree in his goal to become a sports psychologist.