Grant Manzoney

Born with a congenital deformity in both legs, Grant Manzoney played cricket, ten pin bowling, baseball, football and tee-ball before turning to wheelchair sports, taking up wheelchair basketball. Like Dransfield, he discovered Para-badminton while attending a Paralympics Australia Come and Try Day and he loved it. Never one to do things by half, Grant started training hard and soon had success on a national scale.

While he did not achieve the results he had hoped for during his Paralympic debut, he shared with his training partner, Caitlin Dransfield, the amazing honour of becoming Australia’s first Paralympic badminton player, after the sport was introduced for Tokyo 2020.

So taken is Grant by Para-badminton and the opportunities it’s given him so far, he says that he hopes one day to become a coach and help new generations come through the ranks.…

Date of birth

16 December 1969

Sport

Para-badminton

Past Paralympic Games

Tokyo 2020

Impairment

Physical Impairment – Limb deficiency

How acquired

Birth

Residence

Yanchep, WA

Occupation

Data Entry Operator

Started competing

2016

First competed for Australia

2017

Sport career highlights

Winning the Oceania Championship and Australian Championship in 2018, another Australian Championship in 2019 and Oceania Championship in 2020

Greatest sporting moments

Winning two cricket premierships. Any West Coast Eagles premierships.

Heroes/role models

His parents.

Favourite quote

There is a sacredness in tears. They are not a mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition and of unspeakable love.