Bio
Emerging Para-alpine skier Jonty ‘Jontos’ O’Callaghan, who was born with cerebral palsy affecting his right side, first set his sights on competing at the Paralympic Games after relocating to Switzerland in primary school, where his parents enrolled him in snow sports.
Now looking to earn selection to the 2018 Australian Paralympic Winter Team, Jonty is edging closer to his goal of winning Paralympic gold after achieving multiple podium finishes in what was a sensational 2016/17 season.
Under the guidance of coach Chris McKnight, Jonty represented Australia at the 2017 IPC Alpine Skiing Europa Cup in Veysonnaz, Switzerland, where he won bronze in the men’s Giant Slalom behind Finland’s Santeri Kiiveri and France’s Jordan Broisin, and placed fifth in the Super-G, just four seconds behind race leader and local favourite Robin Cuche.
Off the back of these results, he performed strongly at the 2017 World Para-alpine Skiing Championships in Tarvisio, Italy, clocking a time of 2:31.04 to finish 18th in a field of 30 in the Giant Slalom.
When he’s not chasing snow, history nut Jonty enjoys learning about World War I and II, travelling the world, and watching The Walking Dead. He’s just over a year into studying a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Melbourne, and is tossing up further study in business or law.
A Melbourne local, Jonty is a diehard Geelong Cats fan. He is also a descendent of Robert Hoddle, the surveyor who devised Melbourne’s famed inner-city grid system.
