TAYLOR GOUGH
Early Promise in Rugby
Taylor was a standout talent in Leicester Tigers' academy, known for his dynamic play and hard hits as a back-row forward. He made his senior debut for the club in the Premiership Cup against Northampton in January 2019 and had just signed another senior contract in February 2020, marking the beginning of what seemed to be a promising professional rugby career.
Life-Changing Accident
In June 2020, at just 20 years old, Taylor's life took a dramatic turn when he was involved in a severe car accident. The crash resulted in multiple injuries, Most notably, Taylor suffered severe spinal injuries that left him paralysed from the chest down.
Unyielding Resilience
Despite the devastating prognosis, Taylor's determination and spirit shone through. He was discharged from the hospital just three months after the accident, a remarkable recovery that doctors had deemed unlikely. Taylor's rehabilitation journey was supported by the Matt Hampson Foundation, where he engaged in intensive physiotherapy and adapted to new ways of living.
Transition to Para-Canoe
Embracing a new chapter, Taylor discovered a passion for para-canoe. His athletic background and unwavering determination translated seamlessly into the sport. Taylor's commitment and skill have led him to making history as the first VL1 to represent Great Britain at the European Championships.
KYLIE GRIMES MBE
Kylie Grimes is a triple Paralympian of the London, Rio and Tokyo games. While she competed in Athletics in Rio, her love for team sports has seen her return to her first love of wheelchair rugby (once known as Murder Ball).
An athlete, show jumper, and aspiring Olympian all of her life, within just three years of her life-changing spinal injury in 2006 Kylie returned to competitive sport by cycling 450 km, from Vietnam to Cambodia, to raise money for Regain, a charity dedicated to helping get newly injured tetraplegics back into sport. Having undergone a remarkably swift personal rehabilitation herself, she now seeks to help others do the same and continues to undertake sponsored rides around the world for Regain.
She started playing for the London Wheelchair Rugby Club in 2009, and for Great Britain in 2011. In 2012 she qualified for her first Paralympics in London in which the team finished fifth.
She switched to Athletics and competed in the World Championships in Doha in 2015; the Rio Paralympics in Rio, where she finished fourth; and the London World Championships in 2017 where she came fifth.
Returning to her team in 2018, she and the British Wheelchair Rugby Team won gold in Denmark to become the European Champions in 2019, also qualifying for Tokyo 2020. The Tokyo Paralympic Games was delayed a year due to COVID-19, but it finally happened in August 2021 and the Great Britain Team became the Paralympic Champions. The Team were the first European Team to win a medal at the Paralympics in Wheelchair Rugby and the first Team Sport to win gold for ParalympicsGB.
Kylie's dream of becoming a Paralympic Champion finally came true thirteen years after training as an elite athlete, she also became the first female in the history of the sport to win gold.