Caz Walton

Caz Walton OBE (born Carol Bryant; 1 February 1947) is a British retired wheelchair athlete and former Great Britain Paralympic team manager. She was a multi-disciplinary gold medallist who competed in numerous Paralympic Games. Between 1964 and 1976 she won medals in athletics, swimming, table tennis, and fencing. She took a break from the Paralympics, entering the basketball and fencing competitions in 1988. In total Walton won ten gold medals during her Paralympic career, making her one of the most successful British athletes of all time. Walton should also have been awarded gold in the 1968 Tel Aviv Women's Pentathlon incomplete but, due to a miscalculation of her total score which went unnoticed at the time, she was given third place and a bronze medal.[1]

Carol Walton

Personal information
Birth name	Carol Bryant
Born	(1947-02-01) 1 February 1947
Sport
Country	United Kingdom
Sport	Paralympic athletics Para table tennis Paralympic swimming Wheelchair fencing Wheelchair basketball
Retired	1994
Medal record Paralympic Games Athletics 1964 Tokyo Women's Slalom open 1964 Tokyo Women's Wheelchair Dash below T10 1968 Tel Aviv Women's 60 m Wheelchair C 1968 Tel Aviv Women's Slalom C 1972 Heidelberg Women's 4x40 m Wheelchair Relay open 1972 Heidelberg Women's 60 m Wheelchair 4 1968 Tel Aviv Women's Pentathlon incomplete (see text) 1972 Heidelberg Women's Pentathlon 4 1976 Toronto Women's 60 m 4 Table tennis 1968 Tel Aviv Women's Doubles C 1972 Heidelberg Women's Singles 4 1968 Tel Aviv Women's Singles C Swimming 1968 Tel Aviv Women's 100 m Breaststroke open 1976 Toronto Women's Singles 4–5 Fencing 1988 Seoul Women's Epee Individual 4–6 1972 Heidelberg Women's Foil Novice Individual 1976 Toronto Women's Foil Individual 4–5

Sporting career

Walton enjoyed a lengthy competitive career, winning medals in European, Commonwealth, and World Championships.[2] She competed in a wide range of events, including athletics, table tennis, swimming, fencing, and basketball.[3][4]

Paralympics

Walton began her Paralympic career at the 1964 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo. She took part in two athletics events, the slalom and the wheelchair dash, winning gold in both. At the 1968 Games in Tel Aviv Walton competed in numerous track and field disciplines, the breaststroke and backstroke in swimming, and singles and doubles in table tennis. She won at least a silver medal in all three areas, finishing the Games with six medals three of which were gold.[3]

Walton's most successful Paralympics was the 1972 Games in Heidelberg. She won two gold and one bronze medal in the athletics events and gold in the table tennis singles. She entered the fencing event rather than the swimming, winning the novice foil individual event. At the 1976 Games in Toronto Watson entered similar events, winning bronze in athletics, table tennis, and fencing.[3]

For the 1988 Summer Paralympics in Seoul, Walton opted to compete in the wheelchair basketball and fencing events.[4] Great Britain did not progress beyond the preliminaries of the basketball having lost all four matches,[5] but Watson achieved what would be her final medal when she won gold in the épée individual 4–6.[4] This took her total to ten Paralympic gold medals.[6]

Walton retired from international competitions in 1994.[2] She became the manager of Great Britain's Paralympic fencing team in 1996, reprising the role for the Games of 2000 and 2008. For the 2004 Games she was the team administrator for Great Britain.[6]

Awards and accolades

In 1970 Walton received the Bill McGowran Trophy for Disabled Sports Personality of the Year from the Sports Journalists' Association.[7] She was appointed an OBE in 2010 for her services to disability sport.[8]

References

1. "Caz Walton honoured by SWOTY Lifetime Achievement Award". ParalympicsGB. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
2. "Hall of Fame". WheelPower. Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
3. "Athlete Search Results – Carol Bryant". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
4. "Athlete Search Results – Carol Walton". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
5. "Seoul 1988 Paralympic Games Wheelchair Basketball Women". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
6. "Caz Walton". Paralympians Club. Archived from the original on 25 December 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
7. "Past winners of the SJA British Sports Awards". Sports Journalists' Association. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
8. "Amy Williams & Tony McCoy top Birthday honours list". BBC News. 11 June 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2012.

External links

• The history of the Paralympics – photograph of Carol Bryant in winning a gold medal 1964