2018 Nominees

(2016 ☆ ARCHIVED) Emma Wiggs - Great Britain

EMMA WIGGS (Great Britain) - Nominee for the 2016 'Sportswoman of the Year' award.

 

  • Born: 1980, sport: Canoe Sprint, represents: Great Britain
  • 2016: Paralympic Games: Gold KL2 200m, World Championships: Gold KL2 200m.
  • 2015: World Championships: Gold KL2 200m. European Championships: Silver KL2
  • 2014: World Championships: Gold K1 & V1 200m TA.  European Championships: Gold V1 200m TA, Silver K1 200m TA.

With five World Championship gold medals already to her name, Emma Wiggs was determined to add one more medal to her tally, a Paralympic gold medal. On Thursday September 15th, she achieved this, etching her name into the history books as the first paralympic champion in the women’s KL2 200m.

Going into the final as the hot favourite, Emma had a lot of pressure on her shoulders but she didn’t let that affect her performance. In a commanding display of power and technique, she recorded a time of 53.288sec to beat her rivals by 2.311. When crossing the finish line her emotions went into overdrive and adrenaline overcame her so much that she passed out on the pontoon.

After contracting a virus 18 years ago that left her irreparable nerve damage in her legs Emma was given the opportunity to try different Paralympic sports before committing to seated volleyball. She made her Paralympic debut in 2012 before deciding to look for another sport that would give her the best chance to be the best she could be. That’s when she began her Paracanoe journey.

Five months after sitting in a canoe for the first time, she was 2013 K1 200 TA world champion. She then cemented her dominance by becoming the 2014, 2015 and 2016 world champion in the same event, as well winning the V1 200 TA in 2014.

Activities and achievements off the water:

  • She works as a teacher & Athlete Mentor for Youth Sports Trust / Athlete
  • Hobbies include cooking and camping
  • She loves watching the ‘Great British Bake Off.’

This is a 2016 archived nominee. Voting has closed.

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