How Aussie Paralympic star overcame GLANDULAR FEVER before winning gold in Paris: ‘I could barely walk’
- James Turner broke his own world record and won gold
- Australian sprinter has revealed he has been suffering from glandular fever
- Turner says he had trouble walking when he was sick
Sprinter James Turner has revealed how a debilitating bout of glandular fever almost dashed his gold medal dreams after he broke his own world record and successfully defended his T36 400m title.
Turner was lightning fast at the Stade de France on Tuesday, improving his previous world record of 51.71, which he set five years ago in Dubai.
The 25-year-old, who won the same race in Tokyo in 2021, finished in a time of 51.54.
His medal was one of three Australia won on day six of the Paris Games, along with Rachael Watson (women’s 100m freestyle S3) and Alex Saffy (men’s 100m butterfly S10) who won bronze.
Turner won Australia’s first gold medal on the track at these Games, explaining that his quest for glory was thrown into disarray when he was struck by glandular fever in May.
“I’ve been struggling with it for a month and a half, two months… it’s really affecting my training,” Turner said.
‘You have to build everything up again from scratch. A lot of people worked hard on that.
‘I’ve had phases. I’ve had waves of exhaustion, where I could barely walk and I was stumbling around, in a bit of delirium.
Sprinter James Turner broke his own world record and defended his T36 400m title
Turner revealed he was suffering from mononucleosis in May
‘Of course I couldn’t train and as soon as I started training I got worse and worse, so we had to be very careful and come back very slowly.
“I didn’t think I could break a world record here today. I just thought that if I do everything right, maybe I can cross the finish line first.”
He did, and Turner has now won gold at three consecutive Paralympics and the Canberra runner will also compete in the 100m sprint.
His only wish is that, just like in his 400m victory, he will be assigned lucky lane seven.
“When I found out I had court seven, it gave me a little bit more confidence. Because every time I’m on court seven at a big meet, I’m breaking a world record,” Turner said.
‘I’m also doing the 100m… I’d like lane seven, that’s more important for the turns (in the 400m), but let’s see if we can make it.’
Turner’s gold medal was followed by bronze for Watson and Saffy in the swimming pool at La Defense Arena during the evening session.
Turner reported having difficulty walking and experiencing waves of exhaustion
Turner’s gold medal was Australia’s first on the track at these Games
Watson’s event was a new discipline and she will aim to defend her 50m freestyle title later this week.
Saffy, meanwhile, was overjoyed after leaving his parental home in Bunbury, Western Australia, to pursue his career in Canberra.
The 18-year-old said he had already thought about his future in competitive swimming, but his new status as a Paralympic medallist was a welcome reward.
“I really doubted whether everything in this sport was worth it for me, because I doubted it a lot,” Saffy said.
‘That medal is such a relief.
“It’s crazy, I’ve been training for this for three years and I’m very emotional. I’m just glad it’s over.”