Deon Kenzie
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | Australian [1] | ||||||||||||
| Born |
11 March 1996 [1] Devonport, Tasmania [1] | ||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||
| Sport | Paralympic athletics | ||||||||||||
| Event(s) | 1500m | ||||||||||||
| Club | North West Athletic Club (TAS) | ||||||||||||
| Coached by | Mike Gunson [1] | ||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||
| Personal best(s) | 4.08.51 1500m | ||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||
.svg.png){kind=icon}
Deon Kenzie is an Australian Para athlete who competes in the T38 (classification) prominently in the 1500m. On 13 December 2014, he set a world record in the Men's 1500m T38.[2] He has won medals at the 2013 and 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships.
Personal
Kenzie was born on 11 March 1996 in Devonport, Tasmania.[1] He has cerebral palsy, which impacts the right side of his body.[3] He has attended Forth Primary, Devonport High School and The Don College.[4] He lives in Forth, Tasmania.
Athletics
In 2013, Kenzie made his international debut at the IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon, France. Competing in the T38 1500m against the likes of Michael McKillop and Abbes Saidi, Kenzie led the first lap before eventually hanging on in the later stages for the bronze medal.
On 13 December 2014, he broke the Men's 1500m T38 world record at an athletics meeting in the Domain Athletic Centre in Hobart.[2] His time of 4.08.51 beat Abbes Saidi of Tunisia world record of 4:09.50 that was set in July 2005.[2] Kenzie is coached by Mike Gunson.[2] The record will need to be ratified by the International Paralympic Committee.[2]
At the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha, he won the bronze medal in the Men's 1500m T38 in a time of 4:11.60.[5] In the Men's 800m T38, whilst sitting in the bronze medal position coming into the home straight, he fell and eventually finished in seventh place in 2:11.58. [6] After winning the bronze medal in the Men's 1500m, he said:"It’s a great reward for all the hard work that I’ve put in this year and I can’t wait to get home to start working with Gunner (coach, Mike Gunson) and Philo (Saunders) on a program that will have me in the best possible shape when it counts even more in 2016. [5]
He is a Tasmanian Institute of Sport athletics scholarship holder.[7]
Recognition
- 2013 - The Advocate-IGA Junior Sports Awards.[8]
- 2014 - Athletics Tasmania U18 Athlete of the Year
- 2014 - Finalist for the Athletics Australia Para Athlete of the Year award.
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Deon Kenzie - Athlete Profile". International Paralympic Committee website. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Record run for Kenzie". Athletics Australia News, 13 December 2014. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
- ↑ Shaw, Rob (18 June 2013). "Devonport teen for paralympic world titles". The Examiner. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
- ↑ Edmunds, Luke (25 July 2013). "Deon claims bronze medal". The Advocate. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
- 1 2 "Doha 2015". Athletics Australia website. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
- ↑ "Doha 2015". Athletics Australia websire. Retrieved 25 October 2015.
- ↑ "NTC Track and Field Athletes". Tasmanian Institute of Sport website. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
- ↑ Whiteley, Cameron (14 December 2014). "Deon Kenzie targets Rio Paralympics". The Advocate. Retrieved 15 December 2014.