Nick Taylor (basketball)

Nick Taylor (born 18 January 1980) is a wheelchair basketball player. He competed at the 2008 Summer Paralympics playing for the South Africa men's national wheelchair basketball team. He represented Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in wheelchair basketball, being part of the men's team that won silver.[1] After basketball, he successfully took up wheelchair gold and won the inaugural Australian Wheelchair Golf Championship.

Nick Taylor
2012 Australian Paralympic team portrait of Taylor
Personal information
Nationality Australia
Born (1980-01-18) 18 January 1980 (age 44)
Sport
CountryAustralia
SportWheelchair basketball
EventMen's team
College teamUniversity of Texas at Arlington
TeamWollongong Roller Hawks
Turned pro2005
Medal record
Wheelchair basketball
Paralympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2012 London Men's wheelchair basketball
World Championship
Gold medal – first place 2014 Incheon Team

Personal

edit

Taylor was born on 18 January 1980 in South Africa.[2][3][4] He became a paraplegic as a result of a car accident in South Africa when he was eighteen years old the day before he was supposed to play in a basketball tournament.[2] He attended university in Cape Town and at the University of Texas.[2] In 2005, he moved to Illawarra, New South Wales,[2] participating in a surfing tryout that year.[4] In 2012, he lived in Towradgi, New South Wales.[2]

Basketball

edit

Growing up, Taylor played basketball in South Africa, playing for the South Africa junior national basketball team.[2] He also played for the Natal representative side and was scheduled to play in the 1998 U19 South African National Championships but was involved in a serious car accident the day before the competition.[2]

Wheelchair basketball

edit
 
Taylor at a game in Sydney
 
Taylor at the 2012 London Paralympics
 
Taylor at the 2012 London Paralympics

Taylor is a wheelchair basketball player,[2] playing in the shooting guard position.[5][6] He started playing wheelchair basketball in 2002.[2] He earned the 2010 Frank Ponta Trophy.[2]

Taylor played wheelchair basketball for the University of Texas at Arlington in 2002 with future Australian national team teammate Brad Ness.[7]

Taylor played for the Wollongong Roller Hawks in 2005.[7] In 2012, he was still with the Roller Hawks, which won the National Wheelchair Basketball League in 2012.[5][8][9] In his team's 75-59 semi-final win over the Wentley Wheelcats, he scored fourteen points.[10] In the Grand Final, he scored fourteen points in a game that was played before a crowd of 500.[6][9][11]

Taylor played for the South African men's national wheelchair basketball team at the 2008 Summer Paralympics.[2]

Taylor first made the Australian national team in 2009, making his debut at the Rollers & Gliders World Challenge.[2] He was selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in wheelchair basketball.[2][3][8] Going into the London Paralympics, his team was ranked number one in the world.[11] He had to earn his spot as fourteen men had been vying for spots on the team.[12]

At the 2012 Summer Paralympics he was part of the Australian men's wheelchair team that won silver.[1] He was a member of the Rollers team that won the gold medal at the 2014 Wheelchair Basketball World Championships .[13]

Golf

edit

In February 2022, Taylor won the inaugural Australian Wheelchair Championship.[14]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "Men's Wheelchair Basketball Results". London 2012 Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Nick Taylor". Australia: Australian Paralympic Committee. 2012. Archived from the original on 12 July 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  3. ^ a b "Games wheelchair basketball squads named". news.com.au. Archived from the original on 17 March 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  4. ^ a b "All hands on deck for surfing day". Fairfax. 8 April 2005. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  5. ^ a b Bree Fuller (2 July 2012). "Champion Roller Hawks under threat — Local News — News — General". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  6. ^ a b "Financial Review — News Store". Fairfax. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  7. ^ a b "Financial Review — News Store". Fairfax. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  8. ^ a b Mike Gandon (5 July 2012). "Stibners, Taylor selected for Paralympics — Local News — Sport — Basketball". Illawarra Mercury. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  9. ^ a b Tim Keeble (18 June 2012). "Roller Hawks trounce Perth Wheelcats — Local News — Sport — Basketball". Illawarra Mercury. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  10. ^ "Financial Review — News Store". Fairfax. 18 June 2012. Archived from the original on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  11. ^ a b "Financial Review — News Store". Fairfax. Archived from the original on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  12. ^ "Roll on, London Games". Illawarra Mercury. Fairfax. 16 June 2012. Archived from the original on 17 September 2016. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  13. ^ "Rollers are back to back World Champions". Australian Paralympic Committee News, 14 July 2014. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  14. ^ Blake, Martin (14 February 2022). "Prior And Taylor Take Vic Trophies North Of The Border". Golf Australia. Retrieved 19 February 2022.