WIGGS Emma

14 Jun 1980
41
Female
KL2,VL2
LONDON
 
Great Britain
NOTTINGHAM
 
Great Britain

Events and Medals

Discipline Event Rank Medal
CSP Canoe Sprint Women's Kayak Single 200m - KL2 2 Silver Medal
Women's Va'a Single 200m - VL2 1 Gold Medal

Records

Best Time Event Mark Date Location
PB Women's Va'a Single 200m - VL2 Final A 57.028 3 September, 2021 Tokyo (JPN)

Schedule

Change
Start Time Location Event Status
Sea Forest Waterway
Finished
Sea Forest Waterway
Finished
Sea Forest Waterway
Finished
Sea Forest Waterway
Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

:

CANOE SPRINT
RankEventYearLocationResult
Paralympic Games
1Kayak Single 200m - KL22016Rio de Janeiro, BRA53.288
World Championships
1Va'a Single 200m - VL22019Szeged, HUN56.10
1Va'a Single 200m - VL22018Montemor-o-Velho, POR57.766
1Kayak Single 200m - KL22017Racice, CZE49.947
1Kayak Single 200m - KL22016Duisburg, GER53.691
1Kayak Single 200m - KL22015Milan, ITA53.023
1Women's K1 200m TA2014Moscow, RUS53.128
1Women's V1 200m TA2014Moscow, RUS53.128
1Women's K1 200m TA2013Duisburg, GER56.982
2Kayak Single 200m - KL22019Szeged, HUN49.03
2Kayak Single 200m - KL22018Montemor-o-Velho, POR53.402
European Championships
1Va'a Single 200m - VL22019Poznan, POL1:09.072
1Kayak Single 200m - KL22018Belgrade, SRB48.568
1Va'a Single 200m - VL22018Belgrade, SRB57.903
1Kayak Single 200m - KL22017Plovdiv, BUL51.292
2Kayak Single 200m - KL22019Poznan, POL51.242

SITTING VOLLEYBALL
RankEventYearLocation
Paralympic Games
8Women2012London, GBR
World Championships
11Women2010Edmond, OK, USA
:
Athlete, Motivational Speaker
:
Sports Science, Teaching - University of Chichester, Great Britain
:
Wife Gemma
:
English
:
Portsmouth Sharks [Portsmouth, GBR]
:
Scott Simon [national], GBR
:
She competed in sitting volleyball at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. (bbc.com, 03 Mar 2016)
:
She had right wrist surgery after a training injury in 2018. (bbc.co.uk, 22 Aug 2019)
:
She took up the sport in 2013. (bbc.com, 03 Mar 2016)
:
After competing in sitting volleyball at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London, she wanted a new challenge. (bbc.com, 03 Mar 2016)
:
She trains six days a week. (Facebook page, 24 Aug 2020)
:
British rower Steve Redgrave, British middle distance runner Kelly Holmes. (channel4.com, 18 Nov 2011; emmawiggs.co.uk, 07 Sep 2011)
:
"I'm just making the best of the bits of me that still work." (bbc.com, 03 Mar 2016)
:
She was named a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire [MBE] in the 2017 New Year's Honours list. (paralympic.org, 31 Dec 2016)

General Interest

Classification
KL2, VL2 (ICF, 23 Sep 2020)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (bbc.com, 03 Mar 2016)

Impairment Details
At age 18 she contracted a virus that affected her neurological system while she was on a gap year in Australia. The illness resulted in paralysis in her legs. "I was chasing and shearing sheep and working on a farm. About six weeks in I contracted a virus, we still don't know where from, but it basically left me paralysed in my arms and legs overnight." (bbc.com, 03 Mar 2016; portsmouth.co.uk, 11 Oct 2011)

General
COMING OUT
She believes there is a stereotype surrounding female athletes and homosexuality, and that Para athletes can struggle to come to terms with their sexual orientation. "Quite often there's a stigma attached to females being sporty, that everyone must be lesbians. I find that a real struggle, although I can't really buck the trend. Maybe some feel like they have their disability to deal with. If a disabled person comes out as gay, is that going to be an extra thing? Maybe it's another barrier, as if they think they can't fight another cause. If you look at the percentage of females who drop out of sport, is that because if they carry on doing sport, people are going to think they're lesbians? What does it matter? We can't be doing that to people. It's too important to have people choosing to not do sport because of what other people might speak. That's a really dangerous place to be in. I'd love for that to change, because while I don't buck the trend, I just think it would never happen in men's sport. It would never happen to the same degree." (telegraph.co.uk, 20 Feb 2020)

BODY IMAGE
Before she took up Para sport she says she was self-conscious about her body image and concerned that she wouldn't be able to do the same sort of exercise as when she was able-bodied. She also did not want to gain too much muscle, as she was afraid of being stereotyped. "I was always really paranoid about being fat and in a wheelchair, because I didn't see how I would ever shift it. I used to eat no carbs, it was a body image thing. When I got that right, I made so many more gains in the gym, put on more size and the boats went faster. My body shape is very different now compared to when I came into this sport. That isn't feminine, so then am I exacerbating this stereotypical image of female athletes being gay, muscly, butch? Yes, I am." (telegraph.co.uk, 20 Feb 2020)

INJURY STRUGGLE
She considered quitting competitive sport after her wrist injury in 2018. "With the injury it's the first time in my life I've really felt quite disabled. It probably sounds weird coming from a person who's been in a wheelchair for more than 20 years, but it's been that tough." She recovered to win a gold medal in the VL2 200m at the 2019 World Championships in Szeged, Hungary. (bbc.co.uk, 22 Aug 2019)

Legend
:
Gold Medal
:
Silver Medal
:
Gold Medal Event
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Silver Medal Event
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Bronze Medal Event
PB:
Paralympic Best Time
Timing and scoring provided by OMEGA. Results powered by Atos