TUREK Joshua

United States of America

Wheelchair Basketball

Date of Birth: 12 Apr 1979

Age: 42

Gender: Male

Sport Class: 3.5

Place of birth: COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA

Birth Country:

United States of America

Place of residence : COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA

Residence Country:

United States of America

Events and Medals
Records
Schedule
Bio
General Interest
Milestones

Events and Medals

Discipline	Event	Rank	Medal
Wheelchair Basketball	Men USA United States	1

Schedule

Start Time	Location	Event	Status
	Ariake Arena	Men's Preliminary Round Group B #08 USA United States 58 GER Germany 55	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Preliminary Round Group B #23 IRI Islamic Rep. of Iran 41 USA United States 65	Finished
	Musashino Forest Sport Plaza	Men's Preliminary Round Group B #31 GBR Great Britain 64 USA United States 63	Finished
	Musashino Forest Sport Plaza	Men's Preliminary Round Group B #40 USA United States 66 AUS Australia 38	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Preliminary Round Group B #50 ALG Algeria 25 USA United States 86	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Quarterfinal #58 USA United States 52 TUR Turkey 45	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Semifinal #67 ESP Spain 52 USA United States 66	Finished
	Ariake Arena	Men's Gold Medal Match #73 USA United States 64 JPN Japan 60	Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

Rank	Event	Year	Location
Paralympic Games
1	Men	2016	Rio de Janeiro, BRA
3	Men	2012	London, GBR
7	Men	2004	Athens, GRE
World Championships
2	Men	2014	Incheon, KOR

JT (Athlete, 07 May 2016)

Occupation:

Political Science - Southwest Minnesota State University, Marshall, MN, USA

Languages spoken:

Ron Lykins [national], USA

Position style:

Sporting relatives:

Both his brother John and sister Elisha have played professional basketball in Europe. (teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2021)

2004 for United States (teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2021)

He took up the sport at age 14. (Athlete, 07 May 2016; teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2021)

He was introduced to the sport at a wheelchair sports camp in Omaha, NE, United States of America. "Immediately as soon as I was in the chair, I was like this is the sport for me." (teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2021; National Wheelchair Basketball Association YouTube channel, 22 Aug 2016)

To win a second Paralympic gold medal at the 2020 Games in Tokyo. (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

In addition to daily shooting practice he does weight training four times a week. (teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2021)

Winning gold at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

US basketball player Larry Bird. (Athlete, 07 May 2016)

Southwest Minnesota State University coach Dale Erickson, and former teammate Ryan Martin. (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

In February 2022 he will be inducted into the Southwest Minnesota State University Hall of Honour. (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

He was named the Most Valuable Player [MVP] of the 2008 Copa del Rey in Spain. (cidefetage.wordpress.com, 01 Apr 2011)

In 2002 he was named Southwest Minnesota State University Male Student-Athlete of the Year. During his time at the university he was a four-time All-American. (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

General Interest

Classification
3.5 (teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2021)

Type of Impairment
Spinal Cord Injuries (Athlete, 07 May 2016)

Origin of Impairment
Congenital (Athlete, 07 May 2016)

Impairment Details
He was born with spina bifida. (Athlete, 07 May 2016)

General
INTERNATIONAL COMEBACK
He was part of the US team that won gold at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, after which he decided to step away from the national team and focus on his club career in Spain. However, after the US team lost in the final of the 2018 World Championships in Hamburg, Germany, to Great Britain, he was persuaded to make a return to the national team. "My goal for entering the sport from day one was to represent the US in the Paralympic Games and win a gold medal. I was happy to stop there. I was still playing in Spain, which is the best league in the world. I was among the top scorers and named to the All-Star Five team. The US played in the world championships in 2018 without me and we ended up losing. A lot of the players and staff got in touch with me and told me they needed me to come back on the team. So I said, 'Let's do it'." (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

CLUB CAREER
He played professionally in Europe for nearly 17 years, for teams in France, Italy and Spain. He met his wife Jarolin in Spain. "It wasn't NBA money, but it allowed me to do two things - play the sport I love, and see the world on someone else's dime. I feel like I'm a better person for having done it, I've experienced other cultures and I'm grateful for the opportunity." (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

OCCUPATION
After the Spanish league season was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he returned to his hometown of Council Bluffs, IA, United States of America, and took on a full-time job working for a supplier of mobility devices. (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

FURTHER EDUCATION
He has studied for a master's degree at DeVry College of New York's Keller Graduate School of Management. (marshallindependent.com, 09 Jul 2021)

Social Media

https://instagram.com/joshuaturek04

Legend

:: Gold Medal
:: Gold Medal Event
:: Silver Medal Event
:: Bronze Medal Event

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