Dec 21 - Ballito Umhl

Text: Leah Shone
Our very own
Paralympian!
South African Paralympic athlete Tyrone Pillay recently
competed in the 2020 Paralympics held in Tokyo. We
asked him about the experience and his incredible
journey to get there.
From being bullied by kids (and even
teachers) at school, to raising his
country’s flag as a member of the
South African Paralympic squad for
the second time, congenital amputee
Tyrone is proof that anything is
possible – if you are willing to work
hard enough for it.
Originally from Durban, the 41-yearold
shot put champion says, despite
being born disabled, his dream was
always to represent his country as
a sportsman. “I am living proof that
dreams do come true. I was three
years old when I dreamt of one day
competing for my country. Thirtythree
years later I climbed onto the
podium with a medal round my neck.”
Tyrone walked away with a bronze
medal in the 2016 Rio Paralympics,
breaking both the South African and
African shot put records in the same
year. He has competed in four world
championships and was named KZN
Sportsman of the year with a disability
and KZN Sports Personality of the year
in 2014.
Athletics wasn’t originally where
Tyrone’s passion lay. “Cricket was that
for me,” he says, “but despite playing
competitively for years, I could sadly
never live out my dream of playing
for South Africa as my disability was
always going to be a hurdle that I
wasn’t ready to face.”
It was when he was watching the
Beijing Paralympics on television in
2008 that he realised his future lay
elsewhere. “I saw amazing people
competing with no arms, no legs,
in wheelchairs and some that were
blind. I realised this was for me and
I started my Paralympic dream the
following year. I decided I needed to
go where I would be respected for
who I was.”
Growing up with a disability was easy,
Tyrone says, until he started going
to school. “Kids were mean to me
and used to call me names. It was a
challenging time and I didn’t know
how to cope. I even had a primary
school teacher who used to bully
me. It’s not something I’ve ever really
spoken about, but I think it made me
who I am today. It wasn’t easy, but
with the support of my family I was
able to overcome it.”
Speaking about his recent experience
at the Tokyo Paralympic Games,
Tyrone says it was a complicated and
20 Get It • Ballito Umhlanga Dec 2021 / Jan 2022