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Bill Chaffey (paratriathlete)
Bill Chaffey (born 9 October 1975) is an Australian paratriathlete who won his fifth world championship in 2015. He represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics when paratriathlon made its debut at the Paralympics.[1] PersonalChaffey became an incomplete paraplegic when, as a non-disabled triathlete training for an Ironman Triathlon, he was hit by a truck while on his bicycle.[2] CareerHe competes in the PT1 (handcycle/racing wheelchair classification) (formerly TRI-1) and was TRI-1 Paratriathlon World Champion in 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2015.[3] Chaffey's come-from-behind win over Jetze Plat was named in the International Paralympic Committee's Top 50 moments in Paralympic sport of 2013.[4] Chaffey was nominated for IPC Athlete of the Month in September 2013.[5] In January 2013, Chaffey won the inaugural Australian Paratriathlon Championships, beating Ironman and Paralympian John Maclean and Paralympic rower Erik Horrie.[6][7][8] He won the Men's TRI-1 classification of the 2014 Oceania Paratriathlon Championships in a world best time of 58.22,[9] and won the 2014 ITU World Paratriathlon event in Elwood, Melbourne.[10][11] In March 2013, Chaffey set a new TRI-1 world best time for an Olympic distance triathlon. His time of 2:08:59 bettered the previous record by 5 minutes.[12] In 2016 Chaffey again bettered that time by over 5 minutes setting a new world best time of 2:02:35. In May 2013, Chaffey raced Ironman Cairns where he qualified for Ironman World Championships in Kona.[13][14][15] He placed 2nd his classification in Kona.[16] Chaffey was forced to withdraw from the 2014 ITU World Triathlon Series Final in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada after breaking his hip in a training accident at home just prior to the event.[17] In January 2015, he returned from injury to win the Oceania Paratriathlon Championships PT1 event at Penrith, New South Wales.[18] Chaffey won his fifth world championship at the 2015 World Championships Final in Chicago.[19] Chaffey competed at the 2016 Rio Paralympics Games and finished fourth in the Men's PT1 event.[20] In preparation for the Paralympics, Chaffey stated "I just thought, this has to be mine. I have to have it...the Paralympics, A paralympic gold would not be a level step up but a greater step up, it's something I'm really putting a lot of focus on."[21] During the Paralympics, Chaffey expressed his love of triathlon through saying "It's triathlon, it's in my blood. I love it. It's the greatest sport in the world".[22] At the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Gold Coast, Queensland, he won the bronze medal in the men's PWTC despite crashing in the hand cycle leg and riding the final 8 km of that leg with one pedal.[23] In his final major international event, at the 2018 World Championships, Gold Coast, Queensland, he finished sixth in the Men's PTWC.[24] Recognition
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