Piers Gilliver
MBE
Born (1994-09-17) 17 September 1994
Sport
SportFencing
WeaponÉpée A / Sabre A
National coachPeter Rome
ClubUniversity of Bath
Disability classA
Medal record
Wheelchair fencing
Representing  Great Britain
Summer Paralympics
Gold medal – first place2020 TokyoÉpée A
Silver medal – second place2016 Rio de JaneiroÉpée A
Silver medal – second place2020 TokyoTeam foil
Bronze medal – third place2020 TokyoTeam épée
IWAS World Championships
Silver medal – second place2015 EgerÉpée A
Silver medal – second place2017 RomeÉpée A
Bronze medal – third place2017 RomeSabre A
Gold medal – first place2019 CheongjuÉpée A
Bronze medal – third place2019 CheongjuSabre A
Bronze medal – third place2019 CheongjuÉpée Team
IWAS European Championships
Silver medal – second place2016 TorinoÉpée A
Silver medal – second place2018 TerniÉpée A

Piers Alexander Gilliver MBE (born 17 September 1994) is a British wheelchair fencer, who competes in both épée and sabre. He is the 2020 Paralympic champion in the Individual Épée, A classification. He is the first British Paralympic champion in the sport since Carol Walton in 1988.

Gilliver has previously won medals at both World and European Championship level. In 2016 he represented Great Britain at the Rio Paralympics and won a silver medal [1]

Personal history

Gilliver was born in Gloucester England in 1994. He attended Hopebrook C of E School in Longhope. He has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome a congenital illness which in 2007 left him as a full-time wheelchair user.[2]

Wheelchair fencing career

Gilliver first got into wheelchair fencing in 2010 at his local fencing club in Cheltenham after looking for a new sport as his mobility decreased.[1][3] He joined the British Disabled Fencing Association in 2011.[3] In 2012 Gilliver made his international debut for the British team at a World Cup event in Warsaw, coming 11th in the Category A épée.[3]

In 2013 Gilliver took part in his first IWAS World Championships. The same year he was named Junior World Champion in the U23's Category A épée.[3] In the buildup to the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio, Gilliver took nine podium finishes at international matches including the silver medal at the IWAS wheelchair fencing World Championships in Eger.[1][3] In 2016 he was selected for TeamGB at the 2016 Summer Paralympics where he gained a silver medal in the Épée A.[4]

In July 2021 Gilliver, Dimitri Coutya, Gemma Collis-McCann and Oliver Lam-Watson were identified as the British wheelchair fencing team who would compete at the delayed 2020 Summer Paralymics in Tokyo,[4] where he won gold in the Épée A, silver in the Team Foil and bronze in the Team Épée.[5]

Gilliver was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to fencing.[6][7]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Gilliver, Piers". paralympic.org. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  2. ↑ Hudson, Elizabeth. "Piers Gilliver: Wheelchair fencer faces uncertain future". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Piers Gilliver". rio.paralympics.org.uk. Retrieved 1 September 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Gilliver & Coutya named in GB team". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  5. ↑ "Wheelchair Fencing - Results Book" (PDF). Olympics.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  6. ↑ "No. 63571". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 2022. p. N19.
  7. ↑ "New Year Honours 2022: Jason Kenny receives a knighthood and Laura Kenny made a dame". BBC Sport. 31 December 2021.
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