{"id":31282,"date":"2024-07-31T10:18:41","date_gmt":"2024-07-31T09:18:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/?p=31282"},"modified":"2024-07-31T10:18:44","modified_gmt":"2024-07-31T09:18:44","slug":"chris-skelley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/features\/chris-skelley\/","title":{"rendered":"I spoke to Para Judo athlete Chris Skelley as he goes for gold at Paris 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Chris Skelley MBE<\/a> was a typical teenager: contact-sports mad and working towards a career as a mechanic. Then, at the age of 17, his vision began to deteriorate, and his life changed forever.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skelley was diagnosed with Oculus Albinism, Bell\u2019s Reflex, and Extreme Photophobia which caused him to eventually lose around 70% of his vision. He had to quit his job and say goodbye to any ball sports. Luckily, the tactile nature of judo meant this was one discipline he could continue training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The now 30-year-old learned to adapt, and through work, grit, and skill, was selected to compete at the Paralympics. He went on to become a European Champion, win two World Championship bronze medals, and placed top of the podium at the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics \u2013 GB\u2019s first Para Judo gold since 1996. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Chris Skelley (bottom) flips his opponent in a 2023 bout<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

How did you first get into judo?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I was a very shy young lad, and my mum and dad wanted to get me into a sport to bring me out of my shell a little bit. They got me into two sports where you have to be very physical with another person, which was judo and rugby. I started at the age of five. Then I carried it on through school and college, so on evenings I wasn\u2019t really on street corners causing havoc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did your diagnosis impact your involvement in sport?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I had to stop rugby because I couldn\u2019t see a rugby ball anymore. When I was tackling the wrong person I think that\u2019s when I was like, Maybe this is not my sport anymore! Judo was there still for me, being that constant saviour in my life when I was going through this really tough time mentally. Judo was there to save me and pull me out of that dark period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did your approach to judo change with your vision loss?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Judo is one of the easiest sports to adapt for someone with a visual impairment, or who is fully blind, because you can take a hold of someone. You can still throw them. All you have to do is just grip up with someone and start fighting. You don\u2019t really need your eyesight. You need your feel for your hands. It\u2019s a bit scary, because obviously you get chucked about and everything, but it\u2019s a lot of fun when you\u2019re doing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At what point did you realise this could become a professional career?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve always been on the England Junior squad, in and around the national team, but at one particular competition, a Paralympic coach saw me and said, \u201cHave you heard of the Paralympic team?\u201d And I was like, \u201cNo one\u2019s really mentioned it to me. I\u2019m just trying to survive. I\u2019m trying to just get myself through this really tough time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I went on a Paralympian inspiration programme in London. You got to go into the village, live with the athletes, get the feeling of what it is like to be an athlete. And I had that feeling of burning desire actually saying, \u201cI want to do this. I want to be a Paralympic athlete.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A post shared by Helping Hands Community Programmes CIC (@helpinghands.cic)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>