Catherine Huggett
Encyclopedia
Catherine Huggett was an Australian Paralympic swimmer who won a gold medal in the Women's 4 x 50 m Freestyle S1-6 event at the 1992 Summer Paralympics
, and a silver medal at the 1988 Summer Paralympics
.
on 6 May 1970, the daughter of Kenneth and Beverly Huggett. At birth she was diagnosed with cerebal palsy, but it was later determined that she had spina bifida
.
Huggett's parents moved to Broadbeach Waters, Queensland
in 1985, where her swimming career was nurtured by the Director of Gold Coast Recreation and Sport, Anna-Louise Kassulke, and Denis Coterill, who has been head coach of the Miami Swim Club since he had helped organise it in 1976. Huggett's mother approached Coterill and asking him to include Catherine in his training squad. She promised that if he did so, Catherine would win a gold medal at the 1988 Summer Paralympics
in Seoul
. When he asked how strong Catherine was, she replied "You're talking Mallee
bull."
and Andrew Baildon
. At the 1988 Westfield Bicentennial Challenge in Sydney
, she won gold medals in all ten events she entered, and broke a world record. She won Paralympic selection, and went on to Seoul where she won a silver medal in the 100m backstroke.
In 1989, Huggett competed in the Robin Hood Cerebral Palsy Games in England, where she won six gold medals and one silver. That year she received the Queensland Disabled Athlete of the Year Award. The 1990 Australian Swimming Championships saw events for disabled athletes added for the first time, and she won gold. She went on to compete at the World Championships for the Disabled at Assen
, where she won a gold and three bronze medals.
She was awarded a scholarship from the Queensland Academy of Sport
at set about fulfilling her ambition of a Paralympic gold medal. At the 1992 Summer Paralympics
in Barcelona
she won one as a member of the 4 x 50m freestyle S1-6 relay team who won the event in world record time. In 1993 she was named the Gold Coast Disabled Athlete of the Year for the fourth time. She was awarded the Order of Australia Medal in the 1993 Queens Birthday Honours for "in recognition of service to sport as a gold medalist at the Paralympic games, Barcelona 1992".
She died in Brisbane on 13 November 2011. A funeral service was held at the North Burleigh Surf Life Saving Club on 26 November 2011. She was survived by her parents and brother.
1992 Summer Paralympics
The 1992 Summer Paralympics were the ninth Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.- Sports :The games consisted of 487 events spread over fifteen sports. Powerlifting and weightlifting were considered to be a single sport...
, and a silver medal at the 1988 Summer Paralympics
1988 Summer Paralympics
The 1988 Summer Paralympics were the first Paralympics in 24 years that take place in the same city as the Olympic Games. They took place in Seoul, South Korea. This was the first time the term "Paralympic" came into official use.- Sports :...
.
Early life
Catherine Lucette Huggett was born in CanberraCanberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
on 6 May 1970, the daughter of Kenneth and Beverly Huggett. At birth she was diagnosed with cerebal palsy, but it was later determined that she had spina bifida
Spina bifida
Spina bifida is a developmental congenital disorder caused by the incomplete closing of the embryonic neural tube. Some vertebrae overlying the spinal cord are not fully formed and remain unfused and open. If the opening is large enough, this allows a portion of the spinal cord to protrude through...
.
Huggett's parents moved to Broadbeach Waters, Queensland
Broadbeach Waters, Queensland
Broadbeach Waters is a suburb on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. It's Local Government Area is the Gold Coast City. At the 2006 Census, Broadbeach Waters had a population of 7,380.-External links:*...
in 1985, where her swimming career was nurtured by the Director of Gold Coast Recreation and Sport, Anna-Louise Kassulke, and Denis Coterill, who has been head coach of the Miami Swim Club since he had helped organise it in 1976. Huggett's mother approached Coterill and asking him to include Catherine in his training squad. She promised that if he did so, Catherine would win a gold medal at the 1988 Summer Paralympics
1988 Summer Paralympics
The 1988 Summer Paralympics were the first Paralympics in 24 years that take place in the same city as the Olympic Games. They took place in Seoul, South Korea. This was the first time the term "Paralympic" came into official use.- Sports :...
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
. When he asked how strong Catherine was, she replied "You're talking Mallee
The Mallee
The Mallee is the most northwesterly district in the state of Victoria, and also encompasses the agricultural district of South Australia. Definitions vary, however all are based on the Victorian distribution of mallee eucalypts...
bull."
Swimming career
Huggett worked hard to deliver on this promise, swimming thousands of laps alongside fellow athletes that included Grant HackettGrant Hackett
Grant Hackett OAM is an Australian former swimmer most famous for winning the men's 1500 metres freestyle race at both the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney and the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. This achievement has led him to be regarded as one of the greatest distance swimmers in history...
and Andrew Baildon
Andrew Baildon
Andrew James Baildon is a former freestyle swimming champion from Australia, who competed in two consecutive Summer Olympics for his native country, starting in 1988....
. At the 1988 Westfield Bicentennial Challenge in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, she won gold medals in all ten events she entered, and broke a world record. She won Paralympic selection, and went on to Seoul where she won a silver medal in the 100m backstroke.
In 1989, Huggett competed in the Robin Hood Cerebral Palsy Games in England, where she won six gold medals and one silver. That year she received the Queensland Disabled Athlete of the Year Award. The 1990 Australian Swimming Championships saw events for disabled athletes added for the first time, and she won gold. She went on to compete at the World Championships for the Disabled at Assen
Assen
Assen is a municipality and a city in the north eastern Netherlands, capital of the province of Drenthe. It received city rights in 1809. Assen's main claim to fame is the TT Circuit Assen the motorcycle racing circuit, where on the last Saturday in June the Dutch TT is run...
, where she won a gold and three bronze medals.
She was awarded a scholarship from the Queensland Academy of Sport
Queensland Academy of Sport
The Queensland Academy of Sport is an elite sports institute set up in 1991 by the Queensland Government to support athletes in the state of Queensland...
at set about fulfilling her ambition of a Paralympic gold medal. At the 1992 Summer Paralympics
1992 Summer Paralympics
The 1992 Summer Paralympics were the ninth Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.- Sports :The games consisted of 487 events spread over fifteen sports. Powerlifting and weightlifting were considered to be a single sport...
in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
she won one as a member of the 4 x 50m freestyle S1-6 relay team who won the event in world record time. In 1993 she was named the Gold Coast Disabled Athlete of the Year for the fourth time. She was awarded the Order of Australia Medal in the 1993 Queens Birthday Honours for "in recognition of service to sport as a gold medalist at the Paralympic games, Barcelona 1992".
Later life
She married in 1993, an subsequently moved to the United Kingdom, and later Perth with her husband. However, her marriage eventually broke up, and her health deteriorated. After an unsuccessful medical procedure, she returned to Queensland, where she underwent further treatments.She died in Brisbane on 13 November 2011. A funeral service was held at the North Burleigh Surf Life Saving Club on 26 November 2011. She was survived by her parents and brother.