Jeff Adams

{{Infobox sportsperson

| image = Jeff Adams.jpg

| image_size = 230 px

| caption = Adams in 2021

| full_name = Jeffrey Adams

| birth_date = {{Birth-date and age|November 15, 1970}}

| birth_place = Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

| headercolor = lightsteelblue

| medaltemplates =

{{MedalCountry|{{CAN}}}}

}}

Jeffrey Adams (born November 15, 1970, in Mississauga, Ontario) is a Canadian lawyer, and a former Paralympian, a six-time world champion in wheelchair sports.

Competitive racing

Adams competed at six consecutive Summer Paralympics from 1988 to 2008, winning a total of three gold, four silver, and six bronze medals. At the 1988 Summer Paralympics he won two bronze medals, one in the 800m race and one in the 1500m race. Four years later at the Barcelona Games he won two silvers, one in the 800m race and one as part of the 4 × 400 m relay. At the 1996 Summer Paralympics he won gold in the 800 m, silver in the 400 m, and bronze in the 4×400 m relay. Four years later, at the Sydney games, he won five medals, a gold in the 800 m and 1500 m, a silver in the 400 m and a bronze in the 5000 m and 4x100 m. At the 2004 Paralympics he won a bronze in the 400 m race. Adams was coached by Peter Eriksson.

Post-competition

In 2002, Adams ascended the 1,776 steps of the CN Tower in a specially-designed wheelchair; in 2004, he climbed the Acropolis.

In March 2010, he was a torchbearer during the 2010 Winter Paralympics torch relay.[http://www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games/more-2010-information/paralympic-torch-relay/daily-highlights/march-5/ "March 5 - Toronto"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100308055416/http://www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games/more-2010-information/paralympic-torch-relay/daily-highlights/march-5/ |date=2010-03-08 }}, Vancouver 2010 official website (viewed on March 2)

In 2012 Adams was part of the broadcast crew on Channel 4's coverage of the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London.{{cite news|last=Pitt-Brooke|first=Jack|title=Jack Pitt-Brooke: Instructive and inspirational – Channel 4 strike the Paralympic balance|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/jack-pittbrooke-instructive-and-inspirational--channel-4-strike-the-paralympic-balance-8101427.html|newspaper=The Independent|accessdate=6 September 2012|date=3 September 2012}}{{cite web|title=LONDON 2012: Paralympic Games – Meet the C4 team|date=23 August 2012|url=http://sport-onthebox.com/2012/08/23/london-2012-paralympics-meet-the-c4-team/#more-7086|publisher=Sport On The Box|accessdate=6 September 2012}}

Adams is additionally a motivational speaker.{{cite web|title=Jeff Adams {{!}} Paralympian {{!}} World Champion|url=http://www.speakers.ca/speakers/jeff-adams/|website=www.speakers.ca|accessdate=20 April 2017|language=en}}

He is an inductee into the Canadian Disability Hall of Fame (1997, then the Terry Fox Hall of Fame).{{cite web|title=Jeff Adams|url=http://www.heritagetrust.on.ca/en/index.php/pages/our-stories/exhibits/snapshots-of-ontarios-sport-heritage/sports-personalities-traditions-and-key-events/jeff-adams|website=Ontario Heritage Trust|publisher=Ontario Heritage Trust|accessdate=20 April 2017|language=en-ca|date=27 February 2017}} In 2018, he was awarded the Order of Sport, marking his induction into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (2018).{{cite web|last1=Harrison|first1=Doug|title=Leafs legend Dave Keon, Olympic great Alex Despatie headline Canada's Sports Hall of Fame newcomers {{!}} CBC Sports|url=http://www.cbc.ca/sports/keon-canada-sports-hall-of-fame-inductees-1.4635599|publisher=CBC|accessdate=26 April 2018|date=26 April 2018}}

Personal life

Adams underwent radiation therapy for cancer as a child, and aftermath of the treatment led to a spinal injury at age 9 that paralysed him.{{cite web|title=Jeff Adams|url=http://www.iconwheelchairs.com/management|work=Management|publisher=ICON Wheelchairs|accessdate=30 March 2012|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20130126013258/http://www.iconwheelchairs.com/management|archivedate=26 January 2013}}{{cite news|last=Mourtada|first=Rasha|title=Canadian upstart reinvents its wheels|url=http://m.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/digital/innovation/canadian-upstart-reinvents-its-wheels/article2299005/?service=mobile|accessdate=30 March 2012|newspaper=The Globe and Mail|date=12 January 2012|archive-date=11 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511180222/http://m.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/digital/innovation/canadian-upstart-reinvents-its-wheels/article2299005/?service=mobile|url-status=dead}} After retiring from competition, Adams and business partner Christian Bagg co-launched Marvel Wheelchairs with Cervélo Cycles, producing adjustable wheelchairs for everyday use. After Cervélo was unable to secure bridge financing for debt to suppliers, Marvel was taken over and unsuccessful attempts were made to sell it by Cervélo. Cervélo was taken over by PON,{{Cite web|url=http://globalnews.ca/news/212978/dutch-conglomerate-pon-holdings-purchases-canadian-bike-company-cervelo-cycles/|title = Dutch conglomerate Pon Holdings purchases Canadian bike company Cervelo Cycles | Globalnews.ca}} and Adams and Bagg launched a new company making wheelchairs called ICON in 2010. An appearance on the CBC reality show Dragons' Den led to a new partnership with a manufacturer, Multimatic, to produce the wheelchairs designed by ICON.{{cite web|last=Howell|first=Trevor Scott|title=Christian Bagg, Co-founder of Icon Wheelchairs|url=http://www.ffwdweekly.com/article/life-style/your-face-here/christian-bagg-co-founder-of-icon-wheelchairs-7096/|work=Your Face Here|publisher=Fast Forward Weekly|accessdate=30 March 2012|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921223640/http://www.ffwdweekly.com/article/life-style/your-face-here/christian-bagg-co-founder-of-icon-wheelchairs-7096/|archivedate=21 September 2013}}{{cite news|title=New wheelchair called revolutionary|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/new-wheelchair-called-revolutionary-1.1107225|access-date=30 March 2012|newspaper=CBC.ca|date=28 Feb 2011}}

Through much of his career, Adams lived in Brampton, Ontario.Keith Bolender, "Jeff Adams makes most of sport to defeat his physical disability", Toronto Star, 2 May 1989, W14.

References

External links

{{IPC athlete|id=jeff-adams|old_id=681390}}
{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190423144311/https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/canada/jeffrey-adams-179545|title=Jeffrey Adams at World Athletics}}
[http://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/pitches/icon-wheelchairs Jeff Adams pitches on Dragons' Den]
[http://www.speakers.ca/speakers/jeff-adams/ Speaker's Spotlight]
[http://nsb.com/speakers/jeff-adams/ National Speakers Bureau]
"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6GxIK1roGk After dominating the track, Jeff Adams keeps pushing boundaries of excellence]" episode of Beyond the Win, CBC Sports, May 18, 2021.

Category:1970 births

Category:Living people

Category:People with paraplegia

Category:Canadian male wheelchair racers

Category:Paralympic track and field athletes for Canada

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Paralympics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1992 Summer Paralympics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Paralympics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Paralympics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Paralympics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Paralympics

Category:Paralympic gold medalists for Canada