Justin Eveson

{{Infobox sportsperson|

| name = Justin Eveson

| image = 170511 - Justin Eveson - 3b - 2012 Team processing.jpg

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| caption = 2012 Australian Paralympic team portrait of Eveson

| fullname = Justin Cain Eveson

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| headercolor = green

| textcolor = yellow

| nationality = {{AUS}}

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| birth_date ={{birth date and age|df=yes|1980|6|10}}

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Justin Cain Eveson, OAM{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-01-27/medal-of-the-order-of-australia-oam/274232|title=Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM)|publisher=ABC News|date=27 January 2009|access-date=29 December 2011|archive-date=17 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180917202048/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-01-27/medal-of-the-order-of-australia-oam/274232|url-status=live}} (born 10 June 1980) is an Australian swimmer and wheelchair basketball player who has won Paralympic medals in both sports.

Personal

Eveson was born on 10 June 1980,{{cite web|url=http://www.basketball.net.au/index.php?id=594|title=Justin Eveson|publisher=Basketball Australia|access-date=6 November 2011|archive-date=25 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111025161736/http://basketball.net.au/index.php?id=594|url-status=live}} and is from the Perth suburb of Victoria Park.{{cite web|title=Justin Eveson |publisher=Australian Paralympic Committee |access-date=6 November 2011 |url=http://www.paralympic.org.au/team/justin-eveson |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110805111607/http://www.paralympic.org.au/team/justin-eveson |archive-date= 5 August 2011 }} In 1993, when he was 12 years old, his right leg was amputated below the knee after a lawn aerating machine accident.{{cite web|access-date=6 November 2011 |url=http://www.unisport.com.au/News/Pages/PatronsfortheAUG,JustinEveson.aspx |publisher=University Sport Australia |date=29 September 2010 |title=Patrons for the AUG, Justin Eveson |first=Nicholas |last=Alviani |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120404142719/http://www.unisport.com.au/News/Pages/PatronsfortheAUG%2CJustinEveson.aspx |archive-date= 4 April 2012 }}{{cite web|access-date=6 November 2011 |url=http://www.wheelchairsportswa.org.au/EvesonBIO.htm |publisher=Wheelchair Sports Western Australia |title=Justin Eveson |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110216132116/http://www.wheelchairsportswa.org.au/EvesonBIO.htm |archive-date=16 February 2011 }} Prior to his accident, he had played basketball. In 2010, he was the patron for the Australian University Games. He works as a fitness instructor, and his personal hero is his father. He also serves as the Membership and Participation Officer for Wheelchair Sports Western Australia. Outside of competitive basketball and swimming, he plays golf.

Swimming

File:211000 - Swimming 200m medley SM10 Justin Eveson action - 3b - 2000 Sydney event photo.jpg

Eveson first started competing in disabled sport in 1995, doing swimming and wheelchair basketball. Around that time, he decided to focus on swimming. From 1996 to 1999, he was part of the Wheelchair Sports WA Association Junior Sports Star program as a swimmer. He competed in the 2000 Summer Paralympics, where he won a 4 × 100 m freestyle relay silver and 4 × 100 m medley relay bronze medal.{{cite web|title=Justin Eveson – IPC Historical Results Database|url=http://www.paralympic.org/ipc_results/search.php?sport=all&games=all&medal=all&npc=all&name=eveson&fname=&gender=all|publisher=International Paralympic Committee (IPC)|access-date=24 August 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303235717/http://www.paralympic.org/ipc_results/search.php?sport=all&games=all&medal=all&npc=all&name=eveson&fname=&gender=all|archive-date=3 March 2016|df=dmy-all}}

Basketball

Eveson's player classification is 4.5 and he plays power forward. Eveson first started playing wheelchair basketball in 1995. His ability to play has been supported by the Western Australian Institute of Sport Individual Athlete Support Program.{{cite web|date=20 October 2009|access-date=6 November 2011|publisher=Western Australian Institute of Sport|url=http://www.wais.org.au/other/news_detail.php?ID=647|title=WAIS Wheelchair Basketball Athletes Gain Gold|archive-date=2 April 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402090310/http://www.wais.org.au/other/news_detail.php?ID=647|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.wais.org.au/other/id.php?section=Athletes&ID=04|access-date=6 November 2011|publisher=Western Australian Institute of Sport|title=Individual Athlete Support Program|archive-date=21 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110821215817/http://www.wais.org.au/other/id.php?section=Athletes&ID=04|url-status=live}} In 2009, the basketball teams that Eveson played for won every tournament he was part of at a club and national team level.

In August 2022, Eveson was inducted into the Basketball WA Hall of Fame.{{cite web|last=O'Donoghue|first=Craig|url=https://thewest.com.au/sport/basketball/justin-eveson-melissa-marsh-and-mark-worthington-to-be-inducted-into-basketball-wa-hall-of-fame-c-7769092|title=Justin Eveson, Melissa Marsh and Mark Worthington to be inducted into Basketball WA Hall of Fame|work=thewest.com.au|date=11 August 2022|access-date=12 August 2022}}

=National team=

In 2002, Eveson made his first appearance on the Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team.

==Paralympics==

File:010912 - Justin Eveson - 3b - 2012 Summer Paralympics (01).jpg

{{Quote box

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|quote=I feel that to win Paralympic gold is one of the great measures of success and considering the amount of effort put in, it feels incredible to have been part of that achievement.

|source=Justin Eveson

}}

Eveson was part of the silver medal-winning Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team at the 2004 Summer Paralympics,{{cite web|url=http://www.paralympic.org/Sport/Results/results.html?competition=2004PG&gender=m&sport=basketball&discipline=&event=&eclass=|access-date=9 September 2011|title=Results – ATHENS 2004 Paralympic Games – Wheelchair Basketball – Men|publisher=International Paralympic Committee|archive-date=27 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727164828/http://www.paralympic.org/Sport/Results/results.html?competition=2004PG&gender=m&sport=basketball&discipline=&event=&eclass=|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.basketball.net.au/index.php?id=471|publisher=Basketball Australia|year=2010|title=Basketball Chronology|access-date=9 September 2011|archive-date=21 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221025545/http://www.basketball.net.au/index.php?id=471|url-status=live}} and the gold medal-winning Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team at the 2008 Summer Paralympics,{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/09/04/2355383.htm?site=/paralympics/2008|access-date=9 September 2011|date=4 September 2008|title=Event guide: Wheelchair basketball|publisher=ABC|first=Andrew|last=McGarry|archive-date=13 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113091215/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/09/04/2355383.htm?site=%2Fparalympics%2F2008|url-status=dead}} for which he received a Medal of the Order of Australia. He was the team's leading scorer.

At the 2012 Summer Paralympics he was part of the Australian men's wheelchair team that won silver.{{cite web|title=Men's Wheelchair Basketball Results|url=http://www.london2012.com/paralympics/wheelchair-basketball/event/men/match=wbm400101/index.html|publisher=London 2012 Paralympic Games|access-date=8 September 2012|archive-date=8 September 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120908235825/http://www.london2012.com/paralympics/wheelchair-basketball/event/men/match%3Dwbm400101/index.html|url-status=live}}

==Other competitions==

File:010912 - Justin Eveson - 3b - 2012 Summer Paralympics (02).jpg

In 2006, Eveson was part of the squad that won a bronze medal at the World Championships. In 2008, he was part of the team that took silver at the Beijing Paralympic test event. That year, he was the captain of the gold winning Australian side at the Paralympic World Cup held in Manchester, England. In 2009, he was part of the Australian gold winning IWBF Asia-Oceania Championship side and the 2009 Rollers World Challenge team that won gold. At the tournament, he scored 25 points, had 5 assists and 13 rebounds. He was a member of the Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team that competed at the 2010 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship{{cite web|url=http://www.basketball.net.au/index.php?id=1214|publisher=Basketball Australia|access-date=11 September 2011|year=2010|title=Basketball Australia : 2010 WC Team|archive-date=25 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111025175845/http://basketball.net.au/index.php?id=1214|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.sports.org.au/newsletter/19-2010/92-july-2010.html |date=July 2010 |access-date=11 September 2011 |title=Newsletter 2010 July 2010 |publisher=Australian Athletes With a Disability |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408065015/http://www.sports.org.au/newsletter/19-2010/92-july-2010.html |archive-date= 8 April 2011 }} that won a gold medal.{{cite web|access-date=11 September 2011|url=http://www.basketball.net.au/index.php?id=1206|year=2010|publisher=Basketball Australia|title=Rollers Int History|archive-date=18 September 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100918012149/http://basketball.net.au/index.php?id=1206|url-status=live}} He and fellow Australian teammate Shaun Norris were recognised for their performance at the tournament by being named as one of the World All-Star Five for the tournament.{{cite web|access-date=6 November 2011|url=http://www.wasportsfed.asn.au/downloads/Wheelchair%20Sports%20WA.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219150753/http://www.wasportsfed.asn.au/downloads/Wheelchair%20Sports%20WA.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 February 2011|publisher=Western Australia Sports Federation|title=Wheelchair Sports WA|date=29 October 2010|page=1}} He was a member of the Rollers team that won the gold medal at the 2014 Wheelchair Basketball World Championships.{{cite web|title=Rollers are back to back World Champions |url=http://www.paralympic.org.au/news/rollers-are-back-back-world-champions |website=Australian Paralympic Committee News, 14 July 2014 |access-date=28 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903091833/http://www.paralympic.org.au/news/rollers-are-back-back-world-champions |archive-date= 3 September 2014 }}

=Club basketball=

Eveson has played professional wheelchair basketball in Australia, Italy, Spain and Turkey. In 2001, Eveson made his club basketball debut with the National Wheelchair Basketball League (NWBL)'s Perth Wheelcats. He has won three European Champions League Cups in a row. In 2007, he was playing club basketball in Australia for the Perth Wheelcats. His team won the league's Championship that year, and Evenson was named the MVP for Championship game. That year, the Wheelcats were also the World Club Champions. In 2008, he was playing club basketball in Turkey for Galatasaray. That year, his team won the European Champions Cup. He was named Most Valuable Player of the Championship match and was named as part of the All-Star Five for the tournament. In 2010, he played for the Perth Wheelcats when it won the league's Championships. In 2011, he was playing for the Perth Wheelcats. In the first game of the season against the Wollongong Roller Hawks, he scored 35 points.{{cite web|title=Wheelcats Triumphant in First Game Back|date=23 June 2011|first=Emily|last=Dimozantos|access-date=6 November 2011|url=http://motionphoto.com.au/wheelcats-triumphant-in-first-game-back/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425142305/http://motionphoto.com.au/wheelcats-triumphant-in-first-game-back/|archive-date=25 April 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}

Recognition

Eveson won the Western Australian Wheelchair Sports Star-of-the-year award with Brad Ness in 2003.{{cite web|url=http://www.wheelchairsportswa.org.au/about.htm |title=About Us |publisher=Wheelchair Sports WA |access-date=6 November 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005092719/http://www.wheelchairsportswa.org.au/about.htm |archive-date= 5 October 2011 }} In 2008, he received the Sandy Blythe Medal given for the International Wheelchair Player of the Year. In 2009, Laureus World Athlete of the Year Awards named him as one of their finalists. In 2010, he was named one of The West Australian ANZ Sports Star Nominees in the wheelchair basketball category.{{cite web|url=http://www.wasportsfed.asn.au/downloads/2010%20The%20West%20Australian%20ANZ%20Sports%20Star%20Nominees.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219164639/http://www.wasportsfed.asn.au/downloads/2010%20The%20West%20Australian%20ANZ%20Sports%20Star%20Nominees.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 February 2011|year=2010|publisher=The West Australian|access-date=6 November 2011|title=2010 The West Australian ANZ Sports Star Nominees|page=2}}