Sharon Jarvis (born 31 October 1978) is an Australian

para-equestrian Para-equestrian is an equestrian sport governed by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI), and includes two competitive events. One is para-equestrian dressage, which is conducted under the same basic rules as conventional dre ...

. She represented Australia at the three Summer Paralympics -

2008 Beijing The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fr ...

, 2016 Rio and

2020 Tokyo The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

Personal

Jarvis was born on 31 October 1978. At the age of seven, she was diagnosed with

bone cancer A bone tumor is an neoplastic, abnormal growth of tissue in bone, traditionally classified as benign, noncancerous (benign) or malignant, cancerous (malignant). Cancerous bone tumors usually originate from a cancer in another part of the body su ...

( Ewing sarcoma) in her left femur and given an only 20 per cent chance of surviving. She survived the cancer through twelve months of chemotherapy and radiation therapy but a year later broke the same leg affected by cancer. This led to numerous operations and skin grafts and as a result she has severely limited movement on her left side. She operates a pony stud called Applewood in

Donnybrook, Western Australia Donnybrook is a town situated between Boyanup and Kirup on the South Western Highway, south of Perth, Western Australia. The town is the centre of apple cultivation in Western Australia. The town is also known for its picturesque abundance o ...

Equestrian

Jarvis began riding at the age of three and her parents purchased her a pony when she was four. In 2006, she competed in her first para-equestrian event and is classed as a Grade III rider. Her first international event was the 2007 FEI World Para Dressage Championships in England where she finished sixth and eight. At the

2008 Beijing Paralympics The 2008 Summer Paralympic Games (), the 13th Summer Paralympic Games, took place in Beijing, China, from September 6 to 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao. It was ...

, she finished fourth in the Mixed Dressage – Championship grade III, seventh in the Mixed Dressage – Freestyle grade III and sixth in the Mixed Dressage Team Open. Jarvis won bronze medals in the individual test and freestyle test events at the 2010

World Equestrian Games The FEI World Equestrian Games are the major international championships for equestrianism, and are administered by the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI). The games have been held every four years, halfway between sets of consecutive S ...

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

. She was unable to attend the

2012 London Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international Multi-sport event, multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Sum ...

and 2014 World Equestrian Games due to transportation and horse injury problems. At the

2016 Rio Paralympics The 2016 Summer Paralympics (), the 15th Summer Paralympic Games, were a major international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the International Paralympic Committee, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7 to 18 Sept ...

, she rode Ceasy, a 9-year-old

Dutch Warmblood A Dutch Warmblood or KWPN is a horse breed of warmblood type registered with the Royal Warmblood Studbook of the Netherlands oninklijk Warmbloed Paardenstamboek Nederland(KWPN), which governs the breeding of competitive dressage and show jump ...

mare. In the lead up to Rio she has been assisted by the

Western Australian Institute of Sport The Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS) is an elite sports institute set up in 1983 by the Government of Western Australia to support athletes in Western Australia. The founding director was Wally Foreman who held the position for 17 ye ...

. She finished ninth in the Individual Championship Test Grade III and 15th in the Dressage Individual Team Test Grade III and was a member of the Australian team that finished ninth in the Team Competition. At the

2020 Tokyo Paralympics The , branded as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, were an international multi-sport event, multi-sport parasports event held from 24 August to 5 September 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. They were the 16th Summer Paralympic Games as organized by the Inte ...

, Jarvis rode 18-year-old gelding Romanos and finished 10th in the Individual championship test grade III. She was a member of the Australian team competition with Emma Booth and Amelia White that finished thirteenth. Jarvis has stated that Tokyo 2020 will be her final Paralympics.

Recognition

* 2010 – Equimac Rider of the Year (Australia) * 2011 – Equestrian Athlete of the Year (Western Australia) * 2025 - Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to paralympic equestrian sports.

References

External links

* * *
Personal website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jarvis, Sharon Paralympic equestrians for Australia Australian female equestrians Equestrians at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Equestrians at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Equestrians at the 2020 Summer Paralympics 1978 births Living people Sportswomen from Western Australia 21st-century Australian sportswomen Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia