Toni Piispanen (born 24 July 1976) is a Finnish

Paralympic athlete The Paralympic sports comprise all the sports contested in the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. As of 2020, the Summer Paralympics included 22 sports and 539 medal events, and the Winter Paralympics include 5 sports and disciplines and about ...

Career

He started as an able-bodied karate competitor and became disabled due to an accident that injured his spinal cord at a karate show in 1993. This accident occurred in

Lahti Lahti (; sv, Lahtis) is a city and municipality in Finland. It is the capital of the region of Päijänne Tavastia (Päijät-Häme) and its growing region is one of the main economic hubs of Finland. Lahti is situated on a bay at the southern ...

in front of hundreds of spectators. After that he played

Wheelchair rugby Wheelchair rugby (originally murderball, and known as quad rugby in the United States) is a team sport for athletes with a disability. It is practised in over twenty-five countries around the world and is a summer Paralympic sport. The US n ...

for fifteen years before switching to wheelchair racing in 2008. He is a world record holder in his classification. At the

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

he won gold in the men’s T-51 class 100-metre wheelchair sprint.Helsingin Sanomat
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References

Paralympic athletes for Finland Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Paralympic gold medalists for Finland 1976 births Living people World record holders in para-athletics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics World Para Athletics Championships winners Medalists at the World Para Athletics Championships Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Wheelchair rugby players Finnish male karateka University of Jyväskylä alumni Motivational speakers {{Finland-Paralympic-medalist-stub