Illawarra Academy of Sport alumni athlete and Paralympian Jessica Smith OAM was among 18 Paralympians who have had their names etched into a piece of Illawarra history.
The names of the Illawarra Paralympians have been officially added to the Illawarra Olympic & Paralympic Tribute Wall in Wollongong, located at the southern end of Lang Park at City Beach.
Smith OAM represented Australia for seven years as a world-class swimmer and competed at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens.
The Illawarra Olympic & Paralympic Tribute Wall was built at Lang Park in 2000 at the time of the Sydney Olympic Games and recognises athletes from all five local government areas of the Illawarra – Wollongong, Kiama, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven and Wingecarribee – and features the names of 146 Illawarra Olympians dating back to 1932.
In 2022, Illawarra Paralympians from the Tokyo 2020 (summer) and Beijing 2022 (winter) Paralympic Games had their names added to the Tribute Wall, featuring IAS alumni athletes Brett Stibners (Tokyo 2020 wheelchair basketball) and Jasmine Greenwood (Tokyo 2020 para-swimming), while Telaya Blacksmith (Paris 2024 para-athletics) had her name added to the Tribute Wall in 2024.
The Illawarra Olympic & Paralympic Fundraising Committee went through the history books and identified 18 Paralympians from the Illawarra who had competed in previous Paralympic Games but did not have their names on the Tribute Wall.
Those individuals were honoured with the unveiling of their tiles to be added to the Tribute Wall, bringing the total number of Paralympians on the Tribute Wall to 30 athletes across 17 Paralympic Games in 11 sports.
Stibners, an Australian wheelchair basketball great who has competed at four Paralympic Games, including being a member of the gold medal-winning Australian Rollers team at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, said he was proud to have his name featured on the Tribute Wall.
“It is such a special honour to have my name featured on the Illawarra Olympic & Paralympic Tribute Wall,” Stibners said.
“For Paralympians to be recognised alongside Olympians is a very cool thing.
“The Illawarra has produced so many talented athletes over the years and it’s a great honour and very humbling to have my name on the Tribute Wall.”
Wollongong Lord Mayor Tania Brown said it is good to see para athletes recognised and celebrated in such a special way.
“Congratulations to all our Illawarra Paralympians and I am looking forward to seeing all the names on the Tribute Wall,” the Lord Mayor said.
“It is a special recognition for our Illawarra Paralympians and well overdue.
“Visibility matters and it is wonderful to see our para athletes receive the same recognition as our region’s Olympians.”
