Ellie Cole to Kurt Fearnley and Dylan Alcott: Australia’s best Paralympic medal hopes in Rio

THE 2016 Paralympics in Rio is just around the corner and to get you in the mood, 13-time gold medallist Matt Cowdrey nominates his top five Aussie medal hopes.

Can Aussie co-captain Kurt Fearnley go out with a gold medal?

THE 2016 Paralympics in Rio is just around the corner and to get you in the mood, 13-time gold medallist Matt Cowdrey nominates his top five Aussie medal hopes.

Ellie Cole (swimming)

Ellie is going to be a standout for medals this time around. She won four golds in London and had a great meet in Glasgow for world championships last year. She’s been doing all the right things and I’m excited to see her test herself again. She’s 24 now and she’s really matured over the past four years, and will also be one of the leaders on what is a fairly young swimming team. With her experience, taking on that extra responsibility will be fantastic for the overall performance of the team.

Dylan Alcott (tennis)

It is a huge transition from winning gold in wheelchair basketball in Beijing to being our No.1 ranked tennis player. Dylan has only been back playing tennis for two years but his progression has been incredible — he’s won the past two quad wheelchair Australian Opens and a US Open, so he will definitely be around the mark. One of the amazing things about our athletes is their ability to cross over sports, and Dylan is one of those.

Dylan Alcott is a big chacne in the tennis.

Tiffany Thomas-Kane (swimming)

To see her breaststroke in person for the first time at the nationals in Adelaide this year, where she set a new world record, was really exciting. She’s got a lot to offer and it’s good for us to have a diverse team where so many young swimmers are coming through. At only 14, Tiffany represents the changing of the guard from London in the swimming team. She is part of a young group that is going to lead this squad for a long time.

Kurt Fearnley (athletics)

You can never go past Kurt. For me, to have been on teams with him at the past three Games, and to see his Paralympic career wind up in Rio, it’s going to be exciting to watch him race. I respect him as much as anyone I’ve met, hopefully it’s a fairytale ending and he can roll off into the sunset with a gold medal around his neck in the marathon. That would be perfect for a guy who has done absolutely everything, and he’s a brilliant bloke to go along with it.

Mel Tapper will be very busy come August and September.

Mel Tapper (table tennis)

It’s absolutely incredible what Mel has done, to make the Olympic team and then two weeks later back up for the Paralympic Games. She’s the first Australian to do it so that is really exciting for her. She came so close in London, when she finished fourth after reaching the bronze-medal match. This year, doing both Games, it would be great to see her line up for Australia and then hopefully cement a gold in the Paralympics as well.

Originally published as Ellie Cole to Kurt Fearnley and Dylan Alcott: Australia’s best Paralympic medal hopes in Rio