Bulbul Hussain (Bengali: বুল্বুল হুসেইন; born 3 January 1972) is a British wheelchair rugby player who plays for Kent Crusaders and the Great Britain Paralympic team. He plays mostly in a defensive role.[1]

Bulbul Hussain
Personal information
Native nameবুল্বুল হুসেইন
NicknameBully
NationalityBritish
Born (1972-01-03) 3 January 1972 (age 52)
Sylhet District, Sylhet Division, Bangladesh
Sport
CountryEngland
SportWheelchair rugby
ClubKent Crusaders
TeamUnited Kingdom Great Britain
Achievements and titles
Paralympic finals2008, 2012, 2016
Updated on 2 October 2012

Early life

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Hussain was born in Sylhet District, Sylhet Division, Bangladesh.[2] In 1994,[3] a road traffic accident in Bangladesh left him with a spinal cord injury.[4] He has no function in his hands, some restriction to his arm movement and no movement in his lower body. For wheelchair rugby Hussain is classified as a "one pointer"[3] or a 1.0 player.[2]

Career

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In 1995, when Hussain first saw wheelchair rugby he was not convinced he would enjoy it, thinking there was too much wheelchair contact. A year later, he gave it a try[3] for fun and to regain fitness, after a few training sessions[5] he was attracted to the sport because of its speed and competitive element,[2] and from then on he decided to commit and dedicate himself to the sport.[3][5]

In 1997, Hussain first started competing in wheelchair rugby during treatment at Stoke Mandeville. He won a gold medal when he played in his first major tournament at the National Championships in Stoke Mandeville.[5]

From 2007 and 2008, Hussain studied at the Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme.[6]

In 2008, he was part of the Great Britain team that finished fourth in the Summer Paralympic Games in Beijing. Afterward, Hussain considered retiring from the game.

In September 2010, he was part of the Great Britain team that finished fifth at the World Wheelchair Rugby Championships in Canada. They won three games and lost four games.[5][7] In 2011, Great Britain won silver at the European Championships.[8]

In May 2012, Hussain was named by The British Paralympic Association in its 11-strong Paralympics GB wheelchair rugby team.[8][9][10][11] Great Britain finished fifth in the 2012 Summer Paralympic Games in Beijing.[12]

In October 2015, Hussain was in the BT World Wheelchair Rugby Challenge.[13] In May 2016, he was named by The British Paralympic Association in its 11-strong Paralympics GB wheelchair rugby team.[12] Great Britain finished fifth in the 2016 Summer Paralympics Games.

Hussain plays for the Kent Crusaders[2][14][15] and plays mostly in a defensive role on court.[3]

Awards

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In April 2012, Hussain was awarded the Sports Award at the Channel S Awards.[16]

Personal life

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Hussain lives in Whitechapel, London, England. His sporting inspiration is Muhammad Ali, whom he describes as the "ultimate competitor".[2]

In March 2013, along with a three-year-old orphan, Tonbir, Hussain officially unveiled Tower Hamlets Council's "Catch. Don't Pass" campaign at the Town Hall in Canary Wharf.[17]

Honours

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Year Event Venue Result
2006 World Championships Christchurch, New Zealand 4th
2008 Summer Paralympic Games Beijing, China 4th
2010 World Championships Vancouver, Canada 5th
2011 European Championships Notwill, Switzerland Silver
2012 Summer Paralympic Games London, England 5th

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Booth, Richard (2011). Power and Movement: Portraits of Britain's Paralympic Athletes. John Wiley & Sons. p. 12. ISBN 978-1119973102. Bulbul Hussain Paralympic.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Bulbul Hussain". British Paralympic Association. 2012. Archived from the original on 7 March 2014. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d e Beard, Matthew; Gardner, Jasmine (26 August 2010). "Going for gold as Paralympics come home to London". London Evening Standard. London. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  4. ^ Ullah, Ansar Ahmed (6 September 2012). "Bengali rugby star Bulbul eyes gold". The Daily Star. Bangladesh. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  5. ^ a b c d Sheen, Tom (10 January 2011). "Wheelchair rugby star Bulbul aims for gold in 2012 Paralympic Games". East End Life. London: Tower Hamlets. Archived from the original on 31 August 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  6. ^ "Wheelchair Rugby Squad Announced for London 2012". Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme. 16 May 2012. Archived from the original on 27 July 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  7. ^ "GB finish sixth at World Wheelchair Rugby Championships". BBC Sport. 29 September 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  8. ^ a b Gold, David (15 May 2012). "BPA names strong wheelchair rugby squad hoping for glory at London 2012". Inside The Games. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  9. ^ "Six Paralympics debutants in GB wheelchair rugby team". BBC Sport. 15 May 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  10. ^ Davies, Gareth A (15 May 2012). "London 2012 Paralympics: Great Britain's wheelchair rugby squad for Games named". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  11. ^ "Wheelchair Rugby". UK Sport. 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  12. ^ a b "Rio Paralympics: GB name wheelchair rugby squad". BBC Sport. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  13. ^ "How can I watch the BT World Wheelchair Rugby Challenge ?". The Daily Telegraph. 12 October 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  14. ^ Wolfe, Steve (21 May 2012). "Seven Kent athletes chosen for Paralympics". Kent: Kent Sports News. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  15. ^ "Coggan eyes Storm glory and Rio reign". The Daily Telegraph. 22 April 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  16. ^ "Channel S Awards 2012 -the Winners". Sylhet: The Sylhet Times. 3 April 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  17. ^ Mayer, Chloe (28 March 2013). "Paralympian launches campaign to find adoptive parents for disabled children in Tower Hamlets". London: East London Advertiser. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
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