Wheelchair rugby player Ryley Batt OAM is a five-time Paralympian and captain of the Australian national team, the Steelers.
Considered one of the best players in the world, Ryley was drawn to the sport after Paralympian Tom Kennedy hosted a wheelchair rugby clinic at his primary school in Port Macquarie. From there he started training with a local team and was selected to the NSW wheelchair rugby team when he was 12 years old. Ryley was then selected to the Australian team and made his Paralympic debut in Athens in 2004 where, at 15, he become the youngest ever wheelchair rugby player to compete at the Paralympic Games.
At the 2008 Beijing Paralympics, Ryley and the Steelers won Silver. Four years later in London, they defeated Canada to win their first Paralympic gold medal. In 2014 they claimed their first world championship title.
After the Steelers defeated the USA to win gold at the Rio 2016 Paralympics Ryley made the history books again, becoming a member of the first wheelchair rugby team to win consecutive Paralympic gold medals and a world title in a four-year period. Ryley and the Steelers swill look to defend their Paralympic gold at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
Ryley is co-captain of the Tokyo 2020 Australian Paralympic team, alongside wheelchair tennis champion Danni Di Toro.