Blake Cochrane

Blake Cochrane

2012 Australian Paralympic Team portrait of Cochrane
Personal information
Nationality	Australian
Born	25/1/91 Charleville Queensland Australia
Sport
Club	Southern Cross Saints
Medal record Competitor for Australia Swimming Paralympic Games Silver 2008 Beijing Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB7 Gold 2012 London Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB7 Gold 2012 London Men's 4 x 100 m Freestyle Relay 34 pts IPC Swimming World Championships Gold 2013 Montreal Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB7

Blake Cochrane, OAM (born 25 January 1991) is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. He won two gold medals at the 2012 Summer Paralympics.

Personal

Blake John Cochrane born on 25 January 1991. Cochrane's character is such that he has turned physical adversity into a strength. He has achievements in both academics and sports, but it is the latter that marks his strength of character and competitive nature. He commenced soccer at the age of five and played for over 10 years as a striker and later in the position as goalie winning club recognition of his skills. In high school he played various sports including representing the Southern Cross Catholic College on a Gaelic Football sports tour to Ireland. He developed an interest in scuba-diving as well as snow skiing - he has a strong interest in both team and individual sports across the board.

However swimming has always been a part of his life. His natural ability was recognised early when regularly winning races at various school and club level swim meets.^{[citation needed]} Early school based achievements include:

• Vice-Captain - Southern Cross Catholic College 2008 (Responsibility for Culture and various public speaking roles) ^{[citation needed]}
• Recipient - Pierre de Coubertin Award 2008^{[citation needed]}
• Lions Youth of the Year Quest 2008 Award (Redcliffe District)^{[citation needed]}
• Westpac Special Achievement Award "School's Best Standardised Score" Mathematics 2003, Australian Mathematics Trust Competition^{[citation needed]}
• Westpac Special Achievement Award Certificate of Distinction 2004, Australian Mathematics Trust Competition ^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC Caltex All Rounder Medallion Middle and Senior Years^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC Outstanding Contribution to 'Living the Mission' Award^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 Certificate of Distinction - Year 12 Senior Division, Australian Mathematics Competition, Australian Mathematics Trust.^{[citation needed]}

Cochrane is in process of completing a Bachelor in Exercise and Clinical Science but has deferred his study for 2012 in order to train full-time for the London 2012 Paralympics. He is a member of an elite swimming squad training out of the University of the Sunshine Coast.^{[citation needed]}

Swimming

It was not until his selection by Swimming Australia as an AWD (Athlete with a Disability) team competitor at the Arafura Games in Darwin, 2007, that his potential was realised.^{[citation needed]} Some early sport focused achievements include:

• Qld representative, Queensland School Sport Australia, 2006, 2007 and 2008^{[citation needed]}
• Excellence Award for Sport Southern Cross Catholic College 2007^{[citation needed]}
• Peninsula Power Soccer Club, "Most Competitive Goalie of the Season" 2007^{[citation needed]}
• Club Captain 2007/8 - Southern Cross Saints Swimming Club^{[citation needed]}
• May/June 2007 Quest Community Newspapers Young Star Award Nominee^{[citation needed]}
• Australian Age Record, 50m Freestyle 16yrs/S8, 16/12/07, Qld Swimming Championships, Chandler, Swimming Australia^{[citation needed]}
• May/June 2008 Quest Community Newspapers Young Star Award Winner ^{[citation needed]}
• Qld Games Record, 200m Individual Medley 17yrs/SM8, 2008 AWD Swimming State Championships, Chandler 1/3/08 (Sporting Wheelies & Disabled Association)^{[citation needed]}
• Qld Games Record, 50m Breaststroke 17yrs/SB8, 2008 AWD Swimming State Championships, Chandler 1/3/08 (Sporting Wheelies & Disabled Association)^{[citation needed]}
• Qld Games Record, 200m Individual Medley 17yrs/SM8, 2008 AWD Swimming State Championships, Chandler 1/3/08 (Sporting Wheelies & Disabled Association)^{[citation needed]}
• Qld Games Record, 100m Breaststroke 17yrs/SB8, 2008 AWD Swimming State Championships, Chandler 1/3/08 (Sporting Wheelies & Disabled Association)^{[citation needed]}
• Qld Games Record, 100m Freestyle 17yrs/S8, 2008 AWD Swimming State Championships, Chandler 1/3/08 (Sporting Wheelies & Disabled Association)^{[citation needed]}
• 3rd Place, Roy Fowler Male Swimmer of the Meet, 2008 AWD Swimming State Championships (Sporting Wheelies & Disabled Association)^{[citation needed]}
• Australian Short Course Record, 200m Backstroke S8, Canberra 25/4/08, Swimming Australia^{[citation needed]}
• Australian Age Record, 50m Freestyle 17yrs/S8, Sydney 23/3/08, Swimming Australia^{[citation needed]}
• Australian Age Record, 50m Freestyle 17yrs/S8, Brisbane 10/2/08, Swimming Australia^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC Sportsmanship Award - Chantelle Cramb Futsal Tournament^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC 17 Years Boys Swimming - School Age Champion Award^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC Geoff Huegill Award - School Swimming^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC Sunshine Coast Regional Representative Award - School Swimming^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC Queensland Representative Award - Swimming^{[citation needed]}
• 2008 SCCC Senior Sportsman of the Year Award^{[citation needed]}

Cochrane went on to win a silver medal at the 2008 Beijing Games in the Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB7 event.^[1]

After Beijiing 2008, Cochrane continued to perform strongly in the pool. He was one of the stars of the 2009 World Short Course Championships, winning two gold medals and one silver. He has been honoured with Blue awards by both University of Queensland, 2010 and the University of the Sunshine Coast, 2011. He blitzed the field at the 2011 Para Pan Pacific Championships in Canada, winning five gold medals and breaking the world record in the 100m breaststroke. 2010 was an especially prolific year for Blake as he won gold in the 100m breaststroke at the World Championships, before snaring a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi. In 2011 he won Swimming Australia’s Swimmer with a Disability of the Year Award. During the 2012 Australian Swimming Nationals he again set a new world record in the 100m breaststroke (SB8) final.^{[citation needed]} Competing at the 2012 London Games, he competed in five events and won two gold medals in the Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB7 and Men's 4 x 100m Freestyle 34 points. ^[2]

At the 2013 IPC Swimming World Championships in Montreal, Canada, he broke the world record in winning the gold medal in the Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB7. ^[3]

Recognition

In 2011, he was a nominee for The Age's Sport Performer Award in the Performer with a Disability category.^[4] He was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in the 2014 Australia Day Honours "for service to sport as a Gold Medallist at the London 2012 Paralympic Games."^[5]

See also

• Australia at the Paralympics
• Disabled sports

External links

• Blake Cochrane - Australian Paralympic Committee Profile

References

Further Reading

• Wake, Rebekka (September 2010). "Golden Glow Over Australian Swimmers". Australian Paralympian (Australia: Australian Paralympic Committee) 2. 

External links

Wikinews has related news: 2012 Australian Paralympic swim team announced

• Blake Cochrane at Swimming Australia