Who’s who presenting the Paralympics?
It’s been a tremendous summer of sport already but even the end of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics does not mean that the sporting summer of fun is over as now the Paralympics 2020 are underway.
The games, which are taking place in Tokyo, were meant to take place last year but were delayed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic – and all the action will be available to watch on Channel 4 with The Last Leg running nightly with Paralympic specials while the games are taking place.
And Channel 4 have lined up a large, strong team to present the games and talk us through the action this year and if you want to know everyone that is involved then you have come to the right place!
Presenters
Ade Adepitan
Ade made a name for himself as a wheelchair basketball player and has since gone on to do great things with his TV work, including presenting documentaries and being a part of the Children in Need charity fundraiser.
Clare Balding
Another familiar face, Balding has presented a huge variety of sports on the BBC, including six previous Olympic Games. She has also previously led the BBC’s rugby league coverage, provided extensive coverage of horse racing, serves as one of the presenters of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and frequently appears during the BBC’s coverage of Wimbledon.
Arthur Williams
Arthur is no stranger to the Paralympics as he first presented them back in the 2012 games and has since gone onto make a series of documentaries.
Sophie Morgan
Sophie presented at the Paralympics in 2016 and she has long been a disability advocate. She also has a keen interest in current affairs and travel and has presented documentaries about those very things.
Steph McGovern
Steph spent eight years on BBC Breakfast and then made the switch to Channel 4 to present Steph’s Packed Lunch.
JJ Chalmers
JJ was a presenter at the Rio Paralympics and has also presented for the annual Invictus Games for the BBC. He previously served as a Royal Marine and he was injured in a bomb blast in 2011. You will likely remember him from his appearance as a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing.
Ed Jackson
Ed is a former rugby player, has presented Channel 4’s European Champions Cup rugby highlights and commentated for the Six Nations.
Vick Hope
Vick is the current host for Life Hacks and The Official Chart: First Look on BBC Radio One and she will be an even bigger name at the station too, as she is due to take over hosting The Drivetime Show.
Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker
Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker are all best known for their work on The Last Leg which is back nightly for the whole of the Paralympics, with many guests lined up over the course of the series to join them.
Rosie Jones
Comedian, Rosie is a regular guest on The Last Leg and a brilliant stand-up comic. She presented a travel series for Channel 4 called Trip Hazard: My Great British Adventure and she has her own children’s book out, The Amazing Edie Eckhart.
Lee McKenzie
Lee is established at Channel 4 and is a host of their F1 coverage and the rugby. He also covers a variety of different sports for the BBC.
Jordan Jarret-Bryan
Jordan was a Wheelchair Basketball player at club and national level and he captained a two-time winning European team. He is also a sports journalist for Channel 4 and a DJ.
Jeanette Kwakye
Jeanette is a former athlete who covers sports for Channel 4, the BBC, Sky Sports and Channel 5 – so she is a busy lady. She competed in the 100m Olympic final back in 2008.
Liz Johnson
Liz is a former swimmer who won medals, including a gold, across three Paralympic Games. She co-founded The Ability People, the UK’s first disability-led employment consultancy.
Giles Long MBE
Giles has made a name for himself as a Paralympic athlete by competing in swimming and winning medals for doing so. Since he retired from the sport, he made the move to being a sports commentator.
Commentators and pundits
Steve Brown
Steve is a former wheelchair rugby player and coach and he captained Great Britain at the London 2012 Paralympics. Not only that, but he is a European Championship gold-medal winner!
Simon Brotherton
Simon is a BBC sports commentator and you would likely have seen him on Match of the Day and BBC Radio 5 Live. He shows up on BT Sport too and covers baseball, cycling and boxing.
Jo Rowsell
Jo is a retired British cyclist who has won gold medals in the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Paralympics.
Ronald McIntosh
Ronald has won awards for his sports coverage as a freelance commentator, reporter and presenter and he has worked for a range of broadcasters, including BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and BT Sport.
Rob Walker
Rob has worked for BBC, Channel 4, ITV and Setanta Sports as a presenter and his work has covered tennis, snooker, darts, boxing, football, sailing and athletics.
Katharine Merry
Katharine won the bronze medal in the 400m at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and then worked for the BBC at the Olympics in Beijing and London.
Dan Strange
Dan is a wheelchair basketball commentator and you would have heard his voice covering a range of international events over the years.
Clare Griffiths
Clare is a former wheelchair basketball player and, since retiring from the sport, she has stayed actively involved in it by commentating on the games.
John Rawling
John works for BT Sport, ITV and talkSPORT and his main areas of expertise are British boxing, track and field, darts and yachting – and he commentates on them all! He also presented at the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.
Gigi Salmon
Gigi is a British TV and radio presenter, reporter and commentator. She covers tennis and football for BBC Five Live and has been working in the world of sport for more than 20 years, so she knows her stuff.
Louise Hunt
Louise is a British wheelchair tennis player who competed in the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.
Peter Norfolk
Peter won gold medals at Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 as a British wheelchair tennis player and he has also won multiple grand slam titles.
Marc Woods
Marc has taken part in five Paralympic swimming events and won 12 medals in his time, including a gold at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.
Baroness Grey-Thompson
Baroness Grey-Thompson won 11 gold medals over five Paralympic Games and she has since put all her efforts into making more people aware of and interested in disability sports.
Danny Crates
Danny was a gold medal-winning record-breaker in the Paralympics in 2004 and he also claimed gold at the European and World Championships.
Alice Tai
Alice is a British Paralympic swimmer who won gold medals at international, European and Commonwealth Paralympic games.
Stef Reid
Stef took part in the T44 long jump and sprint Paralympic events and nabbed a bronze medal for sprint in 2008 and then a silver for the long jump in 2012.
Lauren Steadman
Lauren competed at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing and the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London as a swimmer and won a medal in the para-triathlon during the 2016 Games that were held in Rio.
Hannah Dines
Hannah is a British T2 trike rider who competed at Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.
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