Second-class honours

Eighteen Paralympians who claimed gold medals in Beijing have been recognised in the New Year’s honours list. But there is controversy over whether they have been recognised equally with their Olympic counterparts.

The most notable name on the list was schoolgirl Eleanor Simmonds, who at 13 is thought to be the youngest person ever to be honoured by being awarded an MBE.

Eleven-time Paralympic gold medallist Dave Roberts, and Lee Pearson, who won three golds for the third successive Games, were both made CBEs, while other names on the list included cyclist Sarah Storey (OBE), swimmer Jody Cundy (MBE) and wheelchair racer David Weir (MBE).

However, the athletes’ recognition was overshadowed by a row over inequality, as only 17 of the 35 Paralympic gold medalists received awards, in contrast to the Olympic squad, where every gold medallist was recognised in some form.

ParalympicsGB chairman, Tim Reddish, said he was delighted that the athletes had been recognised and received awards, praising their “magnificent achievements”.

However, he criticised the decision to omit some of the gold medallists.

“We are very disappointed that not all the Beijing 2008 Paralympic gold medallists could be recognised but we look forward to more athletes being honoured in the future.”

The list of honours recipients from the sporting field is initially drawn up by the Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS), before being passed on to the Cabinet Office.

But there is confusion over who is responsible for the apparent disparity in this year’s honours.

A Cabinet Office spokes­woman told Disability Now: “All the decisions are made by the sports committee based on the factors in front of them. They are career-wide and the parameters are based on criteria approved by the associations, in this case the British Paralympic Association”.

She said that they were unable to comment on individual cases.

However, this version of events is denied by ParalympicsGB.

A spokeswoman told Disability Now: “ParalympicsGB did not have a role in drawing up this list, we were informed about who would be on the list and told of the approach DCMS had adopted in drawing up the list, but we were not involved in the decision-making process and did not endorse the approach taken by DCMS.”

Dame Tanni Grey Thompson, who is a member of the sports committee, had reportedly criticised the fact that Paralympians “needed to multi-medal” to stand a chance of being recognised.

However, she has since denied believing that the honours system discriminates against disabled athletes.

A Cabinet Office spokeswoman said that Dame Tanni’s comments had been “taken out of context, and were not
what she was reported to have said”.

Full list of honours for those involved in Paralympic sport

Commanders of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)
Lee Pearson – para-dressage Paralympic triple gold medallist
David Roberts – Paralympic swimming gold medallist (four in Beijing)

Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)
Ellen Hunter – double Paralympic gold medal-winning cycling pilot rider
Darren Kenny – four-time (in Beijing) Paralympic cycling gold medallist
Phil Lane – ParalympicsGB Chief Executive
Aileen McGlynn – double Paralympic cycling gold medallist
Tim Reddish – British Disability Swimming National Performance Director
Sarah Storey – double Paralympic cycling gold medallist

Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)
Mark Bristow – two-time Paralympic gold medal-winning cyclist
Sophie Christiansen – para-dressage double gold medallist
Jody Cundy – Paralympic cycling double gold medallist
Anne Dunham – double Para-dressage gold medallist
Anthony Kappes – double Paralympic gold medallist for cycling
Billy Pye – Head Disability Swimming Coach and coach to Eleanor Simmonds and Dave Roberts.
Simon Richardson – double Paralympic cycling gold medallist
Eleanor Simmonds – two-time Paralympic gold medallist and the youngest Briton to win an individual Paralympic gold