The present coronavirus pandemic is posing challenges for people all around the world. Paralympic athletes, who were preparing to participate in the next Tokyo Paralympic games, are no exception. The social distancing policy adopted in numerous countries, including Japan and the UK, is changing lifestyles and making us rethink what we can do to overcome this difficult period and move forward. Noel Thatcher MBE will talk talk about his life journeys and how he has been able to transform their greatest challenges into opportunities, including the important role of sport and physical activities in developing mental and physical well-being.

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, this new programme is designed mainly for university students in Japan, and the webinar will be delivered in Japanese. If you would like to attend, please e-mail Alice Vicentin (alice.vicentin@dajf.org.uk). Spaces are limited.

Date: Friday 23 October 2020

Japan Time: 8:00pm-9:15pm (GMT+9)
UK Time: 12:00pm-1:15pm (GMT+1)

About the contributors

Noel Thatcher MBE is a British Paralympic runner who represented the United Kingdom at six Paralympic Games between 1984 and 2004, collecting a total of five gold medals. He was awarded an MBE by the Queen in the 1997 New Year’s Honours list for his services to athletics for disabled people. Noel has won 42 International Gold medals over six distances and has set ten Paralympic World Records through his time in competition. He was selected to carry the Union flag in the Opening Ceremony of Athens 2004. Noel ran his last International in 2005, winning a bronze medal in the European 10,000m. Noel studied Japanese at SOAS, University of London, and is a fluent Japanese speaker; he came third in the annual Sir Peter Parker Business Japanese Speech Contest. He currently works with the Japan Foundation and Japan Sports Council in a voluntary capacity to promote Japanese language, culture and sport. He received the 2019 Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation for contributing to Japan-UK relations through sport.