      neroli susan fairhall mbe (26 august 1944 - 11 june 2006) was a new zealand athlete, who was the first paraplegic competitor in the olympic games. ==biography== born in christchurch, fairhall took up archery following a motorbike accident which paralysed her from the waist down, ending her previous athletic career. she was able to compete in the 1984 los angeles olympic games, shooting for new zealand and finishing in 35th place. fairhall was the first paraplegic to compete in the olympic games. fairhall won gold when archery was first introduced to the commonwealth games in brisbane in 1982. a national champion for many years, fairhall won medals and held titles at the paralympics, ipc-archery world championships and many international tournaments. she participated in four summer paralympics, in 1972, 1980, 1988, and 2000. at her first paralympic games she competed in track and field athletics. at the 1980 games, she took part in both athletics and archery, winning a gold medal in the latter sport. at the 1988 and 2000 paralympics she competed in archery only. fairhall was awarded an mbe for services to the sport. she continued to coach at her christchurch archery club after retiring from shooting. she died on 11 june 2006, aged 61, due to illness arising from her disability. ==see also== *list of athletes who have competed in the paralympics and olympics == references == *sports-reference  ==external links== * profile at the new zealand olympic committee  
1944_births 2006_deaths Archers_at_the_1984_Summer_Olympics Archers_at_the_2000_Summer_Paralympics Athletes_(track_and_field)_at_the_1972_Summer_Paralympics Athletes_(track_and_field)_at_the_1980_Summer_Paralympics Commonwealth_Games_competitors_for_New_Zealand Commonwealth_Games_gold_medallists_for_New_Zealand Medalists_at_the_1980_Summer_Paralympics Paralympic_gold_medalists_for_New_Zealand Wheelchair_category_Paralympic_competitors