Blythe signing autographs to a fan's item at the Welcome Home Parade after the 2000 Summer ParalympicsBlythe in a match against Great Britain at the 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Games
Robert Alexander "Sandy" Blythe, OAM[1][2] (24 February 1962 – 18 November 2005) was an Australian wheelchair basketball player. He became a paraplegic due to a car accident in 1981, and went on to participate in the Australia men's national wheelchair basketball team at four Paralympic Games, captaining the gold medal-winning team at the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics. He committed suicide in 2005 at the age of 43 after a long illness.
Biography
Blythe was born in Geelong on 24 February 1962.[3] He grew up in a farm outside the Victorian town of Derrinallum and was a champion Australian rules football player as a teenager. He played in the Teal Cup and was later part of the St Kilda Football Club country squad.[4] In 1981, he began studying at the Ballarat College of Advanced Education, but later that year, he was involved in a three-car collision that rendered him paraplegic.[4][5] In 1984 he obtained his physical education degree on schedule, despite his six-month rehabilitation at Austin Hospital.[5]
Blythe was also a motivational speaker who formed and worked in several businesses that improved public awareness of people with disabilities.[4][5] In 2000, he released a memoir, Blythe Spirit.[10]
On 18 November 2005, Blythe committed suicide; he had had depression and chronic fatigue syndrome for several years.[4][11] He was survived by his partner of eight years, wheelchair basketballer Paula Coghlan.[12]
