About Me

Date of Birth: August 30, 1985
Hometown: Stellenbosch, South Africa
Sponsors: Adidas, Oakley.
Hobbies: Traveling, loving the outdoors, meeting new people, discovering new places, dancing, art, reading, spending time with friends and family

Career Highlights

2004 – Bronze medal (400m) Athens Paralympics
2008 – Gold medal (Long Jump) Beijing Paralympics
2008 – Silver medal (100m) Beijing Paralympics
2012 – Gold medal (Long Jump) London Paralympics
2012 – Silver medal (100m) London Paralympics

Bio

Ilse Hayes is a Paralympic track and field athlete who competes mainly in the T13 and F13 class for visually impaired athletes.

When Ilse was 11 years-old, she was diagnosed with a condition called Stargardt’s Disease. This condition affects the central vision. Because of her condition, Ilse struggles to see basic detail. She describes the condition as only being able to see things clearly about 2-6 meters in front of her where as a person with “normal” vision can see roughly 60 meters away.

At 15 she began competing in disabled sports competitions and her first senior international competition came in 2002 at the World Championships in France. It was there where she realized she could achieve great things as she went on to win a gold in the 400m and a bronze in the 100m.

Ilse’s first Paralympic Games came in 2004 in Athens where she won a bronze medal in the 400m. She credits the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing as the highlight of her career when she won the silver medal in the 100m and the gold medal in the long jump. She topped all of these experiences off by defending her long jump title at the London Paralympics while securing a silver medal again in the 100m.

When addressing her disability, Ilse says she’s “learned to deal with it.” She also stated that she figured God wouldn’t give it to someone who couldn’t handle it.

Off the track, Ilse completed her Sports Science degree in 2007 and then her honors in Pediatric Sciences. She works with children on a community project at the University of Stellenbosch where she focuses on motor development within sports. Ilse finds it rewarding to watch the children grow not only with their movement, but with life skills as well.

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