Nemo. (gymnastics.org.au, 25 Mar 2017)

Athlete

Kinesiology - University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign: United States

English

South Australian Sports Institute: Australia

Sean Wilson [national]

In May 2020 he underwent surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament [ACL], medial collateral ligament [MCL], meniscus and a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament [PCL] in his left knee. (Facebook page, 11 May 2022, 24 Feb 2022, 13 May 2020, 23 Feb 2020; dailyillini.com, 20 May 2021, 08 Oct 2020; fightingillini.com, 20 May 2021)

He underwent knee surgeries in April and September 2019 due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament [ACL]. (Facebook page, 26 Sep 2019, 19 Apr 2019, 16 Apr 2019)

In 2017 he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament [ACL]. He underwent surgery in October the same year and missed competitions for a year. (Facebook page, 05 Nov 2018, 03 Oct 2018, 18 Oct 2017)

In 2016 he underwent surgery to remove bowel cancer. (The Aesthetics of Leadership Podcast, 10 Apr 2021)

He suffered bilateral fractures in his back while training in Canberra, ACT, Australia, between the ages of 17 and 20. (The Aesthetics of Leadership Podcast, 10 Apr 2021)

He took up gymnastics at age five.

He was selected for gymnastics at a talent identification day. "I went and gave it a crack and loved it. Within six months I was straight into the elite programme. Then they would go cut people, but I just kept making the cut. It got down to five of us. At the time I was playing soccer at a high level, and I had to make a choice out of soccer and gymnastics."

He trains at the National Centre of Excellence in Canberra, ACT, Australia.

Australian artistic gymnast Sam Offord. (gymnastics.org.au, 25 Mar 2017)

"Through the difficult times you'll learn so much about yourself. The hard times serve as a really useful companion in times of success." (dailymail.co.uk, 31 Jul 2022)

MISSING MUSCLE
He was born with only one pectoral muscle, lacking the one in the right side of his chest. "I was born with Poland syndrome. We didn't know until I was three years old. I had a cold, my mum and dad took me to the doctor and he mentioned to my parents he's missing his pec. We didn't really know what it was, but as you get older it gets more noticeable and the doctor asks more questions. My parents asked what does it mean and the doctors said he'll be healthy and fine, he'll just struggle to do certain things. It's quite a major muscle. It's very much about helping to keep yourself stable and still, but I don't use it as an excuse. It's never going to affect me. They said I wouldn't excel in upper body sports, tennis, swimming and gymnastics, which is funny because those were the three sports I was doing at the time." (dailymail.co.uk, 31 Jul 2022; Facebook page, 19 Jun 2022; Big Ten Conference YouTube channel, 30 Oct 2018; wcia.com, 29 Sep 2018; adelaidenow.com.au, 23 Jun 2014)

STUDYING IN THE US
In 2018 he moved to the United States of America to study at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign on a sports scholarship. He graduated in 2022. "I had to study, which I didn't really want to do, but it was a free education. The [US] college gymnastics scene was something that I was never really aware of when I was growing up. It was a great stepping stone for me." (LinkedIn profile, 26 Sep 2022; dailymail.co.uk, 31 Jul 2022; Facebook page, 15 May 2022; The Aesthetics of Leadership Podcast, 10 Apr 2021)

MULTIPLE INJURIES
He believes maintaining a positive attitude helped him to overcome multiple injuries and surgeries during his career, including an operation to remove bowel cancer. "I've torn my ACL [anterior cruciate ligament] three times, had six surgeries. I had bilateral fractures in my back. I had bowel cancer that I had to have cut out in 2016. Overcoming that is so important. The thing I want to stress is things can happen to you but it's how you deal with that and how you move forward. If they are your goals and you're passionate about that then nothing will stop you. Yes injuries, being diagnosed with disabilities, is a road block, but it's never anything you can't get through if you're passionate and your dreams are strong enough." (dailymail.co.uk, 31 Jul 2022; The Aesthetics of Leadership Podcast, 10 Apr 2021)