Rodney Nugent

In an interview in 2011, Nugent commented that sport allowed him to achieve the goals he had as an able bodied athlete and played a significant role in his rehabilitation.

In 1992, he accepted a scholarship in the newly established Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) Athletes with a Disabilities program and was coached by Chris Nunn. In joining the AIS program, Nugent commented "It’s very hard for athletes to finance their own training – I did it for years and it was tough. Getting this scholarship with the AIS has made all the difference. The facilities are good and the training program is excellent".

Nugent won a gold medal at the 1992 Barcelona Games in the Men's 4x100 m Relay TS2,4 event, a world record. He also competed in the 100 m, 200 m, long jump and triple jump. He left the AIS program after the 1992 Barcelona Paralympics.

At the 1988 Seoul Paralympics, Nugent entered seven events and won four gold (long jump, triple jump, 4x 100 m Relay, and 4 x 400 m Relay) and three bronze medals (100 m, 200 m and high jump). He broke three world records.

Rodney Francis Nugent, OAM (born 26 November 1967) is an Australian Paralympic athlete.

Nugent was born on 26 November 1967 in the northern New South Wales city of Lismore. At the age of 15, he lost the lower portion of his right arm in an industrial accident with a mincing machine . Before the accident, Nugent enjoyed sport and played soccer and cricket. The accident did not stop his love of sport and he turned his focus to athletics and coaching.