James Ball is a Welsh Paralympic cyclist. The visually impaired multiple world-champion paralympian competes in tandem races, in which he is the 'stoker' on the back while a sighted teammate is the 'pilot' at the front.
James has been into sports since he was very young, starting with swimming and athletics through school, but cycling wasn't originally on his agenda at all. Originally in line for track and field for Team GB at the London Paralympic Games in 2012, an injury set him back on a 3-year recovery journey. On this journey back to full fitness, James took part in turbo testing (riding on a static trainer) arranged by British Cycling, and his potential on a bike was discovered.
Winning bronze at his first international event was just the start of an exciting sporting career, and he has gone on to some very impressive achievements (see the bottom of this page for a quick summary so far). Earlier this year, James introduced a Lay-Z-Spa into his wellness and recovery, so we caught up with him.
Tell us a bit about yourself
My name is James Ball, I’m a Paralympic athlete on the Great Britain Cycling Team.
I have a visual impairment called Achromatopsia, which I’ve had since birth - a condition that means I'm extremely affected by bright lights.
I’ve been competing in cycling for 10 years and have been to 3 Paralympic Games: Rio, Tokyo and Paris, as well as 2 Commonwealth Games and 8 World Championships where I’ve become both 5 x World and 1 x Commonwealth Champion.
The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games was where I recently won Paralympic Gold and hope to continue that in LA28 and beyond.
How do you make use of your Lay-Z-Spa?
I use my Lay-Z-Spa on rest/recovery days to get the biggest benefit for my current training.
It’s perfect for after a hard week in the gym and on track as it helps aid muscle soreness and sets me up for the new week ahead.
I’ve found it’s also great for general relaxation and just having 30 mins to fully switch off, which has been very beneficial.
James's Achievements so far:
2024
Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, men’s B 1km time-trial, gold (piloted by Steffan Lloyd)
UCI Para-Cycling Track World Championships, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), men’s B 1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Steffan Lloyd)
UCI Para-Cycling Track World Championships, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), men’s B sprint, bronze (piloted by Steffan Lloyd)
2023
UCI Para-Track Cycling World Championships, Glasgow, men’s B 1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Steffan Lloyd)
2022
Commonwealth Games, Birmingham, men’s B 1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Matt Rotherham)
Commonwealth Games, Birmingham, men’s B sprint, gold (piloted by Matt Rotherham)
UCI Para Track World Championships, Paris (France), mixed B team sprint, gold (piloted by Steffan Lloyd)
UCI Para Track World Championships, Paris (France), men’s B1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Steffan Lloyd)
UCI Para Track World Championships, Paris (France), men’s B sprint, bronze (piloted by Steffan Lloyd)
2021
Paralympic Games, Tokyo (Japan), men’s B 1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Lewis Stewart)
2020
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Milton (Canada), men’s B sprint, gold (piloted by Lewis Stewart)
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Milton (Canada), men’s B 1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Lewis Stewart)
2019
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Apeldoorn (Netherlands), men’s B 1km time-trial, gold (piloted by Pete Mitchell)
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Apeldoorn (Netherlands), men’s B sprint, silver (piloted by Pete Mitchell
2018
Commonwealth Games, Gold Coast (Australia), men’s B 1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Pete Mitchell)
Commonwealth Games, Gold Coast (Australia), men’s B sprint, silver (piloted by Pete Mitchell)
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), men’s B 1km time-trial, silver (piloted by Pete Mitchell)
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), men’s B sprint, bronze (piloted by Pete Mitchell)
2017
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Los Angeles (USA), men’s B 1km time-trial, gold (piloted by Matt Rotherham)
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Los Angeles (USA), men’s B print, gold (piloted by Matt Rotherham)
2016
UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Montichiari (Italy), men’s B print, bronze (piloted by Craig Maclean)
