Impairment Information |
Type of Impairment |
Vision impairment |
Origin of Impairment |
Acquired |
Classification |
B2 |
Guide |
Brett Wild, GBR, from 2016 |
Further Personal Information |
Residence |
Canterbury, ENG |
Occupation |
Athlete, Student |
Languages |
English, French |
Higher education |
Psychology - Stirling University: Scotland |
Sport Specific Information |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
She first tried the sport at age six, just after she lost her sight, while on holiday in Meribel, France. She took up the sport seriously in 2012 after contacting Disability Snowsport UK . |
Why this sport? |
She was encouraged to try the sport by her mother, and was also inspired to become an elite athlete after attending the opening ceremony of the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. "I wasn't any good at regular sports so when I went skiing for the first time, I loved it. It's totally different to anything else I do in my life, that's why I get such a buzz from it." |
Name of coach |
Amanda Pirie [national], GBR; John Clark [personal] |
Senior International Debut |
Year |
2012/13 |
Competing for |
Great Britain |
Location |
Landgraaf, NED |
General Interest |
Hobbies |
Photography. (bbc.co.uk, 09 Mar 2018) |
Memorable sporting achievement |
Becoming Great Britain's youngest winter Paralympian at the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, and winning gold at the 2017 World Championships in Tarvisio, Italy. (IPC, 10 Feb 2018) |
Most influential person in career |
Her mother. (Athlete, 20 Jun 2016) |
Hero / Idol |
Irish band 'The Script'. (IPC, 10 Feb 2018) |
Injuries |
Injury ruled her out of the 2019 World Championships in Slovenia and Italy. (paralympics.org.uk, 14 Jan 2019; bbc.com, 12 Jan 2019)
She sustained a concussion after crashing at the 2017 World Cup event in Pyeongchang, Republic of Korea. (theguardian.com, 11 Mar 2018; bbc.co.uk, 09 Mar 2018)
She crashed into a barrier after winning gold in downhill at the 2017 World Championships in Tarvisio, Italy. "It hurt a lot, my whole body was bruised, I'd hurt my ankle and banged my head. I had concussion." (IPC, 10 Feb 2018; kentonline.co.uk, 02 Feb 2017; bbc.com, 25 Jan 2017)
In August 2016 she suffered from an illness that required hospital treatment. She returned to competition in December that year. (kentonline.co.uk, 02 Feb 2017) |
Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs |
At the start line she says, "You could be the greatest, you can be the best, you can be the King Kong banging on your chest," a line from 'Hall of Fame' by Irish band, 'The Script'. (bbc.co.uk, 09 Mar 2018) |
Sporting philosophy / motto |
"You can either have good excuses or good results but not both." (IPC, 10 Feb 2018) |
Awards and honours |
In July 2017 she received an honorary doctorate at the University of Kent in England. (IPC, 10 Feb 2018)
She was named the 2014 Woman of the Year in Canterbury, England. (canterburytimes.co.uk, 02 Jan 2015)
She was flag bearer for Great Britain at the opening ceremony of the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi. (bbc.co.uk, 06 Mar 2014) |
Milestones |
At age 15 she became the youngest British athlete to have competed at the Paralympic Winter Games when she participated at the 2014 Games in Sochi. (Twitter profile, 10 Sep 2017; theresident.co.uk, 18 Mar 2015) |
Other sports |
She has competed at regional level in rowing. (Athlete, 20 Jun 2016) |
Ambitions |
To compete at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing. (millieknight.co.uk, 02 Oct 2018) |
Impairment |
She contracted the roundworm parasite toxocariasis at around age one. It lay dormant for several years but began to affect her sight at age six. Within three weeks, she had lost most of her vision. (dailymail.co.uk, 05 Dec 2012) |
Other information |
THERAPY
She was involved in two separate crashes close to the finishing line of races during the 2016/17 season, sustaining a concussion on both occasions. Having never been involved in a serious crash during her career before this, she began working with sports psychologist Kelley Fay in order to overcome a fear of skiing and regain her confidence ahead of the 218 Paralympic Winter Games. Fay would spend up to 90 minutes a day with her, working on how to redirect her thoughts ahead of a competition or altering Knight's body language to help her look and feel more confident. "I think now I'm much stronger mentally. When I think about my crash I smile, I don't think of it and get worried any more." (bbc.co.uk, 09 Mar 2018) |
Paralympic Games (Overall) |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 5 |
2014 |
Slalom - Visually Impaired |
2:18.77 |
| 5 |
2014 |
Giant Slalom - Visually Impaired |
3:07.34 |
| 2 |
2018 |
Downhill - Visually Impaired |
1:30.58 |
| 2 |
2018 |
Super-G - Visually Impaired |
1:33.76 |
| 4 |
2018 |
Super Combined - Visually Impaired |
2:31.73 |
| 7 |
2018 |
Giant Slalom - Visually Impaired |
2:34.52 |
| 3 |
2018 |
Slalom - Visually Impaired |
1:53.39 |
World Championships |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 2 |
2014/2015 |
Giant Slalom - Visually Impaired |
2:24.39 |
| 3 |
2014/2015 |
Slalom - Visually Impaired |
2:13.81 |
| 1 |
2016/2017 |
Downhill - Visually Impaired |
1:13.42 |
| |
2016/2017 |
Super-G - Visually Impaired |
DNS |
| 2 |
2016/2017 |
Super Combined - Visually Impaired |
2:03.62 |
| 2 |
2016/2017 |
Giant Slalom - Visually Impaired |
2:27.60 |
| 2 |
2016/2017 |
Slalom - Visually Impaired |
1:35.13 |
World Cup Final |
| Rank |
Year |
Event |
Result |
| 2 |
2015/2016 |
Giant Slalom - Visually Impaired |
1:58.75 |
| 3 |
2015/2016 |
Giant Slalom - Visually Impaired |
2:02.71 |
| 3 |
2015/2016 |
Slalom - Visually Impaired |
1:34.19 |
| 2 |
2015/2016 |
Downhill - Visually Impaired |
1:21.36 |
| 1 |
2015/2016 |
Downhill - Visually Impaired |
1:19.70 |
| 1 |
2015/2016 |
Super-G - Visually Impaired |
1:28.18 |
| 1 |
2015/2016 |
Super-G - Visually Impaired |
1:30.08 |
| 2 |
2016/2017 |
Downhill - Visually Impaired |
1:32.37 |
| 2 |
2016/2017 |
Super-G - Visually Impaired |
1:36.74 |
| 3 |
2017/2018 |
Downhill - Visually Impaired |
1:23.17 |
| 4 |
2017/2018 |
Downhill - Visually Impaired |
1:24.43 |
| 3 |
2017/2018 |
Super-G - Visually Impaired |
1:27.83 |
| 3 |
2017/2018 |
Super-G - Visually Impaired |
1:29.17 |
