5 Facts About...Jo Butterfield

Great Britain’s Jo Butterfield will be hoping for plenty of home support when she defends her club throw F51 title at the World Para Athletics Championships in London in July. Here’s what you need to know:

Five Facts About Jo Butterfield

1) In 2011 Butterfield underwent an operation to remove a tumour on her spinal cord. The procedure left her paralysed.

2) Sport was a prominent part of her rehabilitation – initially she played for the Caledonian Crushers wheelchair rugby team in Scotland.

3) Butterfield took up athletics seriously in 2014 and was selected for Great Britain the same year – she won European gold that summer.

4) The 38-year-old is the Paralympic, world and European champion in the club throw F51.

5) The Glasgow-based Para athlete was awarded the MBE (Member of the British Empire) in the British New Year's Honours List earlier this year.