WHEELCHAIR basketball prodigy Jack Long is setting his sights on a Paralympic debut at LA 2028 after enjoying a stellar year.
The University of Worcester student represented Great Britain’s under-23 squad which went undefeated en route to European Championships glory.
And the 20-year-old played a major role in GB’s success both on and off the court.
He also thrived at club level, winning back-to-back BUCS titles with the University of Worcester. He also captained the team to glory in Loughborough this year.
Long’s achievements have led to him being shortlisted in the top-10 for SportsAid’s prestigious One-to-Watch Award.
The annual award, launched in 2006, recognises Britain’s brightest young sporting prospects. Olympic champions Tom Daley and Alex Yee and Paralympic gold medallist Hollie Arnold previously won the award.
The top-10 athletes have been selected from around 1,000 rising stars, supported by SportsAid, across more than 60 different sports in 2024.
Long said: “I was getting invited to a couple of senior camps just to help the seniors train, so my main ambition is to start being invited just as someone who’s ready to compete.
“Getting invited to senior camps more regularly would definitely be at the top of my list of things that should happen, but I’m hoping that happens more in the short-term.
“I’d say long-term, there’s a European Championships next year for seniors, so competing for a spot in them, even if I don’t make it, would just be great seeing how far I’ve come in the past year.
“And then my final long-term goal would have to just be going to LA, the 2028 Paralympics. Going to LA would be great because all that I’ve worked for is that.”
Long has demonstrated mental resilience on countless occasions to bounce back from hard times.
A more recent setback saw his team suffer an untimely relegation from the top-flight.
The club went on to fold following the downturn in results which left Long without a team. This came at a pivotal time in his career.
Long added: “My team obviously dropped down to Division One last season, which I took really hard because I felt like I was finally going places in my career.
“I was primed for that season to be my big breakout year and I wanted to try do some new stuff and be more of a main player in the team, so when we got dropped down and the whole team folded, it was quite hard for me.
“I’m glad I stayed with it and used it to develop other stuff for myself and just kept pushing forward, knowing that after this season, I could move back up to the Prem and join a different team and have new challenges ahead of me.
“I think having the GB under-22 camps and all the coaches there believe in me, even when I was playing at a lower level, that definitely helped push me through.
“They didn’t think that now he’s playing at a lower level, that was worse for the team. They still believed in me and supported me in the ways that I was just as valuable as a member of the team.”
Long is also open about his struggles with autism, something he refuses to let hamper him in his pursuit of sporting success.
The Bristol native says wheelchair basketball has allowed him to learn a lot about himself and his condition.
Long said: “I grew up with autism and it used to affect me quite a lot in parts of my life. I used to not understand why I would do stuff and how I’d handle stuff.
“I think through sport and through just growing up, I’ve managed to understand it a lot more and be able to deal with it a lot more.
“I understand it’s never going to go and that’s just it. But understanding that has helped me persist further in just day-to-day life, like I don’t get as worked up over stuff.
“I can carry on playing basketball and not get too stressed about it. That’s something I’m quite passionate about. I want all people who have it to understand themselves.
“It’s hard growing up when you’re young because you don’t really understand what’s going on, but eventually as I’ve grown up, I’ve managed to understand it so I’d say I’m quite passionate about that.”
SportsAid’s annual One-to-Watch Award is being supported by Aldi – the charity’s Official Supermarket Partner. The winner of this year’s Award will be revealed in December with each of the top 10 receiving cash boosts and special in-person visits at their training environments to celebrate their achievements.
