Jaco's Profile

Multiple world champion and versatile all-rounder, C3 para-cyclist Jaco van Gass is heading to his second Paralympic Games this summer with the aim of securing gold in at least one of his multiple events on road and track.

Born in Middelburg, South Africa, van Gass came to Britain at the age of 20 to pursue his ambition of joining the British Armed Forces. After completing his training, he joined the Parachute Regiment, and was deployed to Afghanistan. It was during his second tour of the country in 2009 that he sustained life-changing injuries, losing his left arm below the elbow after being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade and eventually requiring 11 surgeries.

Following his injury, van Gass joined the Great Britain Cycling team, making his international para-cycling debut in 2013.

He quickly established himself with three top ten finishes in the individual pursuit, 1km time-trial and mixed team sprint at the 2015 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in Apeldoorn, riding in the C4 category.

A year later, he underlined his potential, winning his first major international medal with a bronze in the scratch race at the world championships in Italy, to go with another top ten in the individual pursuit.

After being reclassified as a C3 rider in 2019, he won a world silver medal in the road race, before enjoying an outstanding 2020 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in Milton, Canada. He claimed another pursuit silver before capturing three golds in the kilo1km time-trial, scratch race and omnium.

Following a 2020 season that was wiped out by the Covid-19 pandemic, van Gass returned to action in the delayed Paralympic year of 2021. When the time came for van Gass to make his Paralympic debut, he stepped up and put in an outstanding performance to take three medals. His first event was the individual pursuit, in which he took gold, setting a new world record in the process. Later the same day, he achieved a bronze medal in the 1km time-trial, before rounding out his Games with gold in the mixed team sprint, alongside Kadeena Cox and Jody Cundy.

Van Gass continued into 2022 with renewed vigour, setting a new 1km time-trial world record in qualification at the world championships in Patis, before going on to win gold in the final. He once again claimed a mixed team sprint gold with the winning combination of Cox and Cundy.

The culmination of 2023 was the UCI Para-cycling World Championships in Glasgow, where van Gass took on five events and medalled in all of them. He took the omnium, scratch race and 1km time-trial titles, as well as two silvers in the individual pursuit and team sprint.

So far in 2024, van Gass has successfully defended two of the three rainbow jerseys he procured in Glasgow, winning the omnium and scratch race at the world championships in Rio de Janeiro. He added individual pursuit gold to his palmares, and silvers in the 1km time-trial and mixed team sprint.

Beyond the bike, van Gass is an ambassador for the Rose Charitable Foundation which supports wounded soldiers. His many fund-raising exploits have included mountain climbing and a 335km walk to the South Pole.

After a very strong start to his year, van Gass will be hoping to add more silverware to his collection at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, and he’s clearly flying high and ready to take on the challenge.

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