It is with great sadness that we acknowledge the passing of Lyn Lepore, a brave and delightful member of Transplant Australia.
Lyn was born in 1961 in Geraldton WA, to parents who emigrated from Italy. She was one of a large and supportive family who gathered around her closely in her last weeks. She was born with a rare congenital Retinal Dystrophy which also carried with it renal disease. In her early years she was able to see reasonably clearly but her sight started to decline as she reached her twenties until by 1999 she was left with only having some light perception.
In 1994 Lyn competed in her first international event at the IPC World Cycling Championships in Belgium. She and her then partner, Tim Harris won the World Title in the Mixed Division for Vision Impaired Tandem Cycling, for the individual 3000 m Track Pursuit.
From 1995, Lyn commenced cycling with her life-partner with Paul Lamond. They competed together in the IPC European Cycling Championships in Augsburg Germany and broke the track 3000m Pursuit World Record.
In 1996, Lyn was selected for her first Paralympic Games in Atlanta USA, where she and her partner Paul competed in both track and road tandem cycling events, doing their best, but not medalling on this occasion.
She was selected again in 1998 to compete in the World Disabled Cycling Championships in Colorado Springs, USA. Here Lyn and Paul competed in Track and Road events, where they did their best but did not make it to the podium in their events.
Undeterred, Lyn’s drive to be successful grew stronger, as the Sydney Paralympic Games – being a Home Games – was her ultimate goal. The best chance for her to make the team was to compete in the Female Division.
She achieved her dream to compete In the Sydney Paralympic Games in 2000, in the Female Tandem Cycling Division, with Lyn Nixon. Affectionately known as Lyn2, they won three medals. They won a silver medal in the 1 km Time Trial, and a bronze in the 3000 m Pursuit on the Velodrome. Lyn also went on to achieve her ultimate dream – a Paralympic Gold Medal – in the Road Race, for which she was awarded an Order of Australia Medal, as well as an Australian Sports Medal.
Under the guidance of her coach and life partner Paul, she decided to make one last bid and set her sights on the Paralympic Games in Athens 2004. Lyn teamed up with a new Pilot Eddy Hollands, back in the mixed division, competing in the IPC European Cycling Championships in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2001, winning a silver medal in the Road Race. Then went on to the IPC World Cycling Championships, once again in Augsburg, Germany, in 2002.
Lyn’s continuing drive, with Athens only 2 years away, saw her return to cycling in the Female Division and the search began for a new Pilot, to reach her final goal to represent Australia at another Paralympic Games. She was successful in being selected to the Paralympic cycling Team with Pilot, Jenny Macpherson. Unfortunately, they were both badly injured in a crash during her first event on the Velodrome. Jenny was unable to compete any further due to her injuries. Despite the injuries Lyn had, she was determined to compete in the Road Race and was able to ride with another female team member to make this possible.
Following on from her cycling career, she went on to train and work as a Remedial Massage Therapist and ran a successful business from home.
Continuing with her love of Sport, she decided to go to university to complete a Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Science and graduated with Honours in 2016.
At the end of 2016, Lyn had to have a kidney transplant. This provided her with another chance to compete, this time with less pressure. She attended the Australian Transplant Games on the Gold Coast competing in swimming, the 3km walk and pétanque. She also competed in two World Transplant Games in Newcastle UK and Perth WA.
Lyn used her acute hearing skills to play pétanque with someone clapping or speaking to her from the coche position. She was amazingly skilled and quite able to hold her own against sighted players.
Always with a ready grin and a cheeky response she will be greatly missed at the regular pétanque gatherings in Perth. She was a bold and able participant and we will miss her presence with Paul at our TAWA events.
Farewell to a wonderful, brave and gutsy woman.
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