Brecon army veteran Steve Sebburn has returned from the Invictus Games with three medals.
The father-of-two, who lives in Dan-y-Crug, brought home a gold medal and two bronzes following a fantastic effort at this year’s Sydney games, which finished on Saturday, October 27.
Known by his friends and family as “Seb”, Steve returned home on Monday, October 29 following the competition.
The games, which will next take place in The Hague in 2020, were set up by Prince Harry in 2014 for ex-military personnel who have been discharged on medical grounds.
The determined athlete achieved a gold in his first event, the men’s road cycling time trial on Sunday, October 21 with a time of two minutes and 58 seconds.
The 40-year-old raced to the finish ahead of his UK team mates silver medallist Karl Allen-Dobson, who was slower by two seconds, and bronze medalist Wayne Harrod.
He went on to bag the bronze in the mens road cycling criterium, which was also on on the Sunday, with a time of 33 minutes and 40 seconds.
Despite an injury to his calf, the ex-First Queens Dragoon Guard member also snatched a bronze medal in the men’s 1500 metres on Friday, October 26 with a time of four minutes and 51 seconds.
He said: “It’s only now just starting to sink in to be honest. I’m proud of the bronzes, but that gold is something else.
“I trained so hard with my coach Jon Farley for nine months for that gold.”
Seb also competed in the men’s 4X100 relay where he placed sixth with a time of 58 seconds.
As well as his cycling and athletic success, Steve was also able to enjoy his time at the east coast of Australia with his wife Claire, their 16-year-old daughter Jaya and 12-year-old son Joshua away from the competition.
Steve has had a huge reaction to his win since he returned to the UK.
He said: “I’m already back working and training, it is hard to get back to normality but I am still on a high.
“I keep getting stopped by strangers in the street who say ‘I was watching you on the telly’ and Claire has had the same from customers in work - it’s weird, but good weird.
“The kids are like little celebrities in school, they keep coming home really excited and when I go there, kids I don’t know are coming up to me to high five me.”
As Steve arrived in Sydney on his 40th birthday on Wednesday, October 17 he also discovered he had been accepted onto the programme for the 2020 Paralympics.
The two-year-programme, which only accepts 25 candidates, is the last stage before the final 15 athletes are picked to compete in Tokyo.
He said: “I arrived on my 40th birthday and there was a brass band, and I had the email to say I had been accepted.”
“It takes a lot to just get on the programme, so I’ve got a couple of races to go and then I’ll be doing that which feels incredible.”
Seb, who got his first tattoo last Tuesday (November 6) of the Invictus Games logo, has also been congratulated by the Welsh Rugby Union who have also invited him to join them on the pitch for a special thank you.
He is also giving talks to schools both locally and in areas such as Cardiff about his experience.
Alexandra McClellan from Ffynnon Gynydd, near Hay-on-Wye, also brought home a medal as she won a silver in the women’s 4x100m relay final.
The 37-year-old, who has previously been a member in the Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Corps, competed in a total of nine events.
On Sunday, October 21 the athlete placed fourth in the women’s road cycling time trial with a time of three minutes and 58 seconds and fifth in the women’s road cycling criterium in 39 minutes and 58 seconds.
In the indoor rowing on Monday, October 22 she placed 10th in the women’s one minute sprint and 12th in the women’s four minute endurance.
On Thursday, October 25 she placed eighth in the women’s 200m in athletics, and on Friday, October 26 in the athletics category she finished sixth in the women’s 100m heat, eighth in the women’s 100m final and seventh in the women’s 400m final.
The army veteran, who still works as a nurse but in a civilian role, said she was back in work and returning to normal only two days after she returned from Sydney.
Alex said she is still processing the win, and that it was actually the first time a relay like it had been done at the games as the coach wanted to show the race could include anyone.
She said: "I was so proud and excited to be part of this, and the team we had just absolutely worked and it felt fantastic being in that race as part of that team, it all flowed so well and I gave it everything I could.
"I walked from my finish point at the relay down to the finish line and I felt so happy and proud of the other girls and I could see them all smiling.
"Then to get down there and be told we had won a medal was something I couldn’t quite believe.
"It was something I did not expect to happen to me, winning a medal, but I was very, very proud to stand up there with those three other teammates."
"The support the rest of the Team UK and the Team UK supporters gave at that time and throughout that entire week to myself and everyone there was absolutely amazing, and something I will definitely not forget."
Both of the athletes were welcomed home with the other Welsh members on the UK team at a special event at the National Assembly Senedd in Cardiff yesterday (Wednesday, November 7).