| Sean Pollard | |
| Headercolor: | green |
| Textcolor: | yellow |
| Birth Date: | 22 March 1991 |
| Country: | Australia |
| Sport: | Para-snowboarding |
| Disability Class: | SB-UL |
Sean Pollard (born March 22, 1991) is an Australian Paralympian who represented Australia in para-snowboarding at the 2018 Winter Paralympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.
On 2 October 2014, Pollard was attacked by two sharks (possibly great whites) whilst surfing at Kelpids Beach, east of Esperance, Western Australia.[1] [2] He lost his left arm and right hand whilst fighting off the sharks.[2] Before the attack he was an electrician, keen surfer and former South Bunbury footballer.[2] In March 2015, more than $100,000 was raised by his local community in Bunbury, Western Australia to assist him on his new journey.[3]
It was not until 2015 that Pollard encountered snow for the first time during a holiday in Canada. During the holiday, he tried snowboarding. After returning to Australia, he took part in an Australian Paralympic Committee specialist camp for Para-snowboarders with upper limb impairments.[4] Pollard has mentioned that his previous surfing and skating skils have helped his transition into snowboarding.[5]
In his first international season, he had several top 15 results including a sixth-place finish in the men's Snowboard Cross at the 2017 IPC Snowboard World Cup at Lake Tahoe, United States.[4] At the 2016/17 IPC World Cup Finals in PyeongChang, South Korea, Pollard finished eight in the snow board cross and banked slalom.[4]
At the 2018 Winter Paralympics, he competed in two snowboard events - fifth in the Men's Banked Slalom SB-UL and ninth in the Men's Snowboard Cross SB-UL.[6]
At the 2019 World Para Snowboard Championships, Pyha, Finland, Pollard won the bronze medal in Men's Snowboard Cross UL and finished seventh in the Men's Banked Slalom UL.[7]
Pollard did not compete at the 2022 Winter Paralympics as he decided to remain with his young family in Western Australia due to the States strict COVID travel restrictions.[8]