Geremy Tinker had always been a keen sportsman, but it took a crippling injury to propel him to international success.

"Don't get me wrong, it sucks being in a wheelchair. But I've had a great life being in a wheelchair for the last 15 years,"

"I hadn't really reached any major heights compared to what I have reached now. I've spent five seasons playing in the United States for a club team, got a Paralympic gold medal and been in world championships."

For 34-year-old Geremy, his path to the Wheel Blacks began when he broke his neck in an under-19 club rugby match in Christchurch. He was lying prone at the Burwood Spinal Unit when he got a visit that would introduce him to the next stage of his sporting life.

"A bunch of guys came running into my room and said 'we've got this game - wheelchair rugby. We heard you broke your neck playing rugby ... you better come and check it out'." Geremy had more immediate concerns, but when he was able to sit up in a wheelchair, he wheeled down to the unit's gym to check it out.

"And I saw all these guys smashing the hell out of each other in wheelchairs and thought: 'Yeah, I've got to get amongst that.' Once I saw it, mate, that was it."

The Wheel Blacks have come a long way since selling stickers and holding sausage sizzles to raise money to get to the world championships in Switzerland in 1995. They are now one of New Zealand's most successful sporting teams and are funded accordingly. "Because we live in such a small country, it's beneficial for us because you walk around the streets of Christchurch and everybody has either heard of or seen wheelchair rugby at some stage".

• 1993 - First selected for the NZ Wheel Blacks to play Australia in test series.
• 1995 – Won 3rd place at the Wheelchair Rugby World Championship in Switzerland, the Wheel Blacks went in as a wild card seeded 8th.
• 1996 – Won bronze medal at the Atlanta Paralympics.
• 1996-97 – Won the Canterbury Disabled Sports Person of the year at the Sir Richard Hadley Canterbury sports awards. Played my first season in the USQRA for the Tampa Generals where we finished 3rd.
• 1998 – 2nd place at the Wheelchair Rugby World Championship in Canada played the US in the finial and lost by 2.
• 1998-99 – Played my second season in the USQRA for Texas, we finished 6th.
  Won 2nd place at the World Wheelchair Games in Christchurch.
• 1999-2000 – Played my third season in the USQRA for Texas finishing 3rd.
• 2000 – Bronze medal at the Sydney Paralympics. Won Japanese Nationals.
• 2002 – 6th at the Wheelchair Rugby World Championship in Sweden.
• 2003 – Won gold at the World Wheelchair Games in Christchurch, beat Canada in final.
• 2004 – Won the Coloplast International Tournament in the USA with the Wheel Blacks I also got best class 2.0 in this tournament.
  Won the Demolition Derby International in the USA, beat Canada in the final and got MVP of that tournament.
  Played my 4th season in the USQRA and won the National Title with Texas.
  Won Gold at the 2004 Athens Paralympics.
• 2005 – Won Sires in Hong Kong against GB, Won WRC, 2nd Australian Nationals, 2nd NZ Nationals, Won Pacific Cup & Sires against Canada, Won Chris Handy Cup & Sires against Australia.
  Won Canterbury Summer sports award - disabled sportsperson 05
  Won Sir Richard Hadley Trust Canterbury sports awards - disabled sportsperson 05
• 2006 - 2nd place Canada Cup vs 8 top teams in world. Won NZ Nationals. Won Chris Handy Cup vs Australia. 2nd Wheelchair Rugby World Championship.
• 2007 – Won NZWR WRC with Canterbury & NZWR Nationals. Won Chris Handy cup 4-1 Vs Australia in test series. Also played for Western Australia in Aussie league, placed 5th.