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Seb Bechara

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Seb Bechara
MBE
Personal information
Full nameSebastien Joseph Bechara
Born1994
Nottingham, England, United Kingdom[1]
Playing information
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
– Catalans Dragons
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
– England
Medals
Wheelchair rugby league
Representing  England
World Cup
Silver medal – second place 2017 France
Gold medal – first place 2021 England

Seb Bechara MBE is an English wheelchair rugby league player who currently plays for Catalans Dragons in Elite One Championship and the England national wheelchair rugby league team.

In the King's 2023 Birthday Honours he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire for services to wheelchair rugby league football.[1]

Background

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Seb Bechara is an disabled wheelchair rugby league player. He was born in Nottingham, England and moved to France aged nine. In adolescence he developed an interest in motorcycling. At aged 18 he suffered a motorcycle accident resulting in an amputation of one of his legs. Following his amputation, Bechara looked into getting into para swimming after watching the 2012 London Paralympics, though a chance meeting with then France captain Cyril Torres saw him take up wheelchair rugby league.[2]

Career

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Bechara (hidden in view) with the England national wheelchair rugby league team, celebrating their 2021 World Cup victory at Old Trafford in 2022

Club

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Seb Bechara has been successful in multiple Elite One Championship campaigns with Catalans Dragons. During the 2015 French off season, Bechara played for Leeds Rhinos.[3] In 2022, Bechara won the second IRL Wheelchair Golden Boot after Jack Brown in 2019.[4][5][6] In 2023, Bechara helped Catalans to win the inaugural European Club Challenge against UK champions Halifax after 32–32 draw resulted in a shared title.[7] A few months later he captained Catalans to their first Challenge Cup title after scoring twice in the final, with the club making their debut the UK competition the season prior.[8] 2024 saw Catalans win the European Club Challenge outright, beating Wigan 68–28 with Bechara getting a try in the match.[9] Catalans also retained the Challenge Cup in 2024, again beating Wigan in the final.[10][11]

International

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Seb Bechara represented England at the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup in 2017[12] where England finished runners-up losing to France in the final.[13] Bechara was named as one of the top 10 players of the tournament.[14] Bechara also represented England in the 2021 tournament,[15] where England finished the tournament as champions, beating France 28–24 in the final.[16]

Honours

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Catalans Dragons

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  • Elite 1:
    • Champions (9): 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24
  • Lord Derby Cup:
    • Winners (?):
  • Challenge Cup:
    • Winners (2): 2023, 2024
  • European Club Challenge:
    • Winners (2): 2023, 2024

England

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Individual

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Orders

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Local hero Seb Bechara awarded MBE!". anglophone-direct.com. 20 June 2023. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  2. ^ Bower, Aaron (17 November 2022). "'We're getting stopped in the streets': Wheelchair rugby league enchants England". The Guardian. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  3. ^ "Rhinos sign Bechara". Spider-Y. Archived from the original on 5 May 2016.
  4. ^ "Dragons Catalans › News › 2022 › Nov. › Sébastien Bechara wins Golden Boot award". catalansdragons.com. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  5. ^ "Rugby League World Cup: Seb Bechara among Golden Boot winners | England stars make teams of tournament | Rugby League News". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  6. ^ "England's Sebastien Bechara wins coveted Wheelchair Golden Boot". rugby-league.com. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  7. ^ "Wheelchair Rugby League European Club Challenge". rugby-league.com. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  8. ^ "Catalans Dragons 66-20 Leeds Rhinos: French side clinch Wheelchair Challenge Cup final victory | Rugby League News". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2024-08-28.
  9. ^ "Warriors beaten in Wheelchair European Championship". Wigan Warriors. 6 April 2024. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  10. ^ "Wheelchair Challenge Cup final: Catalans Dragons 81-18 Wigan Warriors - BBC Sport". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-08-28.
  11. ^ "Classy Catalans take Sheffield by storm to retain Beftred Wheelchair Challenge Cup trophy". rugby-league.com. Retrieved 2024-08-28.
  12. ^ "England Wheelchair RL announce World Cup squad". rugby-league.com. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  13. ^ "Des Guerriers d'Exception!". ffr13.fr. 29 July 2017. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  14. ^ "Classement Final Coupe du Monde – Les 10 meilleurs joueurs" [World Cup Final Standings – Top 10 Players]. FFRXIII (in French). 29 July 2017. Retrieved 2024-08-28.
  15. ^ "Rugby League World Cup 2021: Official wheelchair squads". NRL.com. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  16. ^ "England beat France to win Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup - reaction". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
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