Frank Ponta, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Frank Ponta

Australian paralympic competitor

Date of Birth: 08-Nov-1935

Place of Birth: Western Australia, Australia

Date of Death: 01-Jun-2011

Profession: athletics competitor, fencer

Nationality: Australia

Zodiac Sign: Scorpio

Francis Ettore Ponta (8 November 1935 – 1 June 2011) was an Australian Paralympic competitor and coach.
He competed in several sports including basketball, pentathlon, swimming and fencing.
A paraplegic, he lost the use of both his legs after a tumour was removed from his spinal column when he was a teenager.
Ponta was a member of Australia's first national wheelchair basketball team, and is credited with expanding the sport of wheelchair basketball in Western Australia.
At the end of his competitive career, he became a coach, working with athletes such as Louise Sauvage, Priya Cooper, Madison de Rozario, Bruce Wallrodt and Bryan Stitfall.
He died on 1 June 2011 at the age of 75 after a long illness.