Nicole Esdaile

Esdaile was born on 1 June 1987,[2][3] and has a visual disability called oculocutaneous albinism.[2][4]

Esdaile at the 2012 London Paralympics

Esdaile is a goalball player,[2] and is classified as a B2 competitor.[2] Her introduction to the sport was in primary school in 1999. She has continuously played it since then.[2]

Esdaile at the 2012 London Paralympics

Esdaile made her national team debut in 2010 at the Goalball World Championships.[2] In a game against Greece, she scored a goal immediately following a penalty.[2] As a member of the 2011 team, she finished sixth at the IBSA Goalball World Cup.[2][5][6] Her team made it the quarter finals before losing to Russia 3–6. Her team then met the Spain women's national goalball team to try to earn a spot in the fifth/sixth place match. Australia walked away 8-7 victors, but lost the fifth/sixth place match to the Israel women's national goalball team 6–8.[7]

She was with the team during the 2011 IBSA Africa Oceania Goalball Regional Champions, which served as the Paralympic qualifying tournament.[8][9] In her first game against New Zealand, her team won 11-4 after leading 7–1 at the half. She scored three goals in the team's victory.[10][11] She also played in a match against Germany,[2] and in the final match against New Zealand women's national goalball team,[8][9] which Australia won,[6] with Esdaile scoring a pair of goals.[12]

Esdaile was a named a member of the Aussie Belles that was going to the 2012 Summer Paralympics.[3][4][13][5] That the team qualified for the Games came as a surprise, as the Australian Paralympic Committee head been working on player development with the idea of qualifying for the 2016 Summer Paralympics.[5]

An Australian team had not participated since the 2000 Summer Paralympics, when they earned an automatic selection as hosts, and the team finished last in the competition.[5][14] The country has not medalled in the event since 1976.[15] Going into the Paralympics, the team was ranked eighth in the world.[3] In the 2012 Summer Paralympics tournament, the Belles played games against Japan, Canada, the United States and Sweden. They lost every game, and did not advance to the finals.[16] Esdaile was the team's lead scorer, with four goals.[17][18]

The Belles originally failed to qualify for the 2016 Paralympics after finishing third at the IBSA Goalball Asia Pacific Championships in Hangzhou, China.[19] They were displaced to allow for an African team, Algeria as it turned out, to compete in goalball for the first time.[20] But following the re-allocation of Russia's spot, the Belles found themselves getting a last minute invite to Rio.They entered the tournament ranked ninth in the world.[21] They performed better this time, fighting Uzbekistan to a draw, but they needed a win or draw in their final game against Canada to progress to the quarter finals, but lost 6–0, ending their second Paralympic campaign.[20]