Who is John McFall? Know all about the first astronaut with a disability cleared for space station mission

From a Paralympian to the first person with a physical disability to be cleared for a space mission, John McFall is now making headlines in his own rights!

The former Paralympian sprinter from Cardiff, who also is a British astronaut, has been medically certified to undertake a long-duration space mission, therefore becoming the first person with a physical disability to take part in a mission on the International Space Station, the European Space Agency (ESA) said at a news conference on Friday.

Mr McFall, quite naturally delighted, told Sky News, "It's great to have completed the feasibility study and demonstrated there is no technical showstopper for me flying to the International Space Station." He added, "Today's announcement is not just about me personally getting medically certified to fly long-duration missions". While pointing to what he described as a culture shift in how people with disabilities are treated, McFall said, "It's much more than that. I think it should give people faith that it is possible to change things and people are listening and with the right support, and the right work, it is possible to change mindsets. And whilst this just happens to be in the space industry, it doesn't mean that it's not possible in many, many other sectors."


While it seems like quite a hike from being a Paralympian to becoming the first person with a physical disability to take part in a mission on the International Space Station, let’s take a look at John McFall’s rise.

Early days of growing up:

Born in 1981, in Surrey, England, John McFall is a British Paralympic sprinter, surgeon, and ESA Project astronaut. Although as a teenager he was a runner and hockey player, in August 2000, while on a gap-year trip to Ko Samui, Thailand, after his A-levels, he was involved in a serious motorcycle accident which turned out to become a major event in his life. While riding a moped, he went around a corner too quickly and skidded. He put out his leg to stop the motorcycle from falling over and smashed his knee. The motorcycle then fell on him, resulting in the chain severing major blood vessels in his leg. He was flown to a hospital in Bangkok, but as he had damaged his lower right leg so severely, it had to be amputated above the knee after three days. Upon returning to the UK, he spent about seven weeks undergoing rehabilitation at Queen Mary's Hospital in Roehampton, London.

For the next year that McFall spent at home, he took up mountain biking and climbing and worked as a fitness instructor at his local leisure center. He also started running in the summer of 2003 as soon as he had his prosthesis fitted.

After taking up his place at Swansea University to pursue a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in sport and exercise science, he practiced on the university's running track and also trained with a local running club, the Swansea Harriers Athletic Club.

Although he found running difficult and uncomfortable as his prosthesis was not designed for the purpose and frequently got damaged, he then was introduced to carbon-fiber running "blades".

He graduated from university with an upper second-class honours degree in the summer of 2004, taking part in his first race at the Disability Sports Events (DSE) Championships in the UK the same year. In September 2004, McFall embarked on postgraduate studies in sport and exercise science at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff (UWIC), subsequently graduating with a Master of Science (MSc). He took pre-medical examinations in 2008 and planned to retire from athletics after his 2009 season to train as a doctor.

Career in athletics:

With his sprinting prosthesis, McFall began training with an ex-paralympian. In early 2005 former Welsh international athlete Darrell Maynard took over as his coach and he began training with an able-bodied squad. He was selected to represent Great Britain at the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) European Championships which took place in August 2005 in Espoo, Finland, a decision that greatly surprised him as he had not achieved the qualifying standard in races that summer.

In the Championships, his first international competition, he took the bronze medal in the 200 meters and came fourth in the 100-meter race, having competed in sport class T42 (single amputation above the knee). McFall was subsequently placed on a funding program, enabling him to become a full-time athlete.

At the end of January 2006, two weeks before the Sparkassen Cup in Stuttgart, Germany, McFall's car which had his customized running prosthesis worth £3,000, was stolen from the car park of the Welsh Institute of Sport where he worked part-time and trained. After much drama, he got those prosthesis to the Institute a week later and McFall went on to achieve a personal best of 8.55 seconds in the 60 meters race, and 28.21 seconds in the 200 meters in February.

In September 2006, McFall won silver in the 100 meters and a bronze in the 200 meters at the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) World Championships.

In 2007, McFall struck gold and achieved a competition record time of 26.84 seconds in the 200 meters in his debut at the Visa Paralympic World Cup in Manchester, England, and also garnered a silver in the 100 meters. He was placed third at the Meeting Gaz de France in Paris, part of the ÅF Golden League as well.

In 2007, he was ranked first in the world for the 200 meters, and second for the 100 meters, and in 2008, McFall achieved his personal best time in the 100 meters of 12.70 seconds.

The titles and medals:

McFall, who has been called "one of the fastest men in the world over 100m and 200m in the class of above-the-knee amputees",[29] made his Paralympic début for Great Britain in the 100 meters (T42) at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing. Despite McFall's plans to retire from athletics after his 2009 season to study medicine, he did not rule out competing at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London. He had said, "It would be nice to do 2012. I'm interested in cycling and rowing, and I won't qualify as a doctor till 2013, so it wouldn't be impossible. We'll see. It's that constant striving for excellence, the hunger to do more."

The space calling!

In November 2022, McFall was selected by the European Space Agency to become the first "parastronaut". ESA carried out a feasibility study on him flying to space and what needed to be adapted for disabled people. In February 2025 it was concluded that there were no technical or medical reasons why he could not be part of a mission lasting up to six months. After the announcement, McFall said in the news conference that he was mostly "passive" during the testing process, which lasted around a month and involved medical exams. He said he "just had to demonstrate I could do the required tasks". It is yet to be revealed when McFall might join a mission but it’s been said, "This is only the beginning."