Joshua Turek

Joshua Turek (born April 12, 1979) is currently a member of the Iowa House of Representatives for the 20th district. He was formerly an American wheelchair basketball player and a member of the United States men's national wheelchair basketball team.

Joshua Turek
Member of the Iowa House of Representatives
from the 20th district
Assumed office
January 9, 2023
Preceded byCharlie McConkey
ConstituencyDistrict 20 - (2023-Present)
Personal details
Born (1979-04-12) April 12, 1979
Council Bluffs, Iowa, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseJarolin
EducationSouthwest Minnesota State University (BA History, MBA)
Joshua Turek
Personal information
Nickname(s)Josh
NationalityAmerican
Born (1979-04-12) April 12, 1979
Council Bluffs, Iowa, U.S.
Height5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Sport
SportWheelchair basketball
DisabilitySpina bifida
Disability class3.5
Coached byRon Lykins
Medal record
Men's wheelchair basketball
Representing the  United States
Paralympic Games
2016 Rio de JaneiroTeam
2020 TokyoTeam
2012 LondonTeam
World Championship
2014 IncheonTeam
Parapan American Games
2011 GuadalajaraTeam
2015 TorontoTeam
2019 LimaTeam

Political career

Josh Turek won election to the 20th district (Council Bluffs and Carter Lake, Iowa) in 2022 and took office at the start of 2023. He has worked extensively as an advocate for disabled peoples, introducing a variety of bills to uplift the community. He is an avid supporter of public education and has spoken out against the implementation of school voucher programs in Iowa and elsewhere. Josh is a defender of organized labor and the rights of working peoples. According to his campaign website - improving access to quality, affordable healthcare is also a major priority for him. Josh enters the Iowa state legislature as the first permanently disabled member in its history.

Paralympic career

Turek has represented the United States in Wheelchair basketball at the Summer Paralympics four times, finishing in seventh place in 2004, winning a bronze medal in 2012 and gold medals in 2016 and 2020.[1]

Personal life

His brother, John, and sister, Elisha, are both retired professional basketball players.[2]

References
  1. "Wheelchair Basketball - TUREK Joshua - Tokyo 2020 Paralympics". Tokyo2020.org. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
  2. "Josh Turek". TeamUSA.org. Retrieved September 9, 2021.


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