Clarke learned braille and computer skills using screen-reading technology, and spent two and a half years hitch-hiking across Australia and New Zealand, ensuring "the dog is well visible to get a sympathy lift.

"[1] Clarke is also a musician and has performed with a banjo and a mouth organ on James Place near Rundle Mall, Adelaide, every day for 15 years.

I've won gold and silver in the South Australian championships, against sighted people before, but I'm messing with the big boys now, and I'm thrilled to bits.

[12] He lost to Brett Lewis (USA), Joel Gichtenaere (FRA) and Javier Sainz (ESP) by ippon, waza-ari and koka in the Group A preliminaries.

[16]At the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Clarke competed in the Men's Up To 90kg event, but was defeated by Oleg Kretsul (RUS) by ippon in the quarter-final.

[17] In December 2006 Clarke accused the Oceania Judo Union of violating the Disability Discrimination Act (1975) by excluding him from its 2005 World Tournament and effectively costing him his place in the 2008 Australian Olympic team.

[19] At the 2008 Summer Paralympic Games in Beijing, Oleg Kretsul (RUS) again defeated Clarke by ippon in the quarter-final of the Men's Up To 90kg event.