GB Team - London 2012 Paralympic Games – Background

1. Summary 2. Paralympic history 3. Key dates 4. Boat classes 5. Glossary 6. Medals 7. Key facts 8. Biographies 9. Social media 10. Rowing links

SUMMARY

The GB Rowing Team has a proud history as one of GB‟s most successful Olympic sports and this was extended into the Paralympic Games following the inclusion of rowing in Beijing.

The GB Rowing Team‟s para-rowers are supported by the National Lottery Sports Fund and sponsored by Siemens.

The GB Rowing Team qualified boats for London 2012 at the 2011 World Championships in three of the four events (men‟s single, mixed double and mixed coxed four – GB did not contest the women‟s after the retirement of 2008 Paralympic Champion Helene Raynsford).

The crews for the London 2012 Paralympic Games were announced on 27 June 2012 in a row past at the world famous Henley Royal Regatta on the section of the River Thames which hosted the 1908 and 1948 Olympic regattas.

The GB Rowing Team‟s official website is www.gbrowingteam.org.uk

CONTACT US at GAMES TIME

ParalympicsGB will have a full press operation at Games-time. Details of this are at: www.paralympics.org.uk

GB Rowing Team will back this effort on site through David Tanner, the sport‟s Performance Director who will handle interview requests and the post- race mixed zone.

He will be supported by Andy Sloan, from the GB Rowing Team Press Office, who can assist in organising interview opportunities and giving background information. Andy can be contacted on: (01225) 443998 pre-Games and 07714 168391 at Games-time or via [email protected]

Caroline Searle, the GB Rowing Team Press Officer, will transfer across to ParalympicsGB for the duration of the Games and will be heading their Games-time press operations. She can be contacted on: 07831 755351 or [email protected]

Any requests for rower appearances or media interviews post-Games should be directed to Miranda Edwards who will collate them all and work with the GB Rowing Team general and press offices to organise them. She is contactable on (01225) 443998 or [email protected]

PARALYMPIC HISTORY

Rowing was included in the Paralympic Games for the first time in Beijing in 2008. GB Rowing Team‟s Tom Aggar and Helene Raynsford both won gold in China in the single scull events and Aggar will seek to defend his title at London 2012.

The GB Rowing Team‟s adaptive or para-rowing squad has been winning medals at World Championships since 2003 and also won bronze in the mixed coxed four in Beijing.

Since Beijing there have been significant changes to the GB squad and Naomi Riches is the only surviving member of the mixed coxed four from Beijing to be selected for London 2012.

Find out more about rowing at the Paralympic Games: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb-rowing-team/events/paralympic-games

The 2012 Team

Among the established “names” in the British squad for the Paralympics are:

 Tom Aggar – Reigning Paralympic and World Champion in the arms and shoulders only single sculls.

 Naomi Riches – Beijing bronze medallist in the mixed coxed four and five-times World Champion.

Talented newcomers in the squad this year or since Beijing 2008 include:

 Pamela Relph – 2011 World Champion who started rowing in 2010 after being recommended by her sister Monica, a World U23 rowing Champion who raced for GB at the 2011 European Championships.

 Nick Beighton – Helped qualify GB‟s first boat for London 2012 by reaching final of 2011 World Championships after attending a talent ID day in 2010 for injured soldiers.

KEY DATES

Date Event 21 August 2012 Media opportunity at pre-Games camp at Caversham 31 August – 2 Paralympic Games Rowing Regatta at Eton Dorney Sept 2012

BOAT CLASSES AT THE PARALYMPIC GAMES

There are four medal events or „boat classes‟ at the Paralympic Games.

Category Boat class

Women Arms and shoulders only single scull (ASW1x)

Men Arms and shoulders only single scull (ASM1x)

Mixed Trunks and arms mixed (TAmix2x) Legs, trunks and arms mixed coxed four (LTAmix4+)

A boat with a cox is denoted by a „+‟.

The LTAmix4+ is a „sweep‟ boat where rowers have one each. A sweep boat with four rowers is called a „four‟.

Sculling boats, where each rower has two oars, are designated by an „x‟. A scull with two rowers or „scullers‟ is called a „double‟.

Boats are numbered according to the number of athletes e.g. Double Scull has two athletes, therefore, (2x).

CLASSIFICATION:

Para-rowers are „adaptive‟ rowers. Adaptive rowing is rowing or for rowers with an impairment who meet classifications set out by world rowing‟s governing body The International Rowing Federation (FISA).

Adaptive implies the equipment is “adapted” to the user to practice the sport, rather than the sport being “adapted” to the user.

There are three adaptive classes at the Paralympic Games: LTA, TA and AS.

At world championship level there is an additional class, ID, for rowers with an intellectual impairment such as learning difficulties.

AS: Rowers who have minimal or no trunk function and who can apply force predominantly using their Arms and Shoulders only. AS rowers race in fixed seat boats and wear a chest strap to prevent use of the trunk i.e. leaning forwards and around their thighs, to prevent flexion and extension of the knee.

TA: Rowers who have functional use of their Trunk (upper body) and Arms but who are not able to use the sliding seat because of weakened or immobile lower limbs.

TA rowers race in fixed seat boats with their thighs strapped down to prevent extension and flexion of the knees. Stabilising pontoons may be fitted to the riggers if wanted. e.g. Amputation around or above the knee, impaired quad muscles and/or neurological impairments.

In the TA mixed double scull (TAmix2x) there must be one male and one female rower.

LTA: Rowers with a permanent impairment who have functional use of their Legs, Trunk and Arms for rowing. e.g. an amputee with a prosthetic limb, neurological impairment, cerebral palsy, arthritis and/or visual impairment.

In the mixed coxed four (LTAmix4+) half of the rowers in a crew must be men and half must be women.

The cox may be of either sex and weight a minimum of 50 kg. The cox does not need to have any physical or visual impairment – as is the case with Lily van den Broecke, cox of the GB LTAmix4+.

A LTAmix4+ crew may include a maximum of two rowers who are visually impaired.

The GB LTA mixed coxed four contains two rowers with visual impairments and two rowers with physical impairments – one with arthritis and the other with a clubfoot.

LEARN MORE: FISA‟s adaptive rowing classification guidelines and regulations: http://www.worldrowing.com/rowing/adaptive

GLOSSARY

New to rowing? Don‟t know your crabs from your coxes? Brush up on rowing terminology (http://www.britishrowing.org/gb-rowing-team/news/media- centre/glossary)

MEDALS

Paralympic regatta Gold Silver Bronze Total 2008 (Beijing) 2 (ASW1x, ASM1x) 0 1 (LTAmix4+) 3

2008 Paralympic medalists (Beijing, China):

 ASW1x: Helene Raynsford  ASM1x: Tom Aggar  LTAmix4+: Vicki Hansford, Naomi Riches, Alastair Mckean, James Morgan, Alan Sherman (cox)

2011 World Champions (Bled, Slovenia):

 ASM1x: Tom Aggar  LTAmix4+: Naomi Riches, Pamela Relph, David Smith, and (cox) Lily van den Broecke

KEY FACTS

The GB Rowing Team trains at a variety of centres with its national training base at the Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake near Reading.

The rowers train up to three times a day, seven days a week, 49 weeks a year.

Rowing is a high-calorie burner, working all the major muscle groups, and GB rowers consume up to 6,000 calories a day.

Rowing is the only sport where competitors cross the finish line backwards

Rowers with a visual impairment race wearing black-out goggles.

FISA currently recognise international adaptive rowers from 24 countries.

Paralympic races are held over 1,000 metres as opposed to 2,000 metres in the Olympic Games.

BIOGRAPHIES

Tom Aggar

Reigning Paralympic and four-times World Champion in the men‟s single scull and unbeaten internationally. Former Saracens academy rugby player from London injured in an off-field accident.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/tom-aggar

Nick Beighton

2011 World finalist in the adaptive mixed double scull in his debut season. Army captain from Shrewsbury injured while serving in Afghanistan. Recruited by GB rowing after attending a Paralympic talent ID day in 2010.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/nick-beighton

Pamela Relph

2011 World Champion in the adaptive mixed coxed four. From Aylesbury and was on an army scholarship destined for the Royal Engineers before arthritis forced a change of career. Her sister Monica is part of the GB U23 team.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/pamela-relph

Naomi Riches

Paralympic bronze medallist in 2008 and reigning, five-times World Champion in the adaptive mixed coxed four. A jeweller from Harrow with a visual impairment.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/naomi-riches

James Roe

World Champion in 2011 and 2009 and World silver medallist in 2010 in the adaptive mixed coxed four. A fine-art graduate from Stratford-upon-Avon with a visual impairment.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/james-roe

Samantha Scowen

World finalist in 2011 and 2009 in the adaptive mixed double scull. Recruited after attending a Paralympics GB talent day in Sheffield in 2009. From Wokingham and learned to row on the Paralympic course at Eton Dorney.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/samantha-scowen

David Smith

World Champion in 2011 and 2009 in the adaptive mixed coxed four. A former GB bobsleigher from Aviemore with a clubfoot who overcame a life- threatening condition in 2010 and 2011 to get back into the GB Rowing Team.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/david-smith

Lily van den Broecke

Coxed the adaptive mixed coxed four to gold at the 2011 World Championships and the women‟s to gold at the 2010 World Juniors. Durham University student from Oxford and youngest member of the squad.

Full biography: http://www.britishrowing.org/gb/biographies/lily-van-den- broecke

SOCIAL MEDIA

Follow the GB Rowing Team on:

 Twitter (www.twitter.com/GBRowingTeam)  Facebook (www.facebook.com/GBRowingTeam)  Youtube (http://www.youtube.com/user/GBRowingTeam)

The GB Rowing Team‟s official website is www.gbrowingteam.org.uk.

ROWING LINKS

 GB Rowing Team‟s adaptive rowing programme (http://www.britishrowing.org/adaptive) - Have you got what it takes to become a GB rower?  British Rowing (www.britishrowing.org.uk) - Governing body for the UK  FISA (www.worldrowing.com) - Governing body for world rowing  British Paralympic Association (http://www.paralympics.org.uk)  London 2012 (http://www.london2012.com)  Rio 2016 (http://www.rio2016.org/en/home)