DISABILITY SPORT NEWS October 2014 A Summer of Sport! WOW what a fantastic summer for disability sport in Scotland! The Commonwealth Games were held in Glasgow and featured the biggest ever number of Para-sport medal events in the history of the games! Team Scotland had a total of 22 Para athletes, directors, pilots and guides across all five Para sports which included Athletics, Swimming, Lawn Bowls, Power-lifting and Track Cycling. They all did amazingly and won Scotland a total of 7 medals - 3 gold, 3 silver & 1 bronze! 94% of the athletes made it to the final of their events which is an incredible achievement. Once again we got to witness our local athlete Neil Fachie winning gold (twice!) and we also got to cheer on another local athlete Lewis Clow running the 100m (T37)!! (Find out more about Lewis’ journey on Page 6). It really was Scotland’s most successful Commonwealth Games from a Para sport perspective! I have also taken part in the Baker Hughes 10K for ‘Team Queen’s Baton Relay Celebrations Inspire’ for the last five years and have raised almost rampian was also lucky enough to welcome the £800.Everyone is so happy for me, my sisters Mariette GQueen’s Baton Relay prior to the start of the Games and Alison are very proud of me too, and I’d like to thank and a lot of our local athletes, coaches and volunteers Inspire for nominating me. This is a ‘dream come true’.” were nominated to be involved! Here are just some of Val Culley, Regional Manager at Inspire, says: “We are the experiences that our local participants have shared! all extremely proud of Harry and what he has achieved over the years; not only for Inspire but for Children In Need too, he really deserved this unique opportunity!” To find out more about Inspire or to get involved, visit www.inspireptl.org.uk or find Inspire on Facebook and Twitter by searching for Inspire PTL. Aberdeen City was next on the journey where Morag Mitchell, from Aberdeen Physically Disabled Swimming Club, handed the baton to Ally Reid, Bowls volunteer and Umpire at SDS National Bowls Champs. Alison Eastcroft also APDSC carried the baton; Alison is an experienced swimmer and qualified coach who has been helping at APDSC over a long period of time. Morag Mitchell commented: ‘I am one of the disabled swimmers who has been secretary of APDSC for many The Queen’s Baton Relay started it’s Grampian Journey years as well as working with SDS and Alison and I had in Aberdeenshire on the 29th June! Harry Watson from a great time after being nominated for the baton relay Duncan Crescent in Peterhead carried the Queen’s Baton with the Commonwealth Games. It was such an honour on behalf of BP and local learning disability charity, to represent our club and disabled sport in Aberdeen. Inspire, on Sunday the 29th of June in Macduff. Harry We both had to report to Northfield Academy before was supported by a crowd of supporters followed by a 9am and from then till dinnertime it was smiling, parade in Peterhead and a surprise after party at Harry’s waving and being treated like a celebrity. In the evening home in Duncan Crescent. He did a fantastic job and we there was a big party in Union Terrace Gardens which are all so proud of him here at Inspire. Northsound radio hosted with various entertainers as Harry, who was born in Insch 59 years ago, described well as David Carrey coming in with the baton at the the event as being his biggest and best achievement end of its day in the City. It was a wonderful day and a and said, “I have never felt so proud and honoured in great privilege for both of us.’ my life. One of the biggest things in my life is my charity Also pictured pictured below are some of the disability work and I’ve done Children In Need every year since sport volunteers at a Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth 1992, where I dress up and go out and ‘shake my bucket’ Games Celebration in Aberdeen joined by para athlete and have raised approx £2500 - £3500, all of which goes Lewis Clow to charity. Aberdeen Sports Village was delighted to play host to a Cameroon Commonwealth Games segment of the Aberdeen leg in the Queen’s Baton Relay on 30th June and saw 4 local Batonbearers pass the Team Training Camp Baton around both the Sports Centre & Aquatics Centre cheered on by around 500 supporters from across the region. As part of the celebrations, the community took part in a range of activities including athletics sessions, face painting and a high tea. Finally local volunteers in Moray also got involved in the QBR Celebrations! Some of the lucky individuals included: Dot Bremner from Buckie, a visually impaired volunteer who has worked for years in the area delivering physical activity/dance. Athletes Holly Cantrill and Alastair Hay from Elgin, who have competed in the Special Olympics for gymnastics and in disability Golf respectively. As well as Leslie Pearson from Kinloss Aberdeen was delighted to be the host city for Team and Catriona Anderson from Forres. Cameroon’s Pre-Games Training Camp in preparation for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. We really hope that Glasgow 2014 has or will The 71-strong team of athletes, coaches & support inspire many of you to staff stayed in the city from the 8th – 21st July, trained get involved in sport!! at Aberdeen Sports Village and RGU: SPORT, and If you would like any featured teams from Athletics, Boxing, Judo, Wrestling, information on getting Weightlifting and - for the first time ever in Cameroon’s involved in disability Commonwealth Games history – Powerlifting (one of sport opportunities the para-sports offered in the Commonwealth Games). please contact Caitlin Despite the impressive skills of the Powerlifters and their Dudley, Disability Sports intensive 4-hour-per-day training regime, they didn’t Officer, on caitlin. take home medals for their efforts. dudley@aberdeenshire. However, Team Cameroon came away from Glasgow gov.uk or 07768 051479 with a gold, three silver & three bronze medals – the Or perhaps you have second highest medal haul from the country in their a specific sport that you would like to develop in Games history. further? For example, do you have a visual impairment? Interested in running? Need a running guide? Want to be like Libby Clegg and be Scotland’s next Gold medal winning Parasport Athlete? If so Contact: Claire McDonald, Regional Development Manager, Scottish Disability Sport on 07533056564 or email: [email protected] Grampian Commonwealth Parasport Disability Sport Summer Holiday Festival Programme On 19th June, 67 children with physical and sensory The Disability Sport Summer Holiday Programme ran for impairments took part in a Commonwealth Games 3 weeks during the summer break and included exciting Parasport Festival at Aberdeen Sports Village. Children activities such as trampolining, tubing, boccia, athletics, travelled from across Grampian to attend. The ten pin bowling and powerchair football! children took part in Athletics, swimming, football Over 35 participants from across Aberdeenshire and and a strongman event which replaced powerlifting, a Aberdeen City attended the programme and a great parasport event in the Commonwealth Games 2014. time was had by all. Thank you to all of the coaches and to the staff at Aberdeen Sports Village, Alford The event was opened by Claire McDonald Scottish Snowsports centre and Garioch Indoor Bowling for your Disability Sports Regional Manager followed by an hard work! inspirational talk from Lewis Clow a local Parasport athlete selected for Glasgow 2014 who hoped to help For more information on Disability Sport Holiday inspire the next generation of performance athletes Programmes please contact Caitlin Dudley, Disability from Grampian. Sports Officer on [email protected] or 07768 051479 or please visit Claire McDonald said “The event has been an http://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/recreation/ outstanding success with 50% more children signing disabilitysport/index.asp up for this event in 2014 than a similar event prior to the London 2012 Paralympic Games. The message is certainly getting out there that the pathway to performance for athletes with a disability is in place across many sports from a local level to an international level and Lewis’s success is proof of that. Most of all it has been great to see so many children engaged in the sports and having fun and the hope is they continue with all the regular opportunities out there in the community” Award Winning Athletes & Volunteers There has been a recent run of recognition for athletes, coaches and volunteers involved in disability sport in Grampian Scottish Disability Sport AGM and Award Ceremony Grampian Disability Sport were very pleased to be presented with their MOR at the SDS’s AGM and Awards ceremony and the awards for Grampian didn’t stop there! Pauline Stirling from Grampian Disability Sport won the Glasgow Trophy for Service to Sport and Neil Fachie took home the Angus Award for sportsman of the year! As you can see below, two very well deserved awards! Glasgow Trophy - Pauline Stirling Angus Trophy - Neil Fachie MBE Service to Sport Sportsperson of the Year (Excluding Athletes & Swimmers) Neil Fachie was born in Aberdeen and, after studying Pauline initially got involved in disability sport through physics at Aberdeen University, went on to compete at the sport of swimming setting up discreet provision for the 2008 and 2012 Summer Paralympic Games. swimmers with additional support needs over 20 years ago, a structure that still remains today.