Month: July 2016

Visually Impaired Track Cycling

Fraser Kane and Andrew LouisDo you have a visual impairment?

Are you interested in cycling?

Glasgow Life are working in partnership with Scottish Disability Sport and Scottish Cycling to provide track cycling sessions at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome.  They are keen to support any young person or adult with visual impairment and have recruited several pilots to support tandem riding as part of their commitment to the development of the sport.

No experience is required

Sessions take place every second Thursday evening and the next available dates are:

  • Thursday 7th of July 6-8pm
  • Thursday 21st of July 6-8pm
  • Thursday 4th of August 6-8pm

Further information can be found on the link below:

http://www.emiratesarena.co.uk/cycling/Pages/Para-Cycling-Track-Sessions-.aspx

DSF Secures the Services of Top Badminton Coach

Julie HoggDisability Sport Fife (DSF) is committed to growing the number of weekly sessions it offers to participants of all levels of ability with a physical, sensory or learning disability. Because of the influence of the late Russell Hogg, badminton became a DSF priority sport. Monday evening sessions at the Michael Woods Sports and Leisure Centre have grown in popularity because of the excellent coaching offered by Alex Bird and Euan Bell. Jane Russell from Badminton Scotland has delivered a series of excellent coaching workshops and over 50 players now compete in the annual DSF badminton championships.

Ex junior internationalist and current senior/master internationalist Julie Hogg has agreed to join the DSF coaching team and lead a new weekly session at Cowdenbeath Leisure Centre on Tuesday afternoons between 14 30 and 15 30. The session will start on 20th September and interested participants must register through the normal DSF registration process. Registrations forms are available to download on the DSF web site homepage.

Julie brings a wealth of experience to DSF as a high performance coach, top player and team manager. From 2004-2010 Julie was Scotland’s senior team manager for three mixed team Championships, one World Team Championships and the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. Julie is the current Junior programme manager, lead National Coach for the Edinburgh base and has been Head Coach of the Edinburgh Sports Academy from 2008 till the present. Julie is one of Scotland’s most respected badminton coaches and her record with Scottish Junior players at home and overseas is exceptional.

DSF is privileged to have Julie on board as a coach working with players with additional support needs. The new afternoon Cowdenbeath session will compliment the Monday evening session in Glenrothes and the standard of coaching available in both will be of the highest order.

On Friday 11th November there will be a “Big Hit” Festival organised in conjunction with Badminton Scotland at the Michael Woods Sports and Leisure and those who attend the Glenrothes and Cowdenbeath badminton weekly sessions will be able to take part. Disability badminton in Fife will be much stronger with Julie Hogg added to the DSF coaching team.

Richard Brickley MBE – President Disability Sport Fife

Andrew Lindsay

LINDSAY Andrew

Andrew first became involved in competitive disability swimming through Disability Sport Fife when a pupil at Glenrothes High School. At the first gala he entered it was clear he had no shortage of energy, a considerable degree of skill and a tremendous determination to win every race he would enter. Perpetual motion is a phrase that has often been used to describe Andrew, and there is no doubt that he was a swimmer of excellence and a class performer on the big occasion.

The first international honour for Andrew was selection for the Scottish team that participated in the European Schools Games in Lisbon in 1994. Selection came as a consequence of several outstanding performances with the Scottish Junior Swim Team at the British championships. Andrew won 17 medals at Paralympic, World or European Championships and for 10 years was undefeated in 100 metres backstroke in the S7 class. Between 1996 and 2008 Andrew won 3 Paralympic medals of which 2 were gold. At three World Championships between 1998 and 2006 he won 4 medals of which 3 were gold. His record in European Championships between 1996 and 2008 is exceptional, winning 10 medals including 5 gold. Andrew competed at the World Championships in South Africa in 2006 and protected his world record.

Unfortunately Andrew just missed out on a medal in his final Paralympic Games in Beijing in 2008 when he finished in fourth place.

Andrew was a member of INCAS swimming club where he was coached by Garrie Roberts but latterly was coached at the National Academy in Stirling by Anthony Stickland. Andrew identifies Steve Redgrave and his family as major influences in his life and those who know his mum and dad appreciate exactly why he singled out his parents for special mention.

Andrew has served Fife, Scotland and Great Britain well and remains one of the most successful high performance international Scottish swimmers and one of the first to fully benefit from services provided by the Scottish Institute of Sport. You always expect the unexpected when you are with Andrew but there is no doubt he was an exceptional backstroke swimmer. Now married to Katie, (nee Haining) another of Scotland’s very successful physically disabled swimmers, the Lindsay’s have settled in Cowdenbeath.

McGLYNN Aileen, OBE

Sport
Cycling

Born
22/06/73

Home Town
Paisley

Lives
Manchester

Club
Bonito Squadra Corse

Coach
Chris Furber / Kevin Stewart

Career Highlights

  • 2014 Newport International Para-Cycling Cup, Sprint – 3rd
  • 2013 International Para-cycling Cup, 1km Time Trial – 2nd, Sprint – 3rd
  • 2012 Paralympic Games, 1km Time Trial – 2nd, 3km Pursuit – 3rd
  • 2011 World Championships, 1km Time Trial – 2nd, 3km Pursuit – 2nd, Sprint – 2nd
  • 2010 World Championships, 1km Time Trial – 2nd
  • 2009 World Championships, 1km Time Trial – 1st, Road Time Trial – 2nd, 3km Pursuit – 3rd
  • 2008 Paralympic Games, 1km Time Trial – 1st, 3km Pursuit – 1st

Twitter
@amcglynn1

Aileen began cycling aged six and cycled throughout her childhood. The first time she joined a cycling club she did not tell them she was partially sighted and needless to say the club accepted her willingly and the rest is history. On her first ever visit to a velodrome, Aileen broke a world record and has reigned supreme in her cycling discipline since she was introduced to high performance sport. Before Aileen became a full time athlete, she was a trainee actuary with a degree in mathematics, statistics and management science from the University of Strathclyde.

Along with former partner Ellen Hunter, Aileen broke the flying 200m woman’s tandem World Record in April 2003 and together they went on to win Paralympic gold and silver medals at the Summer Paralympic Games of 2004 in Athens in the 1km time trial in a new World Record time of 1:11.160 and the tandem sprint. At the 2006 IPC Track Cycling World Championships in Aigle, Switzerland, the pair won gold in the tandem kilo (VI), setting a new World Record of 1:10.795 in the process and winning a Rainbow Jersey. Together they would have ranked 17th among the 33 male competitors in the men’s event.

McGlynn and Hunter, coached by Chris Furber, debuted in the 3km pursuit at the 2007 World Track Championships and came away with another Rainbow Jersey as well as winning gold and retaining their Rainbow Jersey in the 1km time trial. The same pairing represented Great Britain at the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games, winning gold in the Kilo (B&VI 1–3), setting a new World Record time of 1:09.066 in the process, and in the individual pursuit (B&VI 1–3). They then turned their attentions to the road events and won a silver medal in the 2009 UCI World Road Championships. They also went on to win the 1km time trial in a new World Record time of 1:09.054 at the 2009 World Track Championships and a bronze medal in the pursuit in Manchester.

At the 2011 World Track Championships Aileen won silver in the 1km time trial with her new pilot Helen Scott. At the 2012 World Track Championships in LA, the pairing came away with 3 silver medals in the 1km time trial, the 3km pursuit and the tandem sprint. At the London Paralympic Games, Aileen won silver and bronze in the 1km time trial and the individual pursuit respectively.
Already a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) after the Athens Paralympic Games, Aileen was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2009 New Year Honours. Aileen is an outstanding competitor and recognised by her opponents as a fierce and determined opponent. With the inclusion of tandem cycling in the para- sports programme for Glasgow 2014, Aileen and fellow Scot Neil Fachie from Aberdeen and their respective pilots, will have more than a passing interest in the Commonwealth Games on home soil.

Butterfield and Lyle selected for ParalympicsGB

Many congratulations to Jo Butterfield and Maria Lyle who have been selected to represent ParalympicsGB in athletics at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games taking place in September.

World champion thrower Jo (F51 Club) and sprinter Maria (100m and 200m) are included along with thirteen world medallists in the announcement made today by the British Paralympic Association, in the first wave of track and field selections.   This will be a first Paralympic Games for both athletes, who performed so well at the IPC Europeans in Italy last week where Maria returned with three gold medals and Jo one gold medal as well as a new world record.

With 76 days to go, 13 sports have made their announcements. A further announcement regarding track and field athletes will be made in late July.

For a full report visit the link below:

http://rio.paralympics.org.uk//news/article/thirteen-world-medallists-star-as-first-track-and-field-athletes-to-be-sele

Jo Butterfield
Jo Butterfield

Dawson-Farrell Sponsored to Support Gold Coast 2018 Journey

Scottish Disability Sport Academy Athlete Meggan Dawson-Farrell has secured sponsorship via Team Scotland partner CGI, in order to support her journey to the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.  This financial support will prove vital in order for her to access appropriate competition, both in the UK and internationally, as she aims to qualify and prepare for the event.

Dawson-Farrell is a wheelchair racer, who competes in the T54 classification, represented Team Scotland at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014 where she reached the final of the combined T53/54 1500m.

For a full report please visit the Commonwealth Games Scotland website via the link below:

http://www.cgcs.org.uk/news/latest-news/2016/cgi-back-meggan-on-journey-to-gold-coast-2018/

Scotland Squad Announced for World Qualifier

The Scottish squad to compete in the 2016 IFCPF World Championships Qualification Tournament in Vejen, Denmark has been announced. The Championships will commence on Friday 29th July with the Opening Ceremony and initial matches and will run until Saturday 6th August.

A total of 13 teams from across the world will be competing in Vejen to determine which teams fill the remaining eight slots for the 2017 IFCPF World Championships in Argentina. Scotland have been drawn in Group A and will play Spain in their opening match on Saturday 30th July followed by Australia on Monday 1st August.

The Scotland squad for Denmark includes Martin Hickman and Jonathan Paterson, who will be competing for ParalympicsGB at the Summer Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in September.

Scotland squad for the 2016 IFCPF World Championships Qualification Tournament:

Barry Halloran

Blair Glynn

Martin Hickman

Lewis McIntyre

Sean Stewart

Ian Paton

Mark Robertson

Jamie Mitchell

Kyle Hannin

Jonathan Paterson

Cameron Pollock

Chris Tucker

Blair McGregor

Kieran Martin

First Ever Wimbledon Wheelchair Tennis Singles Event

Wimbledon will host its first ever wheelchair tennis singles competition this week and Scotland World number 3 player, Gordon Reid, will be looking to reach his third Grand Slam singles final of the year.  The recently selected ParalympicsGB athlete said,

“When you look at the field and who’s here, it’s pretty much the top eight players in the world in both events. There’s no such thing as an easy match,” said Reid. “For me, I’m playing Nico, who I played first round at Roland Garros. I have had a pretty good record against him recently. But nothing’s guaranteed. As our first time playing singles on grass, it’s going to be, I think, who adapts quickest, who comes out fast.”

For a full report please see the link below

http://www.tennisfoundation.org.uk/wimbledon-wheelchair-tennis-singles-events/

Aberdeen FC Community Trust Enters Different Ball Game

Aberdeen FC Community Trust has joined forces with the North East’s top basketball club in an initiative designed to increase participation levels and develop the game.

Grampian Flyers Basketball Club and the Trust have signed a joint Memorandum of Understanding that will seek to develop a mutually beneficial relationship to promote participation of sport, specifically basketball, in the area.

AFCCT Business Development Executive Russell Anderson explains, “We will provide the Flyers with our logo for its use on their kit and assist them with access to potential funding programmes and grants where applicable and also assistance in use of facilities. In return, the Flyers will provide a stronger community presence through multi-sport involvement.”

Chairperson of Grampian Flyers Hayley Jaffrey added, “Many of the most successful and most supported football clubs in Europe, including Real Madrid and Barcelona, are partnered with basketball clubs and we are delighted to be in partnership, which will initially be for a year, with the Aberdeen FC Community Trust.”

Grampian Flyers, who have been playing in the national league since 2004, is run by a committee of volunteers, which primarily consists of parents, but is supported by Basketball Grampian and BasketballScotland. The club has consistently grown year-on-year and now has over 200 members.

 

Come & Play with Glasgow Disability Tennis

Learning Disability plus all family members

Learning disability tennis is suitable for all ages and abilities as the coaching sessions can be modified according to a player’s ability to maximise enjoyment & success

Wheelchair plus all family members – Wheelchair tennis integrates very easily with the non-disabled game as it can be played on any regular tennis court, with no modifications to rackets or balls. Wheelchair players are allowed up to 2 bounces of the ball

Deaf plus all family members

Deaf tennis has no adaptions to the rules but coaching can be modified for all ages and abilities to enjoy

Visually Impaired plus all family members

Visually impaired tennis is played on a smaller tennis court, using smaller rackets, an audible ball and raised lines. Players who are totally blind are allowed three bounces while partially sighted players are allowed 2 bounces

All equipment including wheelchairs available

For more information see the attached leaflet