Sammi Kinghorn took to the Gold Coast Roads on the final day of the Commonwealth Games to compete in the T54 Marathon. Sammi arrived in Gold Coast as the T53 World Champion at 100m, 200m and 400m and had finished fourth in the Gold Coast T54 1500m final on day six of the Games.

History was to repeat itself for Sammi as she once again finished in fourth place in the marathon, with a time of 1:45:02,  finishing only 42 seconds behind English bronze medallist, Jade Jones. Aussie gold medallist, Madison de Rozario, took her second title after also winning the 1500m on the track.

After the race Sammi said;

‘I am gutted. I tried to so hard to stay with the leaders and did so for a very long time. In fact, we went at it so hard early on that I have set a PB for the half marathon.

‘Then Maddy made a break and I was left with two T54 athletes in Eliza and Jade. I know these athlete and they are so strong so I was thinking ‘this isn’t good…’

‘I gave it all I could and to finish fourth for the second time this week is agonising. It just feels like the worst position in some ways because you are so near yet so far from being on the podium.

‘I don’t know if I will be doing marathon again – maybe when I am older but not any time soon. I actually didn’t feel too bad until the last mile and a half or so.

‘But I want to be Paralympic champion in the sprints. I want to get inside 16 seconds (for the 100m, not yet achieved by a T53) – I just want to be fastest, not go the furthest!

‘I’m chuffed for Maddy, the winner. She came over to Scotland for Glasgow 2014 but developed DVT on the plane and could not compete. I only heard that recently because at the time I thought it was a shoulder injury. That must have been awful for her but now she’s won double gold in front of the Aussie crowd – it’s that home advantage factor again, isn’t it?

‘I’m now taking a holiday here for a few weeks to chill out and enjoy myself. So it will be later in the year before we get back to track training and competition.’

This brought the curtain down on the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and after the spectacular closing ceremony, Team Scotland could reflect on a final medal count of 44 (9 gold, 13 silver, 22 bronze); with a final medal table position of eighth.

SDS are very excited to be returning to the Badaguish Centre in Aviemore for the SDS Junior Summer Sports Camp. SDS are indebted once again to our partners at the Short Breaks Fund and the Celtic FC Foundation for their continued support with this project.

The camp is specifically aimed at youngsters aged 10-18 with a physical, visual or hearing impairment and will involve a variety of sports and outdoor physical activities over a three day/ two-night residential experience in one of the most accessible venues in the UK. Please distribute this form to any individuals or groups you feel would benefit from this opportunity. We are again keen to access applications from all backgrounds and especially individuals who we may not have reached before. Therefore SDS are particularly keen to ensure this is circulated amongst children and young people with a disability from areas in the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) – with financially supported places available – and Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) individuals.

Please apply through the link below or by the attached Application Form. Closing date for entries is Friday 26 May 2017

 **SDS Summer Sports Camp Application Form 2018**

 If you have any enquiries regarding this event please contact Mark Gaffney on mark.gaffney@scottishdisabilitysport.com or Sharon McDowell on coaching@scottishdisabilitysport.com or on 0131 625 4413.

 

There were medals up for grabs on the athletics track and on the bowling green in day seven of the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Athletics

Dunbar’s Maria Lyle travelled to Gild Coast to compete in the T35 100m full of confidence following her bronze medal in the event at the 2017 World Para-Athletics Championships in London.  However, she knew she had to overcome the World gold medallist and World record holder, Isis Holt from Australia, if she was to take the gold.

Marie was swiftly out of the blocks in the Gold Coast T35 100m final and was looking good to achieve her goal. However, the powerful Aussie pulled away to take the gold medal in a time of 13.58. Maria raced hard and fought off pressure from Australia’s Brianna Coop to secure the silver in a time of 15.14.

Maria said;

‘It’s a silver medal for Team Scotland and I am really pleased to have played my part for the team.

‘I was nervous on the start-line standing up there and then there was a bit of a delay – I don’t even know why that happened.

‘I could have run better and I don’t feel like it was anything close to my best, but it was second place at the end of the day.

‘I saw a lot of Scottish flags and heard the shouts – my mum, Susan, is over here and we will get together now and have some time. It’s been fun being with Team Scotland and the training camp was good.’

Lawn Bowls

Having lost their B2/B3 Mixed Pair semi-final only 24 hours earlier, Scotland’s Para Bowlers now faced their Welsh counterparts in the battle for the bronze medal.

The B2/B3 Mixed Pair of Irene Edgar and Robert Barr, with Directors David Thomas and Sarah Jane Ewing, go off to a strong start to lead 3-1 after two ends. The Welsh showed their class and battled back to lead for the majority of the match and after the eighth end they led 9-4.

However, Scotland regrouped and scored in the next four ends to level the match in the twelfth end.   The two teams continued to trade shots and after the fifteen ends the match was tied 12-12, necessitating an extra end.

The quality of bowling had been exceptional and this continued into the extra end, where it came down to the very last bowl. Unfortunately for Scotland, the Welsh skip played a sublime shot to win the match and the bronze medal.

For a comprehensive overview of the Gold Coast Games go to;

https://scottishdisabilitysport.com/2018-gold-coast-commonwealth-games/