The Scottish Disability Sport Para Bowls team competed at the Home Nation Championships at the Newport Indoor Bowls Stadium in Wales from Friday 21st April to Sunday 23rd April.

Teams from England, Wales and Scotland competed in singles, pairs, triples and fours across the physically disabled and visually impaired sections, for the honour of being crowned Home Nations Champions. This was the first of two of these events in an extremely busy year, with the focus being Commonwealth Games 2018 qualification.

The Scottish programme is buoyed with talent at present and a team of twenty seven bowlers, directors and coaches were selected to compete and defend the trophy won in 2016 at Kelvingrove International Bowls Centre in Glasgow. Scotland traditionally excel in the outdoor environment, however indoor bowls is a completely different proposition, which has historically been England’s forte.

Indoor bowls has become the priority heading into the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games due to the lightening quick green speeds that will welcome our players in Australia. No outdoor surface in Scotland can replicate that environment and as a result Scotland’s indoor play has improved dramatically.

The format of the event dictated that each match was worth two points, with 48 being available across the weekend. Scotland’s target was 32 – enough to win the competition – but in the end we had to settle for 30, resulting in a runners up place with England lifting the trophy. Ultimately, one more victory against England would have been enough, and there were numerous close matches across several rinks, but it wasn’t to be.

Scotland congratulate England on their success but our coaching team have taken many positives from the performances, which included varying combinations of players, formations and directors that was tested against tough international opponents. Furthermore, several new players made their international debut and it was a great opportunity for the players and staff to travel together and build upon the already strong team dynamic. In the long run this will aid the Scottish preparations for the Multi-Nations event at the beginning of June, which will ultimately qualify the nation for the Games itself.

There were several notable performances across the board but the team, via Captain Michael Simpson, highlighted John Wardrope (B7) for special mention. He was the only member of the squad to win all four of the games he competed, with a string of mature performances in two pair’s ties, alongside Martin Hunter and two fours ties, alongside Billy Allan, Barbara McMillan and Michael Simpson.

SDS would like to thank all the coaches, players and directors for their efforts over the course of the weekend and throughout the year thus far.

For a full list of players please click here.

Geraint Richards, the Tennis Foundation’s Head of Disability Player Performance, today announced his players selected to represent Great Britain in the BNP Paribas World Team Cup in Alghero, Sardinia, Italy, from 1 – 7 May 2017.

Great Britain will be competing in three of four events at the International Tennis Federation’s flagship wheelchair tennis event.

The teams will be:

Men’s Event – captained by Karen Ross

•  Gordon Reid (Glasgow)
• Alfie Hewett (Cantley)
• Dermot Bailey (Kettering)

Quad Event – captained by Stuart Wilkinson

•  Andy Lapthorne (Eastcote)
• Antony Cotterill (Penistone)
• James Shaw (Nottingham)

Junior Event – captained by Rob Cross

•  Ruairi Logan (Edinburgh)
• Alex Chaston (Greenwich, London)
• George Davies (Coventry)

Great Britain made history at the 2015 BNP Paribas World Team Cup in Antalya, Turkey, winning a first gold medal in the top tier of the men’s event after Gordon Reid and Alfie Hewett beat France in both singles rubbers in the final.

Meanwhile, Andy Lapthorne and Antony Cotterill were both members of the Great Britain team that won the most recent of four World Team Cup titles to date in 2014.

2016 National School Games boys’ singles gold medallist Ruairi Logan will represent Great Britain in the junior event for the third time alongside squad debutants Alex Chaston and George Davies.

“I’ve got really great memories from 2015 and I think we’ve got a great chance of winning the title against after the bronze medal last year,” said Reid. “Last year’s World Team Cup was the first I’d missed since first being selected as a junior, as Roland Garros was soon afterwards, so I’m excited to be back in the team this year and the possibilities for us.

“When we beat Paralympic champions Stephane Houdet and Nico Peifer in the Super Series final in South Africa a couple of weeks ago that was the first time me and Alfie had been on court together since Rio, so given that I expect France to be our toughest opponents it was a good way to go to the World Team Cup.”

“The World Team Cup is a very different event and I’ve got some great memories and am excited for next week,” said Lapthorne. “We’ve got quite a new team with Jamie Burdekin having now retired and James Shaw coming in for the second year. Myself and Antony are unbeaten in doubles for quite a long time now and are very confident about what we can do. I think there are three or four teams that can do some damage this time so we’ll be doing our best to regain the title.”

Geraint Richards commented: “While 2016 was an exceptional year for British wheelchair tennis as we returned from the Rio Paralympics with six medals and as the most successful wheelchair tennis nation, recent World Team Cups have also produced some memorable victories for our men’s, quad and junior teams and we look forward to challenging for more medals in Sardinia.

”To have both our Rio Paralympic men’s singles and doubles finalists Gordon Reid and Alfie Hewett and Rio quad singles finalist Andy Lapthorne headlining this year’s GB squad of nine players is obviously very exciting. All three have plenty of World Team Cup experience to draw on and with Gordon, Alfie and Antony Cotterill having all enjoyed Super Series doubles victories earlier this month I am confident that we have a well-prepared squad that will do Great Britain and the Tennis Foundation Wheelchair Tennis World Class Programme proud once again.”

Photos courtesy of the Tennis Foundation.

Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) is delighted to launch a new strategic plan which will direct the work of the Association through to 2021 and beyond. The plan, entitled “Inspiring Through Inclusion 2017-2021“, has been developed following a comprehensive consultation process with key partners and strategic bodies across Scotland.

This Association’s vision is to lead inclusive sport in Scotland for participants and athletes with a physical, sensory or learning disability.

Scottish Disability Sport passionately believes in leading and developing inclusive opportunities and improving performance. This will ensure that any child, young person or adult with a disability can participate in sport and physical activity – no matter ability, geography or age. SDS will consolidate, develop and work in partnership to transform lives through the power of sport, focusing on five key areas:

ENGAGE AND PARTICIPATE – Identify, engage and sustain participant involvement through quality sporting opportunities

PROGRESS AND PERFORM – Supporting athletes to achieve their potential in performance sport

COACHING, EDUCATION AND LEARNING – Supporting quality assured training, development and learning opportunities

GOVERNANCE – Building a robust and accountable organisation with sound planning, policy and procedures

COMMUNICATION – Targeted, effective communication to all partners and individuals

Inclusion remains at the heart of the new strategic plan and is to be driven through a refreshed “Sports Inclusion Mode (SIM)” that will permeate throughout the work of the Association. SDS will work through the SIM with coaches, volunteers, clubs, activity sessions, schools, tertiary education, and all key stakeholders working in physical education, physical activity and sport to ensure inclusion is considered at all levels of the sporting pathway.

At all times, SDS will ensure an equitable approach to all aspects of the strategic plan and will also ensure that safe and secure environments are provided for all children, athletes, players, coaches, volunteers, officials and spectators.

“Inspiring Through Inclusion 2017-2021” is hot off the press and is in the process of being distributed widely to all key partners and stakeholders across Scotland.

In the 2017 Virgin Money London Marathon, Derek Rae from Kirkcaldy and Fife AC ran a personal best time by over four minutes to record 02:33:24.

Derek was running for Team Great Britain in the World Para Athletics Marathon World Cup and finished third in the T45/T46 class. This was by far Derek’s best marathon performance to date against the world’s leading runners in his class.

The two athletes who finished ahead of him were Alex Pires Da Silva (Brazil) 02:28:20 and Abelhadi El Harti from Morocco 02:29:38. In 2016 they were ranked 2nd and 4th in the world and Derek was ranked 8th. Derek’s 2017 run could move him up at least two places in the world standings.

In each of his London Marathons to date Derek has recorded personal best times. Derek’s long term aim is to gain selection for Team GB for his second Paralympic Games in Tokyo in 2020. The run this year clearly indicates the British number one continues to make progress towards his overall goal. Brilliant performance Derek and congratulations.

Richard Brickley MBE
President, Disability Sport Fife

Good luck to Scottish team swimmers competing in the British Para Swimming International Meet between Thursday 27 and Sunday 30 April. The event is taking place for the fourth year running in Pond’s Forge, Sheffield.

This event is one of the largest open competitions for para swimmers and will attract teams from all over the world. As British Swimming enters a new Paralympic cycle, athletes will be competing for the title of British Champion. Races will take place over the four days with heat sessions taking place in the morning and finals in the evening.

Scottish Swimming will be taking a team of 25 swimmers to compete in the long course competition. Classification will also be taking place for new swimmers Toni Shaw (Grampian), Jack Milne (Tayside) and Cara Smyth (Fife), and classification reviews will be undertaken by Kayleigh Haggo (West), Hope Gordon (Highland) and Christian Buchanan (East).

Live streaming and results can be accessed on the British Swimming website here:
https://www.britishswimming.org/events-and-tickets/british-para-swimming-international-meet-2017/

Rose Bancroft – West
Lewis Beagrie – West
Christian Buchanan – East
Oliver Carter – Fife
Stephen Clegg – East
Reagan Doig – Tayside
Adam Donnachie – West
Rhys Gill – Grampian
Hope Gordon – Highland
Kayleigh Haggo – West
Genevieve Hunter – West
Kyle Hughes – West
Beth Johnston – East
Abby Kane – West
John Law – West
Stephen McCormick – Fife
Amy McFarlane – West
Jack Milne – Tayside
Conner Morrison – Grampian
Andrew Mullen – West
Laura Pilkington – East
Scott Quin – East
Toni Shaw – Grampian
Cara Smyth – Fife
Erin Swan – West

We wish all swimmers a successful event. If you or anyone you know would like to get involved in disability swimming, please contact Scottish Disability Sport on 0131 317 1130 or email admin@scottishdisabilitysport.com.

 

South Lanarkshire Disability Sport held their annual Disability Sports Awards Ceremony on Thursday 20 April 2017. The event was held at Palace Sports Grounds in Hamilton with a great turnout of supporters of the branch from athletes to sponsors, Local Authority partners, councillors, provosts and many more.

The afternoon was hugely successful with some great speakers including Scottish and GB Table Tennis player Euan McLaughlin and World Champion Boccia player Stephen McGuire. Both speakers inspired the audience with their achievements and journeys in sport which was a fantastic starter to the Awards Ceremony.

It was encouraging to see the success of disability sport in South Lanarkshire and all the achievements of the award winners and runners up. A special mention must go to Millar Stoddart who won the Service to Sport Award. Millar has been involved with South Lanarkshire Disability Sport since the branch formed in 2001 as secretary and latterly as Chairman. Well done to everyone who was nominated or won an award – a full list of the award winners is below. Thank you to South Lanarkshire Disability Sport for hosting another successful awards afternoon

Sports Award Winners 2017

JUNIOR MALE SPORTS PERFORMER OF THE YEAR – Nathan Fleetwod

JUNIOR FEMALE SPORTS PERFORMER OF THE YEAR – Shiona McClafferty

ADULT MALE SPORTS PERFORMER OF THE YEAR – Andrew Harrison

ADULT FEMALE SPORTS PERFORMER OF THE YEAR – Diane Gillan

COACH OF THE YEAR – John Gardiner

CLUB OF THE YEAR – Claremont Colts

JUNIOR TEAM OF THE YEAR – Lanark Grammar Learning Disability Football Team

OUTSTANDING SPORTING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD – Stephen McGuire

SERVICE TO SPORT – Millar Stoddart

Martin Perry celebrated his promotion last week to the British Performance Squad by taking the class 6 singles title at the 2017 British Para Table Tennis Championships in Grantham, beating the European bronze medallist and three time Paralympian David Wetherill 3-2 in a thrilling final.

“To beat someone like Dave who is top five in the world is a fantastic result for me,” said Perry, who also received the Player of the Tournament Award. “It was a really good match and we both played really good table tennis. It means an awful lot to me to be National champion. I’ve been Scottish champion a few times and that means a lot to me but to say that I am British champion as well is a fantastic feeling.”

For a full report on the Championships, see the Table Tennis Scotland website here.

Stephen McGuire, double gold medallist and world individual champion, started a successful campaign for the Road to Tokyo by winning gold in both BC4 Individual and Pairs category at the BISFed European Regional Open Competition. It was a successful competition all round for the Scottish players, with brothers Jamie and Scott McCowan and Patrick Wilson competing in the BC3 competition, where Jamie won gold and Scott won bronze for Scott in the Individual category. The last throw of a ball denied Patrick a bronze and left him in fourth place.

The competition took place in San Cugat, Barcelona, from Tuesday 11 April to Saturday 15 April 2017. Paralympians Patrick, from Edinburgh, Jamie and Scott from Dundonald and Stephen, from Hamilton, competed against players from Ukraine, Slovenia, Spain, Italy, Russia, France and Greece in the first competition of the cycle.

Results were:

• Stephen McGuire, BC4 Individual Gold
• Stephen McGuire, BC4 Pair Gold
• Jamie McCowan, BC3 Individual Gold
• Scott McCowan, BC3 Individual Bronze
• BC3 Pair (Jamie McCowan, Scott McCowan, Patrick Wilson) – 4th place

SDS would like to congratulate all players on a tremendous effort, and Boccia UK Performance Coach Claire Morrison, as well as Dundonian Darren Thomson who was selected to officiate as an International Technical Official in the competition.

If you or anyone else you know would like to get involved in the sport of boccia, please contact Scottish Disability Sport by telephoning 0131 317 1130 or alternatively email admin@scottishdisabilitysport.com.

The Scottish Association of Blind Bowlers (SABB) attended the International Blind Bowlers Association World Championships in Cape Town, South Africa from the 20 – 27^th March.

SABB, led by Team Manager David Thomas, were keen to maintain and indeed improve on previous performances and took a full squad of eight players and eight assistants to the event.

David, who was appointed President of the IBBA in Worthing 2013, would relinquish the title and duties to Dr Sarah Shapiro from Israel at the closing ceremony on the 27^th of March.

The team arrived three days early to acclimatise to the hot conditions and faster green speeds, highly recommended for bowlers based in the northern hemisphere.  The heat was another factor to be considered and became a serious problem for the players, with play having to be suspended on a number of occasions as temperatures reached the high 30’s and low 40’s. Some of the players suffered from dehydration and others severe stomach upset.

However, under these extreme circumstances, there was a silver lining in the form of 2015 IBD World B2 singles and pair champion Irene Edgar.  Irene got off to a great start and won her first three games; she was in contention to win her first IBBA gold, but unfortunately, this was hampered due to illness and she had to concede her game to Australia.  This turned out to be costly and despite winning her last game, Australia won gold from Scotland on shot difference and Irene had to settle for silver.

Her husband Billy Edgar (B2) needed to win his last game for any chance of a medal.  A tough challenge as the game was against the section leader, Hong Kong.  Billy played an outstanding game and won 21 -19, earning himself a bronze and allowing South Africa to win gold and Hong Kong to end up with silver.

The final Scottish medal went to Fiona Scotland (B4) playing in her first World Championship.  Her victory 21 -20 against England’s, Liz Ward, guaranteed a bronze medal.

Because of the health issues, this affected the mixed pairs events and no medals were achieved.

Overall, Scotland ended up 6^th out of a field of 10, which is felt by many as an underachievement.  On a positive note, the performances of the Edgars at this level bodes well, as both players are members of the Scottish Disability Sport para bowls programme and both are in contention for the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Scottish Disability Sport would like to welcome the new office bearers in Grampian Disability Sport and South Lanarkshire Disability Sport branches. Grampian Disability Sport appointed a new Chairperson, Len Ironside, in December 2016 after long serving Chair, Pauline Stirling stood down. Len is doing a great job as chair so far and we are delighted that Pauline is still an active member of the Grampian Disability Sport committee.

This month, South Lanarkshire Disability Sport welcome new Chairperson Forbes Dunlop and Vice Chairperson, David Condie. The previous Chairperson, Millar Stoddard will also remain an active member of the committee after many years in the role.

Huge thanks must go to both Pauline Stirling in Grampian and Millar Stoddart in South Lanarkshire for all their hard work, support, and dedication over many years.

All three new members bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to both branches and Scottish Disability look forward to working with you all.