Category: A News

SportsAid Scotland support for Scottish Para Athletes

Scottish Disability Sport is pleased to announce that 20 of Scotland’s leading para athletes have been financially supported by SportsAid Scotland. The Robertson Trust and SportsAid London are the main sponsors and have allocated funds based on performance levels and sports specific commitments this year. SDS would like to thank SportsAid Scotland for their ongoing support of our para athletes.

The following athletes will be supported in 2020:

Cameron Radigan (Archery)

Steven Bryce (Athletics)

Gavin Drysdale (Athletics: RaceRunning)

Kayleigh Haggo (Athletics: RaceRunning)

Owen Miller (Athletics)

Alexander Thomson (Athletics)

David Beattie (Wheelchair Basketball)

Josh Manson (Wheelchair Basketball)

Ross Munro (Boccia)

Kieran Steer (Boccia)

Reegan Stevenson (Boccia)

Laura Cluxton (Cycling)

Hannah Dines (Cycling)

Gemma Lumsdaine (Wheelchair Rugby)

Mike Drever (Shooting)

Allan Ritchie (Shooting)

Lesley Stewart (Shooting)

Keith White (Shooting)

Michael Kear (Skiing)

Ryan Henry (Table Tennis)

DSF Annual Sports Festival – football and unihoc

DSF FOOTBALL 5s
The 2020 Indoor Fife Football 5s supported by Fife Sports and Leisure Trust started with a bang. The venue was the Michael Woods Sports & Leisure Centre. The open section involved DSF United, DSF City and DSF Athletic. Teams were selected on ability and on paper all three teams appeared evenly matched. This was confirmed when the opening game involving City and United ended in a 1-1 draw. Match two between City and Athletic resulted in a 3-1 win for City and great delight in the Callander family from west Fife. The final match pitched United against Athletic and by the narrowest of margins 1-0, United earned the right to play City in the final. The match was very close but United held on to take the title.
DSF United – Briony Clark (gk) Steven Anderson, Adam Faulds, Dale Lynch and Graham Law
DSF City – Fraser Wilson, Ross Russell, Phillip Callander Andrew Callander and Allan Robertson
DSF Athletic – Robert Anderson. Ryan Melville, Maurice Paterson, David Mair and Stephen Russell
The B section was similarly very close with Albion and Rovers progressing to the final undefeated with three points each. In the round robin their match ended 2-2 but in the final DSF Rovers won convincingly by 4-2.
DSF Rovers – John Sapsed, Paul Arthur, Vicky Walker gk, Chris Cook and Robbie Clark
DSF Albion – James Murphy, Francis Peters, John Wright, Rickie Ballingal and Robert Morrison
DSF Wanderers – Jamie Thomas, Wayne Moreland, Steven Thackray, Ryan Peterson and Kevin Mustard
In the C section DSF colts played the DSF stallions over three games and lost one match 2-0 but won two others by 3-0 and 2-0 to lift the title.
DSF Colts – George Goodsir, Tristine Rankine, Mark Walker, Leroy Brown, Lee Wilson
DSF Stallions – Kenny Richards, Neil Carstairs, Neil McEwan, Kevin Rowe and Daniel Page
Two excellent teams from Balwearie HS contested the junior 5s with one drawn game and two wins for the Balwearie Hares, 2-0 and 2-1 over the Balwearie Hounds
Balwearie Hares – (red) Leo Cord (capt), Neil Simpson (gk,) Shaun Carter, Daniel Waszkowiak and Greig Nicol
Balwearie Hounds – (black) Acaymo Llanos (capt), Dawoud Murtuza (gk), Aidan Stewart, Liam Martin and Callum Stephen
DSF UNIHOC
The DSF gazelles completed the open unihoc section undefeated with three wins 1-0, 3-1 and 2-1 over the DSF leopards. The matches were considerably closer than the 6 points to zero outcome would suggest.
DSF Gazelles – Michelle Wallace, Kearney Horne Christine Burns and Andrea Spry
DSF Leopards – Pauline Bryson, Susan Barrett, Shona Murrie and Julie Allan
In the ladies B section unihoc, the DSF swallows lost both their matches and did not progress to the final. The final went to extra time with the DSF swifts defeating the DSF bluebirds by 4-3 and the golden goal determining the outcome.
DSF Swifts – Nicola Eccles, Kim Paddon, Michelle Somerville and Beverly Raitt
DSF Bluebirds – Nicola Bell, Tonia Coe and Roberta Buchan
DSF Swallows – Lynda Stewart, Avril McIntyre, Dawn Rogerson and Toni Duffin
The Balwearie jets were the dominant team in the junior unihoc competition with three convincing wins against the Balwearie diamonds.
Balwearie Jets – Billie Lowe, Zoe McNulty, Samantha Christie and Mary Nutman
Balwearie Diamonds -Shelby Spence, Kara Jeffrey, Keri MacNicol and Alexandra/Jane Nutman
Many thanks to Scottish FA referee Neil Martin who handled all the football games. Neil is a duty manager at the Michael Woods Sports and Leisure Centre. Thank you also to unihoc umpires Pamela Robson and Lucy Walkup who are both DSF coaches. DSF peer mentor volunteers Colleen Melville and Marie Wilson were inspired by GOGA in Fife, supported by Spirit of 2012, to take up volunteering. The girls did an excellent job backing up the organising team.
Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Special Recognition at Fife Sports Festival

Events three and four of the Annual Fife Sports Festival supported by Fife Sports and Leisure Trust were held on Thursday 12th March at the Michael Woods Sports & Leisure Centre.
The indoor football 5s and unihoc competitions for participants with additional support needs were as always enthusiastically supported and thanks to the influence of GOGA in Fife supported by Spirit of 2012 there was a much higher than normal entry from players with severe and complex needs.
Disability Sport Fife identified 8 coaches/support staff to observe all 17 participating teams and single out those whom they considered demonstrated all that is special about disability sport in Fife. Enthusiasm, patience, team player, consideration, fun were just some of the qualities considered.
Eight participants were presented with special trophies donated to DSF by FSLT staff member Michael Penny from Carnegie Leisure Centre. Michael is one of the FSLT inclusive gym team staff and always has been a great supporter of DSF members of all levels of ability. Thank you Michael and well done to the eight excellent DSF ambassadors.
Congratulations to Steven and Robert Anderson, Shelby Spence, Leo Cord, Samantha Christie, Neil McEwan, Julie Allan and Chris Cook. Missing from the photo Acaymo Llanos.
Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

Scottish Disability Sport Statement on Covid-19 (Coronavirus)

Suspension of all squads, programmes, events, courses and competitions from Saturday 14th March 2020.

Following the increase in Covid-19 (Coronavirus) cases in Scotland in recent days, Scottish Disability Sport has taken the decision to suspend all squads, programmes, events, courses and competitions with effect from Saturday 14th March until further notice.

We have taken this decision in the best interests of the athletes and participants with a disability, many of whom may have underlying health conditions.

Scottish Disability Sport will continue to monitor and review the situation on an ongoing basis and will communicate any changes in circumstances as they arise, through social media or our website www.scottishdisabilitysport.com.

If you have any questions please contact Scottish Disability Sport at admin@scottishdisabilitysport.com.

SDS Young Persons Sport Panel and Young Start Residential

SDS Young Persons Sport Panel and Young Start Residential 29 February – 1 March 2020

The SDS Young Persons Sport Panel and Young Start Programme gathered in Largs for a 2 day residential with a packed agenda. We were delighted that Aileen Neilson, the ambassador for the programme, was able to join us for the weekend. The young people came together to consider the following:

  • Video making skills
  • SDS Strategic Plan Consultation
  • Mental Heath Awareness

The two days began with an excellent session led by Scott Tait of Wee Flee Productions on creating videos on smart phones – who knew mobiles could do so much! Please see below for one of the videos made over the weekend and more will be posted in the near future.

https://youtu.be/1QjAmwhR_hw

After this workshop the group participated in the SDS Strategic Planning Consultation and provided some very insightful feedback to help shape the SDS plan 2021 onwards. The voice of the young people is essential to future planning and they are key drivers in future vision of SDS.

It was then time to let off some steam after a full afternoon of workshops and the young people took part in various sporting activities such as badminton, basketball and archery before heading off to dinner. The evening concluded with an impromptu guitar and singing session – who knew there was such musical talent amongst the group!

Day Two began with some with some gentle stretching to set us up for a productive day ahead.

Robert Nesbit and Kirsty Ewen from SAMH delivered a fantastic workshop on mental health where we discussed what mental health is and the importance of it to everyone’s wellbeing.  The young people hope to develop a mental health toolbox for positive mental health that they can share with other young people in the future.

Craig Smith then led the group through future planning of programme and what it would look like over the next three years.

The weekend finished with a viewing of all of the great videos the young people made over the two days, which will appear soon on the SDS YouTube Channel.

The Evaluation of the two days indicated that it was an exceptionally worthwhile weekend for all involved and the group really felt they had left with new skills, fun memories, influencing future direction and good ideas for the next stage of the programme.

Ninth Place Finish for Wheelchair Curlers at World Championships

The Scottish Wheelchair Curling Squad concluded their 2020 World Wheelchair Curling Championship campaign with an 11-1 victory over the Czech Republic and a narrow 4-7 defeat to South Korea. This final result meant that the Scots missed out on the final stages of the competition and had to settle for a ninth-place finish.

The Scots had travelled to Wetzikon, Switzerland in confident mood, having taken the silver medal at the 2019 World Championships in Stirling. Hugh Nibloe’s rink got of to a slow start with defeats to Russia and Slovakia and finished the group stage of the competition with a record of 4 wins and 7 losses.

However, Scotland avoided relegation from the top group of wheelchair curling nations and will have the opportunity to get back on the ice at the 2021 World Championships. They also remain in a strong position to qualify ParalympicsGB for the 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing, China. Winter Paralympic qualifying points are accrued over a three year period in the build up to Beijing and Scotland will be looking to add to the impressive start they made to that process when finishing runners up to Paralympic Champions China in last year’s World Championship final.

The Scottish Squad at the 2020 World Championships in Wetzikon, Switzerland, were as follows;

Team Scotland:

Hugh Nibloe (Stirling)

Robert McPherson (Bellshill)

Gary Smith (Edinburgh)

Charlotte McKenna (Bridge of Allan)

Meggan Dawson-Farrell – Alternate (Tullibody)

Sheila Swan – Coach (Perth)

 

Images : Graeme Hart

Glasgow University Students Fundraise for SDS

Glasgow University Sports Association (GUSA) have undertaken a year long funding campaign, having chosen Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) as their Charity of the Year. The Glasgow students have undertaken a wide variety of fundraising events which has brought in an amazing £1,972 which will go towards supporting the SDS national events programme to provide access to competitive sports for athletes and players with a disability from across Scotland.

Everyone at SDS would like to take this opportunity to thanks all the students involved in this mammoth fundraising effort for all their hard work in support of our Association. The funds raised will have a real impact on the opportunities we offer across Scotland.

DSF Excel at Kirkcaldy & Central Fife Awards

I attended the 2019 Kirkcaldy and Central Fife Sports Council Annual Awards at Fife College on Thursday 5th March along with fellow Disability Sport Fife Trustee, Paul Noble MBE. These were the 12th Sports Council Annual Awards and the second of three Sports Council Awards evenings scheduled for Fife. The East Fife Sports Council Annual Awards are scheduled for next week at the Corn Exchange in Cupar.
Former Raith Rovers and Rangers player Marvin Andrews was the guest speaker. The evening ran like clockwork with George MacDonald from the Sports Council acting as MC. There was as always musical accompaniment and amazing support from Fife College staff. As usual the Sports Council had an excellent team of volunteers working behind the scenes plus representatives from organisations and businesses who support various elements of the Awards. The evening turned out exceptionally well for several DSF members, coaches and volunteers.
Derek Rae from Kirkcaldy and Fife AC was voted Sports Personality of the Year by Fife Free Press readers from a field of four exceptional high quality performance candidates. Derek is a regular awards winner at his local Sports Council Annual Awards evening but this year he really surpassed all previous years. Derek won silver at the WPA world marathon championships last year in London.
In his absence Owen Miller from Fife AC and Dunfermline was awarded the Disability Sports Person of the Year award by Elaine Roberts from PLM Optometrists. Owen also won the Dunfermline and West Fife Sports Council disability sports award earlier in the year following his exceptional performance in Dubai at the WPA World Para athletics championships. National representatives Tyler McLelland (boccia) and Mike Drever (Para shooting) were runners up in this highly competitive category. Owen was also a runner up in the Special Achievement Award section presented by Fife College.
A few days before she takes up her new post with Scottish Athletics, Pamela Robson from Burntisland won two awards for her exceptional contribution to Para athletics locally and nationally in the year past. Pamela is the DSF lead athletics coach and a Trustee of Disability Sport Fife. Pamela was a runner up in the in the Coach of the Year award presented by Heather Birrell from Dundas. However late in the evening in a very competitive field she was presented with the Fife College Special Achievement Award by James Bissett. This award selection is made by Fife College staff and the field included all eleven category winners on the night. What an accolade for the former Balwearie HS teacher.
Exceptional Disability Sport Fife peer mentor volunteer and former pupil of Balwearie HS, Adam Faulds from Glenrothes, was recognised with a runner up award in the Service to Sport category supported by Scottish Clubsport. Adam provides an amazing number of volunteer hours weekly in support of DSF members. Adam is widely respected by fellow volunteers and coaches.
Young Ruby McDonald from Glenrothes Amateur Swimming Club was awarded the Garry Innes Memorial Shield. Helen McKay also from Glenrothes SC was a runner up in the Service to Sport Award. Helen is a former DSF swim coach.
Throughout the evening there were outstanding stories of excellence across a wide range of sports. Central Fife has high quality performers in abundance. The role played by Fife Free Press staff in promoting inclusive sport in the area is a model of exceptional practice.
Richard Brickley OBE MBE Chairman DSF (SCIO) Board of Charity Trustees

2020 Tayside Parasport Festival

Scottish Disability Sport were delighted to return to Dundee & Angus College for our 6th Tayside Parasport Festival on Wednesday 4th March where we welcomed a record number of attendees.

70 pupils with either a physical disability, visual or hearing impairment from 30 different schools across Tayside enjoyed a fun packed day of sport and physical activity. It is especially exciting to offer this opportunity during the Paralympic year as we look forward to Tokyo 2020 taking place between 25th August to 6th September where thousands of athletes from over 100 countries will compete and inspire the next generation of young people with a disability.

The Parasport Festival is designed to introduce pupils with a physical disability or visual or hearing impairment to try new and exciting sports. It has been identified that these groups are significantly under-represented when it comes to participating in weekly sport or physical activity.

Our event was supported by 24 sports coaching and development students from Dundee & Angus College who did a fantastic job encouraging and supporting the pupils throughout the day to ensure everyone felt at ease and participated to the best of their ability.

The day started with an introduction from Scottish Disability Sport Tayside Regional Manager Graeme Doig, followed by athlete talks with Nathanael Scott from Forthill Primary School and Gregor Anderson from Arbroath High School, who shared with their peers their sporting experiences and achievements at the Dundee Dragons Wheelchair Sports Club and previous Parasport Festivals to hopefully inspire and relax other pupils, especially those attending for the first time.

In the morning session, pupils enjoyed seven different sports including football delivered by coaches from Dundee United Community Trust, powerchair football from Tayside Dynamos, tennis from West End Tennis Club, badminton from Badminton Scotland, bowls from Balgay Bowling Club and curling from Scottish Curling. Pupils with a visual impairment also got a chance to play goalball which is a Paralympic sport specifically for people with a visual impairment and was great fun to be involved in.

The afternoon session included boccia from Leisure and Culture Dundee and Scottish Boccia, wheelchair sports with the fantastic coaches from Dundee Dragons and athletics from Dundee Hawkhill Harriers including a RaceRunning demonstration from Perth Strathtay Harriers athletes Matthew Doig and Wiktoria Mucha.

It was great to see so many pupils with smiles on their faces all day long learning new skills, increasing confidence and making new friends. The day also included a parent / teacher engagement workshop and guest tour involving regional and local councillors, sport, health and education officers who had the opportunity to watch everyone in action.

Thank you to all involved in the day especially the Celtic FC Foundation for supporting Scottish Disability Sport to make this festival happen.

For more information on disability sport in Tayside, please contact graeme.doig@scottishdisabilitysport.com.

Parasport Festivals Kick Off supported by Celtic FC Foundation

The SDS Parasport Festival Series funded by the Celtic FC Foundation kicked off this week with two phenomenal events taking place in the West of Scotland and Tayside.

SDS works with many partners at local, regional and national levels and the Parasport Festivals are just one example of how all partners come together to make a difference in the lives of the young people who participate at the events.

To make these happen, Scottish governing bodies of sport and  local sports clubs deliver the fun sport activities. They are always very ably supported in their delivery by Young Leaders from Local Authorities and students from nearby further and higher education institutions.

The purpose of these events is to introduce mainstream school pupils with physical disabilities and hearing and visual impairments to a wide range of sports that they may not experience at school, and then offer tailored support to enable them to regularly participate in their chosen sport.

To date almost 2,000 young people have benefitted from attending these events with an average transition rate into weekly activity of 13%.

If you or anyone you know would like to attend a para sport festival, there are still opportunities to participate in the events listed below:

Region Date Venue
East of Scotland Friday 27th March 2020 Forrester HS, Edinburgh
Grampian Friday 18th September 2020 Aberdeen Sports Village
Highland Saturday 26th September 2020 Dingwall Sports Centre
Central Scotland Wednesday 28th October 2020 Grangemouth Sports Complex

If you are unable to make any of these events but would like to get involved in disability sport please get in touch by emailing admin@scottishdisabilitysport.com or telephone Scottish Disability Sport on 0131 317 1130.

See reports from the West of Scotland and Tayside events below.

Fun was the Theme of the Day at the West of Scotland Parasport

On the 2nd March 2020 the 11th West Parasport Festival was held at the On-X Linwood for the first time. We had children and young people from P5-S6 mainstream schools from the West with physical disabilities and visual and hearing impairments attending to try out various sports. There were 59 participants from 43 schools from 12 out of 13 local authorities in the west of Scotland.

The On-X was the new venue due to changes at Ravenscraig, although different the new venue provided an opportunity to offer swimming for the very first time.

The event was a great success and couldn’t have happened without the partners listed below who delivered their sport in a fun way to engage all pupils.

Thanks must go to the 25 Young Sports Leaders from Renfrewshire Leisure and 20 students from West College Scotland who supported the event and brought their positivity and enthusiasm to support deliverers and participants on the day. Paralympic and Deaflympic role models Danielle Joyce and Sam Ingram were on hand to support activities and tell everyone about their journey.

Andrew MacKenzie (SDS West Regional Development Manager) said: “The event was great, and we are so happy the participants are getting to try so many different sports. The smiles on their faces told the story very well. Bringing these opportunities for the children and for sports to promote their sessions and build on the pathways really shows how good the Parasport is. Having Paralympians at the event really shows that you can make it to the top of your level and hopefully this will encourage children to stay in sport, whether they go to the top level or for fun.”

A special thank you to the Celtic FC Foundation for supporting the event, hosts Renfrewshire Leisure, the West Branches, West Active Schools, all the sports, Renfrewshire Young Sports Leaders, West College Scotland students and the On-X staff for their support. With a big thank you to the parents, teachers and helpers for supporting as well.

We look forward to following up with all participants who attended to support the next step of their journey in parasport.

If you or anyone you know would like to get involved in disability sport please email admin@scottishdisabilitysport.com or alternatively telephone Scottish Disability Sport on 0131 317 1130.