Classification: B3

Event: B2/B3 Pairs

Date of Birth: 30 June 1961

Occupation: Traffic sign maker

Hometown: Glasgow

Lives: Glasgow

Club: East Fife Indoor Bowling Club, Whiteinch Indoor Bowling Club

Coach: Bob Dick, Chris Morrow

Games Coach: Bob Christie, Eric McMillan

Achievements:

• 2017 UK Visually Impaired Indoor Championships: Singles gold
• 2017 Eight Nations: B2/3 Mixed Pairs silver
• 2017 SDS Scottish Visually Impaired Outdoor Championships: Singles gold
• 2017 Home Nations: Team silver
• 2017 SABB Div 2 Outdoor Championships: Singles gold
• Fours gold; 2017 Able Bodied Whiteinch Indoor Fours Championships: gold
• Able Bodied Jordanhill Outdoor Championships: Nominated Triples gold, Balloted Triples gold
• 2016 Eight Nations: B2/B3 Mixed Pairs silver
• 2016 Home Nations: Team gold
• 2015 Able Bodied Glasgow & District Indoor Bowling Association Championships
• Singles silver

 

The Tayside Parasport Festival continues to improve each year, with the 4^th annual festival having taken place on Wednesday 14^th March. Numbers rose significantly with 42 children with a physical or sensory impairment from across Dundee, Perth & Kinross and Angus accessing the opportunity.

The event was supported by Allardyce Healthcare, Dundee & Angus College and Celtic FC Foundation, without whom the Tayside Parasport Festival would not have been possible.

There were four athlete mentors in attendance on the day. Athlete mentors spoke to the participants regarding their experiences of sport with the aim of inspiring the next generation. Scottish Disability Sport was pleased to welcome Deaflympics double gold medallist Danielle Joyce to Dundee as one of the athlete mentors.

Scottish Governing Bodies, clubs and coaches delivered thoroughly engaging and dynamic sessions to participants in bowls, running basketball, wheelchair basketball, athletics, boccia, wheelchair rugby league, judo, badminton, tennis, goalball, powerchair football and running football.

It was a wonderful event with positive responses from participants, parents and support staff. Following the event, Tayside Regional Manager Jennifer Scally will be looking to contact participants and their families in order to support transition into local opportunities.

Scottish Disability Sport would like to acknowledge all the key partners on the day for all their assistance in making the event happen. Thanks go to Active Schools Dundee, Active Schools Perth & Kinross, Active Schools Angus, Dundee City Disability Sport, Angus Disability Sport, Perth & Kinross Disability Sport, Scottish Athletics, JudoScotland, basketballscotland, Tennis Scotland, Balgay Bowling Club, Dundee Dragons Wheelchair Sports Club, Dundee United Community Trust, Madsons Dundee and BADMINTON Scotland.

The Annual Fife Sports Festival supported by Fife Council and Fife Sports and Leisure Trust moved back to the Michael Woods Sports and Leisure Centre on Monday 19^th March for the Fife boccia and table tennis championships.

Rachel Page from Glenrothes was acknowledged as the first winner of the new John de Courcy trophy and crowned Fife boccia champion for 2018. Rachel went undefeated in the Round Robin section for players who use manual or power wheelchairs. Andy Curry from West Fife Community Support Services finished runner up with four wins from five. Craig Kinnell, Yvonne Peggie, Tyler McLelland and Matthew Robinson shared third spot with seven points each.

Prunella Hay from the west of Fife won the novice junior wheelchair section for ramp players and Neil McEwan defeated Liam Ness over five rounds to win the adult section for ambulant players.

Louisa Ramsay won the women’s open table tennis competition and Caitlin de Soyza finished runner up. Stephen Russell won the equivalent men’s section with Chris Cook finishing runner up.

The Festival continues on Wednesday 21^st March with the Fife junior 7s football league, series three, being held at Kirkcaldy HS with an earlier than usual start time of 10 30.

Richard Brickley MBE – President Disability Sport Fife

The West of Scotland Mobility and Rehabilitation Centre, in partnership with Scottish Disability Sport, hosted an amputee running clinic on Saturday 17^th March at Scotstoun Leisure Centre in Glasgow.

The Physiotherapists and Prosthetists from WestMARC invited Hayley Ginn, a specialist in coaching lower limb amputees, to advise and coach some of the patients interested in running more effectively and efficiently.

Hayley has worked with Paralympians Jonnie Peacock and Richard Brown, so her knowledge and expertise in this field was appreciated and welcomed by the participants attending on the day.

Five young people with lower limb absence attended in the morning and seven adults in the afternoon.

Hayley set up a number of exercises and skills which assisted the participants to move more proficiently and it also enabled the physiotherapists gain more knowledge and assist the participants when they attend appointments.

A great deal of information and knowledge was shared and WestMARC is keen to organise something similar in the future to enable the participants to progress.

Thanks go to the Celtic FC Inspiring Sport Project and Finding your Feet for their contribution to the event.

The Inverclyde Sports Personality of the Year Awards took place on Friday 9^th March at Greenock Town Hall.

Over 200 people attended the event, which was an occasion dedicated to rewarding the achievements of the athletes in the Inverclyde area, and a number of Para athletes, coaches and clubs were in the running for their respective categories.

The Para athlete of the year was won by the multi-talented Kyle Brotherton, a swimmer with Port Glasgow Otters and a wheelchair racer with Red Star Athletics Club.  Kyle has been a member of both clubs for a number of years and has recently become more prominent in the T54 classification in Wheelchair racing.  He is well supported by his Mum, Kerry, who is always on the move, taking Kyle to various swimming and athletics competitions across the country.  Kyle’s training regime over the past year has been tough and the improvements Kyle has been making to his times is evident.

Port Glasgow Otters swimming club were the worthy recipients of the Club of the Year Award. The club, which has been an invaluable asset to swimmers with a disability in Inverclyde for many years, has produced Paralympians such as Maggi McEleny and Kenny Cairns, but is committed to supporting swimmers at any level and giving them the chance to achieve their potential.  Head Coach, Eddie McLuskey, picked up the award on behalf of the club.

Volunteer of the Year was won by Andrew Hemphill, who coaches at Port Glasgow Otters Swimming Club.  Andrew has been involved in volunteering at the club since he was a student a few years ago and has furthered his coaching qualifications to ensure the swimmers are receiving the best coaching possible.  Andrew has also supported the Scottish Swimming Disability Squad in a voluntary capacity and puts in a huge number of voluntary hours supporting the club in competitions and on training nights.  He is fully deserving of this accolade.

Junior Sports Personality of the Year was awarded to Rhys McCole, a young talented boxer who competes in mainstream boxing and is a great advocate for the sport, for people with disabilities.  Rhys is also a member of the sportscotland Young Peoples Sports Panel and is involved in promoting the benefits of sport and physical activity in all its forms.

Congratulations to all the award winners.  It’s fantastic to see Para athletes, coaches and clubs being recognised for their amazing achievements.

Independence through mobility – free wheelchair skills workshop

Saturday 24th March 2018

10.00am – 3.00pm

Games Hall, Queen Margaret Academy, Dalmellington Road, Ayr KA7 3TL

A great chance to meet other young wheelchair users and to learn skills to help you become more independent. Extra wheelchairs provided for mums, dads, brothers and sisters to join in with the games. We welcome young people from 2-18 years!

Please bring a packed lunch.

To reserve a place email claire@gokidsgo.org.uk.

TV presenter Ade Adepitan learnt his skills with us – why don’t you?

The WOSA Beginners Swimming Gala took place at Blantyre Leisure Centre on Wednesday 14^th March.  This was a great event for complete beginners, where pupils were able to swim some of the events with aids and support in the water.

Around 30 swimmers took to the water from four schools: Hazelwood School, Glasgow; Firpark School, Motherwell; Ashton School, Glasgow and Isobel Mair School, Newton Mearns.  All the children swam brilliantly and really tried their hardest, with each swimmer getting a ribbon for each race with their times. 

Thanks to South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture for hosting the event and students from UWS who helped time keep.

Last year two coaches from Dovecot Park Bowling Club attended a UK Coaching How to Coach Disabled People in Sport workshop organised by Disability Sport Fife (DSF). As a follow up DSF identified a number of adults with additional support needs to attend the club for coaching. Thanks to investment in Fife through Get Out Get Active, supported by Spirit of 2012, (GOGA in Fife) the learner bowlers are fully included in club activities and now cannot wait for the 2018 season to start.

For more information see the flyer here.

Thursday 15^th March 2018 saw the success of the Central Boccia Leaders Award workshop delivered by Boccia UK Performance Coach Claire Morrison, alongside SDS Regional Managers Neal Herbert and Lori Ure.

Eighteen enthusiastic coaches, teachers, coordinators and volunteers from across the Forth Valley area attended the workshop which included topics such as:

• Knowledge, skills and confidence-building in boccia and its pathways;
• Introduction to classification in boccia;
• Understanding rules, structure and relevant practice of the sport.

Many thanks to Falkirk Community Trust for hosting the workshop at Larbert High school and to The Big Lottery Fund for funding the workshop.  

To find out more about disability sport in Central Scotland, please contact: Cheryl Lappin, SDS Regional Manager on cheryl.lappin@scottishdisabilitysport.com / Phone: 07577 830360

Boccia is a Paralympic sport designed for people with physical disabilities, but can be played by anyone.

It is a game of tactics, skill and precision a well as being a lot of fun!

These sessions are open to anyone under 18. Come and try at the Citadel Leisure Centre, Ayr, on  Tuesdays from 4.00-5.00pm. Cost per session is £1.

For more information visit www.south-ayrshire.gov.uk/leisure.