The next Olympics - Always ready for next one

Paralympics Day 5 Summary

2012-09-04T04:13:00.001-07:00

After wooing the nation on Saturday, on another rousing night in the Aquatics Centre it looked like winning was becoming a habit for Ellie Simmonds as she collected her second gold of the Paralympics.

Such was the dominance of the 17-year-old that she even survived the presence of the prime minister, David Cameron, whose attendance in the steepling stands became something of a bad omen during the Olympics.

And Britain's track and field Paralympians, who underperformed in Beijing with just two gold medals, took their total to five in the Olympic Stadium with victory for Mickey Bushell in the T53 100m.

Bushell went one better than the silver he secured in Beijing and equalled the achievement of Hannah Cockroft in the T34 wheelchair category on Friday night.

Bushell, who cruised to victory in 14.74 seconds, was born without seven vertebrae in his back and was spotted by the Paralympian Deborah Brennan when playing dodgeball at school.

"I have waited four years for this. I nearly cried coming across the line," said Bushell, who watched his friend David Weir win his 5,000m race in the Paralympic village on Sunday night.

"I was in my room watching the race and was just bouncing off the walls."

As in the stadium, Britain's swimmers appear to be thriving in the hothouse atmosphere and using the noise of the crowd to inspire rather than intimidate.

After effortlessly overhauling the German Verena Schott in the final length of the women's 200m individual medley in a new world record time, Simmonds will be aiming to make it a hat-trick of gold medals on Tuesday in the 50m freestyle.

When she touched the end of the pool on Saturday night after a close duel with American rival Victoria Arlen, Simmonds couldn't stop the tears flowing. But as she claimed her second gold of the Games in more emphatic fashion, she simply beamed.

"It was 50/50 whether I got that [first] gold medal. So when I touched and to do a five second PB it was quite emotional," said the 17-year-old.

"I knew I was on form this morning and I knew it was going to be tough, but really I was going to be racing against myself. I show my emotions in different ways and tonight I'm just so excited and so pleased and so happy."

Simmonds, who has a form of dwarfism called achondroplasia, was again cheered home by a raucous crowd. She said she was trying to remain in "a bubble" and was avoiding Twitter and Facebook, but couldn't help but be aware of the wave of public support.

"Apparently 3.3 million people watched my race which is amazing not just for me but for getting the Paralympics out there. Hopefully people out there will get inspired by us and get into sport. It's great that people are watching the Paralympics," she said.

Channel 4 said that viewing figures for its coverage had continued to rise, peaking at 4.4m on Sunday night for Alan Oliveira's shock defeat of Oscar Pistorius in the T43/44 200m.

Cameron, who was taking time out from working on his cabinet reshuffle to watch the evening's action, provoked a mixture of boos and cheers as he emerged to give Simmonds her medal. Britain's Natalie Jones took bronze.

Susannah Rodgers, who was inspired to compete after watching Simmonds win two gold medals in Beijing as a then unknown 13-year-old, was on the podium herself in London after coming third in the women's 100m freestyle S7.

And Sascha Kindred, a six-time Paralympic champion competing in his fifth Games, added a silver medal to his collection.

The Chinese swimmer Qing Xu needed a world record time to beat him, and Kindred said afterwards he was happy with an achievement that matched that of his wife Nyree, who won silver in the pool on the opening day of the Games.

It may have cost £269m, but the Aquatics Centre is delivering in terms of precious metal during these Paralympic Games.

Britain's Paralympic swimmers have been too polite to acknowledge it, but they have put the achievements of their Olympic counterparts in the shade.

It is one of the ironies of the fallout from the Olympics that the inquest into the British team, who secured just one silver and two bronze medals, is being chaired by ParalympicsGB chef de mission Craig Hunter.

He said that ParalympicsGB as a whole were on track to hit their target of 103 medals and second in the medal table.

"We're 11 ahead of where we were this time in Beijing. We're recognising it's incredibly tough out there but in terms of the target of 103, second on the medal table and more medals across more sports, it's looking good," he said.

But there was disappointment on Monday for Lee Pearson, the dressage rider who had nine gold medals in his locker coming into the Games and was one of the most recognisable faces of the build-up.

Pearson won bronze at Greenwich Park, but had he won the Grade Ib freestyle competition, the 38-year-old from Staffordshire would have joined Tanni Grey-Thompson and swimmer David Roberts with 11 Paralympic golds.

Hunter also said that the depth of competition was improving all the time. In addition to the dominance of the Chinese, it is notable that countries including Australia, Ukraine and Brazil are performing better than ever before.

"Athletes are coming from nowhere to an extent. It's just fantastic and improves the profile of Paralympic sport and makes it incredibly exciting," said Hunter.

But with the increased profile has come increased scrutiny. Aside from the ongoing controversy sparked by the comments made by Pistorius after he was beaten into second place on Sunday night by Oliveira, there were more tough questions over classification and a medal mix up.

The International Paralympic Committee said that in line with its strategic goal to make classification easier to understand, it would aim to drop combined classes in athletics by the time of the next Games in Rio.

By separating out combined classes – for example for single and double amputees – the IPC hopes to avoid the scenario where an athlete can set a world record in their class but finish outside the medals.

Paralympics Day 4 Update

2012-09-03T04:58:00.001-07:00

ARCHERY

Mel Clarke and Danielle Brown both win their quarter-final matches 6-4 in the women's individual compound open division.

Sharon Vennard loses her individual recurve standing quarter-final 6-0.

ATHLETICS

David Devine qualifies for the T13 1500m final as one of the fastest losers, setting a personal best in the process.

Aled Davies wins GOLD in the F42 discus throw with a throw of 46.14m.

Stef Reid takes SILVER in the long jump F42/44, setting a Paralympic record of 5.28m for her class.

Jenny McLoughlin finishes sixth in 14.41 and Katrina Hart finishes seventh with a time of 14.48 in the women's 100m T37 final.

Shelly Woods finishes in eighth place in the 5,000m T54 final.

Graeme Ballard wins SILVER in the men's 100m T36 final with a time of 12.24. Ben Rushgrove finishes sixth.

Tracey Hinton finishes third and fails to qualify from her semi-final in the T11 200m.

Sophie Kamlish finishes fifth and Stef Reid in eighth position in the women's 100m T44 final.

David Weir wins GOLD in the men's 5000m T54 final.

BOCCIA

ParalympicsGB lose 5-0 to Greece in the BC3 mixed pairs and then lose 6-2 to South Korea.

In the BC4 mixed pairs, ParalympicsGB win 11-0 against Slovakia and then lose 4-1 to Canada.

ParalympicsGB win their first mixed team BC1-2 match 8-4 against Argentina and their second game 5-4 against Portugal.

CYCLING

Rik Waddon, Darren Kenny and Jon-Allan Butterworth take SILVER the mixed C1-5 sprint final, losing out by just 0.065 to a world record time set by the Chinese team.

Anthony Kappes and pilot Craig Maclean win GOLD in the all-British final of the men's individual B pursuit, beating Neil Fachie and Barney Storey, who take SILVER, in two races. Kappes and Maclean set a world record of 10.050 seconds in their heat.

Aileen McGlynn and her pilot Helen Scott win BRONZE in an all-British clash in the women's individual B pursuit. They came out on top against Lora Turnham and pilot Fiona Duncan by just over a second in a tight pursuit.

EQUESTRIAN

ParalympicsGB win GOLD in the mixed team dressage event.

Strong favourite Sophie Christiansen wins GOLD in the grade Ia individual dressage with a score of 82.750.

Deborah Criddle wins SILVER in the grade III individual dressage with a score of 71.267.

Sophie Wells takes SILVER in the grade IV individual dressage with a score of 76.323.

FOOTBALL - 5-A-SIDE

ParalympicsGB draw their pool A clash 0-0 with Argentina.

GOALBALL

ParalympicsGB women's team win their preliminary match 3-1 against Brazil while the men's team lose 7-3 to Finland.

ROWING

World champions Pam Relph, Naomi Riches, David Smith, James Roe and cox Lily van den Broecke win GOLD in the mixed coxed four LTAMix4+.

Nicholas Beighton and Samantha Scowen finish fourth in the final of the mixed double sculls.

Beijing gold-medallist Tom Aggar finishes fourth in the men's single sculls ASW1 final.

SAILING

John Robertson, Hannah Stodel and Stephen Thomas finish fifth in race three and four of the three-person keelboat (sonar) division.

Helena Lucas finishes third in race three and 11th in race four of the single-person keelboat (2.4mR).

Alexandra Rickham and Niki Birrell finish fourth in race three and second in race four of the two-person keelboat (SKUD18) division.

SHOOTING

Richard Davies, Adam Fontain and Ryan Cockbill fail to reach the final in the mixed R4-10m air rifle standing-SH2.

SITTING VOLLEYBALL

ParalympicsGB men win their preliminary pool A match 3-0 against Morocco.

The women's side lose their encounter against Japan 3-0.

SWIMMING

James Clegg takes BRONZE in the final of the 100m butterfly S12, with Hannah Russell also taking BRONZE in the women's version with a personal best of 1:08.57.

Rhiannon Henry finishes fourth in the final of the 100m freestyle S13, missing out on a medal by one 10th of a second.

Jessica-Jane Applegate wins GOLD in the final of the 200m freestyle S14 with a Paralympic record time of 2:12.63. Natalie Massey finishes sixth. Team-mate Chloe Davies earlier missed out on a place in the final.

Daniel Pepper and Ben Procter finish seventh and eighth respectively in the final of the 200m freestyle S14 heat. Team-mate Craig Rodgie earlier misses out on the final by less than a second.

Sean Fraser, Thomas Young, Sam Hynd and Robert Welbourn win their 4x100m 34 points freestyle relay heat to qualify for the final.

Heather Frederiksen finishes sixth in the women's 50m freestyle S8 with a time of 31.93.

The men's side finish fifth in the 4x100m freestyle relay 34 points with a time of 3:56.38.

TABLE TENNIS

Will Bayley takes SILVER in the class 7 final after losing 3-1 to Jochen Wollmert.

WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL

The men's side were victories 87-58 against Poland, with Terry Bywater scoring 22 points.

WHEELCHAIR TENNIS

In the men's doubles round of 32, Marc McCarroll and Gordon Reid win 6-3 6-1 while Alex Jewitt and Dave Phillipson emerge as 6-3 6-2 victors.

Jamie Burdekin loses his round of 16 quad singles clash 6-3 3-6 3-6 with Andy Lapthorne losing 7-5 3-6 3-6 at the same stage.

Peter Norfolk dominates his quad singles round of 16 match 6-0 6-0.

Gordon Reid wins his round of 32 men's singles clash 6-0 6-0 against Brazilian Daniel Alves Rodrigues and Dave Phillipson wins 6-3 6-2 at the same stage.

Paralympics Day 2 Results

2012-09-01T06:09:00.002-07:00

Sorry for the late post been exceptionally busy the last few days and even managing to tune into the Paralympics has been a struggle, but as always there is a lot to tell so let’s get started.

Starting with basketball team GB were unfortunately beaten in both the men’s and ladies competition, both teams have now had two consecutive losses so it will be incredibly tough now for either team to make it out of the group stages.

In swimming we had a pretty successful day winning medals along the way.

Aaron Moores took silver in the men’s 100m backstroke S14 with a time of 1:04:44

James Crisp took silver in the men’s 100m backstroke S9 with a time of 1:03:62

Heather Frederiksen who is the European champion and a Beijing silver medallist won silver again in the women’s 400m S8 freestyle

Sam Hynd the defending Paralympic men’s 400m freestyle S8 champion won bronze while his brother Ollie Hynd claims silver in the same race

Stephanie Millward wins silver in the final of the women’s 100m backstroke S9

In sitting Volleyball both the GB men’s and women’s teams lost, the women’s team had one of their players who survived the July 7^th London bombings. This is the first Paralympics that GB has put together a team for this event so to put up the performance that they did is still a remarkable achievement.

In Goalball GB men were again thrashed for the second game in a row this time to Turkey suffering a 7-1 defeat, they begun these championships with an 11-1 defeat to world champions Lithuania. The GB women drew 1-1 with Finland in their opening match.

Football – GB men drew 1-1 with Spain in their opening match.

In another action packed day at the velodrome the Cycling was no less exhilarating than the day before. Jon-Allan Butterworth won silver in the mens individual 1km time trial (in the same event Jody Cundy was unfortunately disqualified)

Mark Colbourne won gold in the men’s individual C1 pursuit breaking a world record on the way with a time of 3:53.881

In the men’s C3 individual pursuit we took silver and bronze with Shaun McKeown picking up silver and Darren Kenny picking up bronze

Aileen McGlynn wins silver in the women’s individual B1km time trial

The Athletics got underway as well yesterday and much was expected of Hannah Cockcroft after her runs in qualifying and she did not disappoint. She smashed the Paralympic record with a time of 18.06 on her way to winning gold in the 100m T34

Aled Davies won bronze in the men’s shot put F42/44 event with a point’s total of 961 and a distance of 13.78

There was many many more events taking place yesterday and unfortunately I do not have time to run through all of them, but I will be back later with more news.

What Do The Paralympic Classifications Mean?

2012-08-30T06:08:00.003-07:00

Just found this very detailed explanation of what the classifications mean, thought it may be of help to some of you

Courtesy of http://www.lbc.co.uk/paralympic-classification-what-do-the-categories-mean-58926

The Paralympic Classifications Explained

The International Paralympic Committee has six disability categories, but not every sport allows for every disability.
The categories are:
Amputee: Athletes with a partial or total loss of at least one limb.
Cerebral Palsy: Athletes with non-progressive brain damage, for example cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, stroke or similar disabilities affecting muscle control, balance or coordination.
Intellectual Disability: Athletes with a significant impairment in intellectual functioning and associated limitations in adaptive behaviour.
Wheelchair: Athletes with spinal cord injuries and other disabilities that require them to compete in a wheelchair.
Visually Impaired: Athletes with visual impairment ranging from partial vision, sufficient to be judged legally blind, to total blindness. The athlete and their sighted guides are considered a team and both can win medals.
Les Autres: Athletes with a physical disability that does not fall strictly under one of the other five categories, such as dwarfism, multiple sclerosis or congenital deformities of the limbs such as that caused by thalidomide.

Archery

Archery classification is broken up into three classes:
ARW1: spinal cord and cerebral palsy athletes with impairment in all four limbs
ARW2: wheelchair users with full arm function
ARST (standing): athletes who have no disabilities in their arms but who have some disability in their legs. This group also includes amputees, les autres and cerebral palsy standing athletes. Some athletes in the standing group will sit on a high stool for support but will still have their feet touching the ground.

Athletics

All disability groups can compete in athletics with a variety of categories. The letter F is for field athletes, T represents those who compete on the track, and the number shown refers to their disability.
11-13: track and field athletes who are visually impaired
20: track and field athletes who are intellectually disabled
31-38: track and field athletes with cerebral palsy
41-46: track and field amputees and les autres
T 51-56: wheelchair track athletes
F 51-58: wheelchair field athletes
Blind athletes compete in class 11 and are permitted to run with a sighted guide. Blind field athletes use sounds, such as clapping or voices, if they compete in the 100m, long jump or triple jump.
Athletes in classes 42, 43 and 44 must wear a prosthesis while competing, but this is optional for classes 45 and 46.
Oscar Pistorius and Great Britain's Jonnine Peacock appear in the T44 category.

Boccia

Boccia - a type of bowls - is open to athletes with cerebral palsy and other severe physical disabilities who compete from a wheelchair, with classification split into four classes:
BC1: Athletes may compete with the help of an assistant, who must remain outside the athlete's playing box. The assistant can only stabilise or adjust the playing chair and give a ball to the player on his request
BC2: Athletes have poor functional strength in their extremities, but can propel a wheelchair and are not eligible for assistance
BC3: For players with a very severe physical disability. Players use an assistive device and may be assisted by a person, who will remain in the player's box but who must keep his/her back to the court and eyes averted from play
BC4: For players with other severe physical disabilities - not necessarily cerebral palsy. Players are not eligible for assistance

Cycling

Cycling is open to amputees, les autres, athletes with cerebral palsy and visually impaired athletes, competing in individual road race and track events.
Athletes with cerebral palsy are split into four divisions according to the level of their disability, where class four comprises the more physically able.
Visually impaired athletes compete together with no separate classification system. They ride in tandem with a sighted guide.
Amputee, spinal cord injury and les autres competitors compete within these groups:
LC1: Riders with upper limb disabilities
LC2: Riders with impairment in one leg but who can pedal normally
LC3: Riders with impairment in one lower limb who will usually pedal with one leg only
LC4: Riders with disabilities affecting both legs
Athletes with more severe disabilities take part in handcycling, which is now included in the cycling programme. Handcyclists compete in the following disability divisions:
HCA: For athletes with complete loss of trunk and lower limb function
HCB: For athletes with complete loss of lower limb function and limited trunk stability
HCC: For athletes with complete loss of lower limb function but few other functional disabilities, or for athletes with partial loss of lower limb function combined with other disabilities which mean conventional cycling is not viable
Paralympians on tandem bikes use a front pilot to steer, able-bodied contestants who can win a medal.

Equestrian

Riders are divided into four grades and are graded according to ability:
Grade 1: Severely disabled riders with cerebral palsy, les autres and spinal cord injury
Grade 2: Athletes with reasonable balance and abdominal control including amputees
Grade 3: Athletes with good balance, leg movement and coordination including blind athletes
Grade 4: Ambulant athletes (those able to walk independently) with either impaired vision or impaired arm or leg function

Football

Five-a-side football is played by those with a visual impairment, while seven-a-side football is played by athletes with cerebral palsy.
People who take part in five-a-side blind football are classified, according to their level of sight, as B1, B2 or B3.
Players in the B1 classification are considered blind, while those rated B2 and B3 are classified as visually impaired or partially sighted.
Outfield players are B1, but must wear eye-patches and blindfolds. The goalkeeper is sighted, but cannot leave the area. There are no offside rules. The football contains ball bearings to produce a noise when it moves.
Seven-a-side football consists of players from the C5, C6, C7 and C8 divisions, rated according to limb control and co-ordination problems when running. All classes are comprised of ambulant athletes, where those in class five are least physically able through to class eight who are minimally affected.
At least one C5 or C6 class athlete per team must play throughout the match. If this is not possible, the team must play with six players. Furthermore, no more than three players from category C8 are allowed to play at the same time.

Goalball

A type of blind handball, Goalball is played by visually impaired athletes without any classification. Participants wear "black out" masks to ensure everyone competes equally.

Judo

Judo is contested by visually impaired athletes only. There is no categorisation as competitors are divided by weight in the same way as able-bodied athletes.
The only difference is the texture of the mat to indicate the edge of the mat.

Powerlifting

Powerlifting is open to athletes with a physical disability and is classified by weight alone, with 10 weight classes.

Rowing

Rowing is divided into four boat classes.
LTA4+: A four-person, mixed gender, sweep-oar boat plus cox with sliding seats. Open to athletes with an impairment but who have movement in the legs, trunk and arms. A boat can include a maximum of two visually impaired athletes.
TA2x: A two-person, mixed-gender scull for athletes with trunk and arm movement only.
AM1x: A fixed-seat single scull boat for men. Athletes have full movement in their arms only.
AW1x: A fixed-seat single scull boat for women. Athletes have full movement in their arms only.

Sailing

Sailing is a multi-disability sport where athletes from the amputee, cerebral palsy, visually impaired, wheelchair and les autres groups can compete together.
There are three sailing classes:
Sonar: a mixed three-person crew
SKUD18: a two-person class
2.4mR event: single-crewed.
Competitors are ranked according to a points system where low points are given to the severely disabled and high points for the less disabled. Each crew of three is allowed a maximum of 12 points between them.
Single-handed sailors must have a minimum level of disability which prevents them competing on equal terms with able-bodied sailors.

Shooting

Shooters are divided into wheelchair and standing groups.
These divisions are split into six sub-classes, each of which determines the type of mobility equipment the competitor is allowed to use.
SH1: For pistol and rifle competitors who do not require a shooting stand
SH2: For rifle competitors who have an upper limb disability and require a shooting stand

Swimming

Swimming is the only sport that combines the conditions of limb loss, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injury and other disabilities across classes.
1-10: Allocated to swimmers with a physical disability, with lower numbers for those with more severe disabilities
11-13: Allocated to swimmers with a visual impairment
14: Allocated to swimmers with an intellectual disability
The prefix S denotes the class for freestyle, backstroke and butterfly. SB denotes the class for breaststroke, and SM denotes the class for individual medley. So S1, SB1 and SM1 are for athletes with severe disabilities, while S10, SB9 and SM10 are for those with minimal disabilities.
Swimmers may start with a dive, or in the water. This is taken into account when classifying an athlete.

Table Tennis

Table tennis is played by athletes with a physical disability spread over 10 classes.
1-5: Athletes competing from a wheelchair, with class one the most severely disabled and class five the least disabled
6-10: Ambulant athletes, with class six the most severely disabled and class 10 the least

Volleyball

Volleyball is contested by athletes with a physical disability and has both a sitting and standing event.
In sitting volleyball, the court is smaller than standard and has a lower net. Games are contested by athletes with a minimal disability that prevents them from competing with able-bodied athletes.
Standing volleyball uses a full-sized court and normal height net, and is played by athletes split into three classes according to their disabilities.

Wheelchair Basketball

Basketball is open to wheelchair athletes, whose impairments may include paraplegia, lower limb amputation, cerebral palsy and polio.
Athletes are classified according to physical ability and are given a points rating between 1 and 4.5. One point equates to the most severe disability, 4.5 to the least. Each team fields five players but may not exceed a total of 14 points at any given time.

Wheelchair Fencing

Fencing is open to wheelchair athletes, whose impairments may include spinal cord injuries, lower limb amputation and cerebral palsy.
Athletes competing in this event are split into two classes:
A: Athletes with good balance and recovery, and full trunk movement.
B: Athletes with poor balance and recovery, but full use of one or both upper limbs.

Wheelchair Rugby

Wheelchair rugby athletes are classified using a points system, with the most severely disabled athletes being graded at 0.5 points, rising to 3.5 points for the more able. Each team is comprised of four players and is allowed a maximum of eight points on court at any one time.

Wheelchair Tennis

Tennis is played from a wheelchair with two classes - open and quad (disability in all four limbs).
In wheelchair tennis competitions, players are allowed two bounces of the ball, the first bounce being within the bounds of the court.

Paralympics Day 1 Action

2012-08-30T05:55:00.003-07:00

The Paralympics are finally underway in London and so far today we have had quite a lot of good news to bring you.

Great Britain had a great start in the swimming with four time paralympian Nyree Kindred winning her heat in the 100m backstroke with a new Paralympic record of one minute 27.96 seconds putting her comfortably through to tonight’s final, but the records did not stop there, Australia’s Jayme Paris sets the first new world record of London 2012 with a time of 4:40.123 in the C1 class at the velodrome followed shortly by Great Britain’s Jonathan Fox in the 100m backstroke when he touches home in one minute 9.86 seconds.

Unfortunately in Goalball team GB lost their Preliminary opener to world champions Lithuania 11-1 and in shooting Di Coates (competing in her eighth Paralympics) narrowly misses out on the 10m air rifle final by finishing ninth in the qualifying.

But today with the whole world watching the paralympians are putting on an awesome show with the crowds giving the athletes a raucous welcome GB’s Sarah Storey races around the 3000m cycling race in 3:32.170 a time that would have earned her a silver medal at the non-disabled world championships in Melbourne earlier this year.

With so much action going on throughout the day I will try and keep you updated as and when I get a chance I hope you are enjoying the action as much as I am.

The Paralympics Are Finally Starting

2012-08-29T15:24:00.001-07:00

Finally after months of talk and years of planning the Paralympics are finally upon us, a show to equal the Olympics is promised and i for one am sure i will not be disappointed. At this very moment the opening ceremony is taking place. 4200 athletes from 164 nations will compete for their place in history and everyone of them should hold their head up high for the huge achievements they have already made to get this far.

The GB team are dressed in white kit with gold flashes on the shoulders and all the wheelchair athletes have union jacks on their wheels.They stop to acknowledge the Queen on their way past the Royal Box and Prince William and Kate stand up to applaud as they go by. Glitter is cascading through the air as David Bowie's Heroes rings out across the stadium.

Throughout each day of the Paralympics i will be giving you a run down of the ups and downs of the day, the moments of pure genius, the moments the world records tumble and then the moments of heartbreak as dreams disappear and only time will heal those wounds.

The Queen has finall declared the gaes open and i am off ot celebrate before all the action starts in the morning.

Have a great Paralypics to you all..

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Many thanks

Paralympics - It All Kicks Off Tomorrow

2012-08-28T13:26:00.004-07:00

With one day to go to the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympic Games, the four National Flames have been combined in Stoke Mandevlle to create the Paralympic Flame.

Up to 3,000 people attended a special ceremony this evening at the Stoke Mandeville Stadium to witness Torchbearers create the Paralympic Flame. The first team of Torchbearers, which included President of the International Paralympic Committee Sir Philip Craven, then set off from Stoke Mandeville, passing the National Spinal Injuries Centre in Stoke Mandeville on its way.
Over the course of its 24-hour journey to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, east London, the Flame will travel 92 miles and be carried by 580 inspirational Torchbearers, all working in teams of five.

On arrival in London, the Paralympic Flame will visit iconic London landmarks including Lord’s Cricket Ground, London Zoo, Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Whitehall, Westminster Abbey, Tower Bridge and City Hall.

The communities that the Relay will pass through are: Stoke Mandeville, Aylesbury, Western Turville, Aston Clinton, Tring, Berkhamstead, Bourne End, Watford, Bushey, Harrow, Brent, Barnet, Westminster, Camden, Lambeth, City of London, Tower Hamlets, Southwark, Lewisham, Greenwich, Hackney, Waltham Forest, Barking & Dagenham and Newham.

IPC Announces Visa Paralympic Hall of Fame Inductees

2012-08-27T04:34:00.004-07:00

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has announced the five individuals who will be inducted into the Visa Paralympic Hall of Fame during the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

Athletes Chris Holmes, Trischa Zorn, Louise Sauvage and Roberto Marson – who have 100 Paralympic medals between them – will be inducted on 30 August, along with Paralympian turned coach Frank Ponta.
.IPC President Sir Philip Craven said: “I would like to congratulate all five new inductees to the Visa Paralympic Hall of Fame, they are all worthy of their place in the history books.

“The Visa Paralympic Hall of Fame is a high profile way of celebrating historical sporting achievements in the Paralympic Movement. It commemorates Paralympians and their coaches who have achieved true sporting excellence and ensures a permanent record and institutional memory is kept of their achievements.

In regards to the inductees, Holmes, currently the Director of Paralympic Integration at LOCOG, was formerly a British swimmer who starred in the pool.

In 1988, he made his debut at the Seoul Paralympic Games and in total competed in four Paralympic Games. The highlight of a distinguished career was at the Barcelona 1992 Games, when he won six gold medals and one silver. By the time he retired from swimming after the Sydney Games he had won 15 Paralympic medals including nine golds. So impressed was Queen Elizabeth II, she awarded him an MBE for his services to sport.

Zorn is the most successful Paralympian of all-time, having competed for USA’s swim team from 1980-2000. In seven Games, she won a staggering 55 medals, including 41 golds, nine silvers and five bronze. She held many world records during her career, two of which still stand today, eight years after she last competed.

Sauvage of Australia is the fourth most successful female track athlete of all-time, having won 13 medals, including nine golds. She made her Paralympic debut in Barcelona in 92 and competed in three further Games in Atlanta, Sydney and Athens. At her home Games in 2000 she won two golds and one silver medal much to the delight of the Australian fans. Since retiring she has launched a foundation which supports children with an impairment and has taken steps into coaching.

Marson, an Italian who will be inducted posthumously, excelled at three sports – Athletics, Wheelchair Fencing and Swimming - during his career which covered four Paralympic Games. Between 1964 and 1976 he won 26 medals, including 16 golds. After retiring from competition he founded two sports clubs in Rome and created and led the Italian Sport Federation for Handicapped People, which later became the Italian Disabled Sport Federation.

Ponta, a coach who started out as a highly successful Paralympian, will also be inducted posthumously after passing away in June 2011 at the age of 75 after a long illness. Between 1960 and 1976, he competed for Australia in five Paralympic Games covering several sports including basketball, pentathlon, swimming and wheelchair fencing. At the end of his competitive career he coached several medal-winning Paralympic athletes including Louise Sauvage, Priva Cooper and Madison de Rozario. He was influential in developing junior wheelchair sports in Western Australia, placing particular emphasis on sportsmanship and fair play.

The selection process this time around was slightly changed to allow the public to have their voice heard. In February, in addition to asking the 200 IPC members who they thought should be considered for induction, the public was also asked for their input via www.paralympic.org.

Athletic performance, fair play, a contribution to a team or team spirit and behaviour away from the field of play were all vital factors in the decision process.

Only those who had competed in two Paralympic Games, had won medals as an athlete or coach and had not competed since the Beijing 2008 Games were considered for induction.

Paralympics 2012: Sporting Rivalries

2012-08-26T09:31:00.002-07:00

Just like Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake in the Men's Olympics 100 meters finals the Paralympics is no different and today we are are going to look as a few of the rivalries we will all hear a lot ore about in the next few weeks.

Jody Cundy v Jon-Allan Butterworth

Sport: Cycling

Jody Cundy (pictured) will go head-to-head with GB team-mate Jon-Allan Butterworth in the kilo

Event: C4/5 Kilo

Date: Friday 31 August

Britain's Para-cyclists swept the boards in the velodrome in Beijing four years ago with 17 golds.
But the UCI's tinkering with the Paralympic programme means that two of Britain's leading riders will be going head-to-head for gold in the kilo in what should be a top class and thrilling encounter.
Cundy won gold in the kilo in his category in Beijing and both men won gold in their respective categories at both the 2011 and 2012 World Track Championships
The gold medallist in London will be the one who gets closest to the existing world record for their category and it would be no surprise if both men beat their own record time.

Dave Weir v Kurt Fearnley v Marcel Hug

Sport: Athletics

Australian Kurt Fearnley will be a strong challenger in the wheelchair racing

Event: 1500m

Date: Tuesday 4 September

The T54 1500m is traditionally known as the blue riband race in Paralympic terms with the world's best wheelchair racers vying for honours.
Weir, Britain's top wheelchair racer, won gold in an action-packed race four years ago and will be keen not to let his rivals take his title from him.
But he will face a tough challenge from Australian Fearnley and Switzerland's Hug who have been his long-time rivals and both beat him over the distance in a fast race in Switzerland in May.
Weir won his first race over the distance at the Olympic Stadium in May and although he failed to break the world record held by Hug, a gold medal in September would do nicely.

Oscar Pistorius v Jerome Singleton v Jonny Peacock

Sport: Athletics

Event: 100m

The clash between Singleton and Pistorius is eagerly awaited

Date: Thursday 6 September
Prior to the 2011 World Championships in New Zealand all the talk was how South African double amputee Oscar Pistorius would easily win three gold medals at the London Games.
But American Jerome Singleton had something to say about that, beating Pistorius into second in a photo-finish in the 100m final to cast doubt over Pistorious' perceived invincibility.
However, this year British teenager Jonny Peacock has shown Pistorius and Singleton that it is not going to be a two-horse race, beating Singleton into second at the US Paralympic trials and beating Pistorius's world record in the process.
With American Blake Leeper and South African Arnu Fourie also in the medal mix, this could be one of the best races of the track programme.

Are Paralympians Cheating?

2012-08-24T14:09:00.001-07:00

Some of you may have heard recently about some claims that have been circulating about one in three Paralympians cheating to gain an unfair edge.

The so called 'edge' comes in a very unusual way but apparently it is common amongst Paralympic athletes.
When an able bodies athlete starts doing exercise their heart rate increase as does their blood pressure. People who have a spinal injury do not have the same reaction when they exercise. As a result rumours have started to come out about athletes breaking toes with small hammers, giving themselves electric shocks and even testicular strangulation to give the same reaction to provide an edge when lining up on the start line.

During the Beijing Olympics a survey came back to show that 17% of athletes were guilty of this practise known as 'boosting' although about 20 official tests were carried out an no clear evidence of the malpractice was ever found.

I am sure this story will unfold further over the next few weeks and as soon as I hear I will update further. Have a great weekend all :)

Paralympic 2012 Tickets Sales Soar

2012-08-23T10:18:00.002-07:00

Less than a week to go now folks and excitement in London is rising even further and tickets sales have hotted up even more, news has been release that an additional 140,000 tickets went on sale yesterday and we are being told that they sold out within two to three hours. There are now less than 200,000 seats accross all sports and venues meaning for the very first time in its 52 year history there could be a complete sell out at the games. It has also been confirmed that more tickets will go on sale before the opening ceremony on Wednesday.

It was not all good news today for the Paralympics three Jordan Paralympians have been removed from the games and returned to Jordan to face sexual assault charges. The three men, two of whom compete in wheelchairs, are all members of the Jordanian Paralympics power-lifting team.

Faisal Hammash, 35, faces two counts of causing a child to engage in sexual activity.

Omar Sami Qaradhi, 31, is charged with three counts of sexual assault and one of voyeurism. At least two of the alleged assaults were against children.

Motaz Al-Junadi, 45, faces one charge of sexual assault. All the offences are said to have taken place between 16 and 20 August.

For the full story and any latest updates why not check out http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-19355630

One week to go!

2012-08-22T10:07:00.000-07:00

In just seven days time the Paralympics will be underway and London will once again become a hive of activity, but just what expectations are the nations of these fine athletes putting upon them. Well the GB team is being expected to bring home a minimum medal haul of 103, one more than they achieved in Beijing in 2008, they are also expected to finish second in the medal table with only the Chinese winning more medals (a fine result if that comes into fruition especially when you compare the size of the two nations.)

What continues to stagger and amaze is that 2.2 million out of the 2.5 million tickets that went up for release have now been taken, with only 300,000 tickets left and seven days before it all kicks off this will be the greatest Paralympic events the world has ever seen.

What an Olympics!!

2012-08-21T10:51:00.003-07:00

From the opening ceremony to the closing ceremony, the Olympics are special! They unite nations brings families and friends together. Whole counties revel together in celebration whilst others break down in tears at the final hurdle. This blog aims to keep you all updated with all news about past as well as the next and all future Olympics.

We are just one week on from the closing ceremony of London 2012 and eight days away from the start of the Paralympics and if the Olympics were anything to go by the Paralmpics are going to be just as spectacular! We expecting an estimated 4200 athletes competing over 503 events in 21 sports. London will be awash with pride as it gets another opportunity to showcase itself on the biggest of stages!! Throughout the next few weeks we will post daily with updates on the games whilst trying to give you the news and views you may not hear in the press! I hope you enjoy reading this blog as much as i enjoy writing it. Until tomorrow...