GB Paralympic Team set for Athens
Six members of the British Wheelchair Racing Association were selected to take part in this years Paralympic Games in Athens which starts on the 17th September with the Opening Ceremony. Athletics begins on the 19th and runs right the way through to the 28th September. Check out the BBC web site for full results or watch the daily coverage live on the BBC.
All athletes in contention for selection had to meet a series of performance targets over the past two seasons, and across the board the standards set by UK Athletics were pretty tough. The criteria includes not only time targets for each athlete, but the strong possibility that they will win a medal at the Games
The athletes that were selected are
Deborah Brennan – Deborah competes in the T34 classification and won gold in the 200m in Sydney, and Bronze in the 100m. At this years Games she will be competing in the 100m, and 200m and faces strong competition from the Canadian athletes
Rachel Potter – Rachel competed in Atlanta in 1996 in field events, and after a couple of years out of the sport, made her return in 2002. She qualified for the English Commonwealth Games team in the same year, and came 6th in the final. Potter, from Manchester will be competing in the 200m and 400m
Jenny Ridley – in Sydney 2000 Jenny was playing Basketball for the womens team, but in October last year decided that she might like to try track and road racing. Making massive improvements through the year, she broke world records in the T52 classification in every distance from the 100m - 1500m. She is competing in the 200m and 400m in Athens
Tanni Grey Thompson – this will be Tanni’s 5th Paralympic Games. She has won 9 Gold medals, 4 silvers and a bronze from previous Games, and is Britains most medalled female Paralympian. In Athens she is looking to retain her titles in the 100m, 400m and 800m and is competing in the open division of the 200m.
Dave Holding – Dave has been a dominant force in the world of men’s sprinting, winning the Gold medal in Atlanta, and a bronze in Sydney. He competed in several London marathons and has twice been the world record holder for the 100m.
Karen Lewis-Archer. Karen competes in the T52 class and has performed well on the international stage and at major Games. In the world championships in 2002 (Lille) she won a bronze medal and became European Champion in the 400m in 2003.
David Weir – David was one of the youngest male wheelchair athletes to compete at Paralympic level in Atlanta in 1996 and after a couple of years away from the sport has come back in sparkling form. He is twice winner of the London marathon, but is concentrating on sprints for this season, before, perhaps, moving up to longer distances next year. At this years Games he is competing in the 100m, 200m and 400m (some 9 races through 8 days of competition)