Paralympic Personal Bests celebrated at special event
The sporting achievements of nearly 100 local adults and children with additional needs were celebrated recently at the fifth consecutive Paralympic Personal Bests event.
The event, which first took place in 2012 to celebrate the success of the London Paralympic Games, is organised annually by Winchester City Council in partnership with Winchester Go LD (Learning Disabilities) and Places for People Leisure. It is also supported by the SPAA, a group of local partners driving sports opportunities forward.
Paralympic Personal Bests 2016 took place at River Park Leisure Centre on Wednesday 24 August. It was also supported by Winchester and District Sports Association for the Disabled (WADSAD), Southampton Football Club and Hampshire Cricket Board, who provided coaches.
The children and adults with a range of disabilities who attended came from local organisations and day services. They took part in a variety of sports – including swimming, archery, cricket, badminton, kurling, low level circuits, boccia, football and golf – and competed against themselves to beat their own personal scores.
Medals and certificates were presented to winners by the Mayor of Winchester, Cllr Jane Rutter, and by Lady Louisa Portal, a patron of Winchester Go LD.
Calum Drummond, Sports Development Manager at Winchester City Council, said:
Disability sport plays a significant role in our SPAA action plan and it will always be an area that we continually support and develop.
Our objective back in 2012 was to create a legacy, and to see this event grow and grow to just shy of 100 participants is fantastic. Thank you to all of the staff and volunteers who were involved.
For further information and disability sports opportunities please visit www.winchester.gov.uk/activewinchester/disability-sport/ or contact Calum Drummond, Sports Development Manager, on 01962 848329.