Blog: Ace
Paralympics Team get set for Beijing
BRITISH PARALYMPIC ASSOCIATION
Help Send off Britain’s Paralympic Stars in Birmingham Birmingham will be the launch-pad for Britain’s Paralympic Games campaign as the city will play host to the complete ParalympicsGB team on Saturday, just weeks before the team departs for Beijing. Members of the public can come and see the team in Brindleyplace on Saturday 26 July at 6pm and help give them a fantastic send off as they begin the countdown to Beijing. The entire team will be parading from Broad Street to the NIA, via Brindleyplace where they will be met by a Chinese lion and a band of drummers. The team will then continue on to the NIA to attend a team-building gala dinner. During the day the team will collect their official kit for the Beijing Paralympic Games which will be held just six weeks later and a Talent ID day is also being held at the NIA’s Community Hall from 10am until 4pm to help identify the future stars of Paralympic sport. The Talent Day will include trials in a selection of Paralympic sports so that the potential stars of Birmingham can come along, be assessed and meet with various sport governing bodies. The Paralympic Talent Day is aimed at disabled people aged between 13 and 35, who are eligible to take part in the Paralympic Games. The event will be invitation only. Talent Pathways Officer at ParalympicsGB, Tabo Huntley said: "I'm really excited about this Talent ID day in Birmingham, which is a fantastic opportunity for disabled people in Birmingham and across the region to have their sporting talent assessed in a variety of Paralympic sports and meet representatives from a number of national governing bodies. "The aim of the day is to identify the stars of the future who could potentially be British Paralympians at London 2012." "This is just the third in a series of talent days and the biggest yet - we're expecting a high number of talented individuals on the day that we will assess across 12 Paralympics sports." The Team Expo, Celebratory Dinner and Talent ID Day has been organised by ParalympicsGB in conjunction with Birmingham City Council and Brindleyplace. Councillor Ray Hassall, Cabinet Member for Leisure, Sport and Culture said: “We are looking forward to welcoming the ParalympicsGB team to Birmingham and I would like to encourage local people to come out and support the team as they parade through the city on 26 July to ensure that we give them the send off they truly deserve.” Kieron Murphy from Sutton Coldfield is an athlete and will be part of ParalympicsGB in Beijing and is delighted that Birmingham was chosen as the host city for this celebration. Kieron said: "It’s fantastic that the official team celebration for the ParalympicsGB team is taking place in Birmingham - my home town. As the only thrower from Birmingham in our athletics squad for Beijing it’s also great to see that Birmingham will be hosting a talent ID day to look for the new talented disabled athletes in the region." Phil Lane, Chief Executive of ParalympicsGB, said: "To be selected to be part of the ParalympicsGB team is an honour for a British athlete competing in disability sport and the pinnacle of their sporting careers and therefore we want to celebrate the team's selection for the Games in style. "Britain's Paralympic athletes are among the best in the world and it is our goal to send them off as the best prepared team for the Games to ensure they can put in personal best performances to make Britain proud. "Now that we have confirmed our team for the Games it’s fantastic to see so many new faces in the squad, including several youngsters but we also have a number a returning Paralympic champions who will be looking to defend their titles in Beijing." To find out more about Paralympics GB go toby Ace on 16:51 on 24th July 2008
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