Tandem stoker sought for 2004 paralympics

The Great Britain Cycling Team is faced with an interesting recruitment problem. Team member Barney Storey has been given until the end of March to find a new partner for his Sprint Tandem pairing, which he hopes will be going for gold at the 2004 Athens Paralympics. Barney is a proven force in Tandem Sprinting and is half the partnership which won European gold in the Kilo in 2001.

Paralympic tandem competition involves a visually impaired stoker who is piloted by a sighted team mate. Barney would form the sighted half of this partnership and is seeking a partner with a visual impairment that meets British Blind Sports classification B1, B2 or B3 (more information about Visual Impairment classifications see: http://www.britishblindsport.org.uk/1.pdf) this may include people who don't even realise that they can compete in blind sport.

The GB Team s performance director Peter Keen outlined the kind of person the team is looking for:
Ideally they will already be involved in cycling in one form or another and be a committed athlete. Although this is a Sprint Tandem pairing, the prospective candidate need not be a pure sprinter: Barney is a top class sprinter and a rider with a more endurance based profile would complement his strengths perfectly. In my opinion, Barney is a medal certainty in Athens with the right partner. 

Barney himself is a full time athlete and is looking for a partner willing to make a serious commitment to Athens 2004:
I have upwards of thirty days of tandem specific track training planned between now and the Games. My new partner will have to be able to join me for these sessions at the Track in Manchester. They need not be a full-time athlete, but they will need to have the flexibility to be able to meet these training commitments. 

Barney is currently training in Lanzerote and is asking prospective partners to contact him direct for an informal chat - either by email at barneystorey@hotmail.com or on his mobile on 07810 568158

� British Cycling 2002/2003