GB Disability Squad arrive in Bordeaux

 

World Championships Training

16th August 2007

Report & pics: Dave Mellor

Team sprint training

 

After the delayed flights and lost baggage that normally happens to teams travelling from different airports the GB Disability Track Squad assembled in Bordeaux, France for the first track training session of the 2007 Para-Cycling World Championships. This is the largest ever team fielded by GB, the road riders arrive next week, but team sizes have also grown across all Nations at this Beijing qualifying event.

Melanie Easter and pilot Rebecca Rimmington

 

Nation qualification for Beijing is a little complex in that the highest points scorer in each Disability category have their points added to the Nation total from a range of events, the majority of events are in 2007 but the biggest points were awarded at the Athens Paralympics. Points are weighted according to their standing in the International Calendar. GB had a small team in Athens and so we sit somewhere around mid table in the Nation ranking. The Nation ranking at the end of 2007 will determine how many athletes we can take to Beijing even though in 2006 we were ranked No.1 Track Nation.

The injured Sarah Bailey works on her starts with coach Chris Furber

The events at a Worlds are not restricted by athlete numbers as are the Paralympics and so here in France every classification will only race against athletes with the same disability classification. In Beijing the more severely disabled classes and also the Women's events (events with smaller numbers of competitors) will race together in combined classes as the medal events reduce from just under 80 to 44. The men's Road Races will also be combined classes in Beijing to make more of a spectacle and to give better racing.

Experienced Tandem team, Ellen Hunter and Aileen McGlynn

Athlete qualification for Great Britain's Beijing team is based on objective measures and what better way of staking a claim to a very sought after Paralympic selection than coming away from Bordeaux with a rainbow jersey. The downside for athletes is the uncertainty surrounding the Nation qualification. It is quite possible according to the Paralympic criteria that we could have more athletes in rainbow jerseys or showing potential to podium in Beijing than our Nation ranking will allow but that is for the politicians to work out. We are here to be the very best that we can be and with other Nations adopting our pioneering efforts in talent transfer we have no way of knowing until qualification rounds if our best will be good enough to podium but we guarantee 100% effort.

The male tandem duos warming up

One athlete who unfortunately will be below par is reigning World Champion Sarah Bailey. Warming up at the Rudy Project event last Saturday she hit a pothole and crashed - fiance Barney Storey escaped with a few scrapes but Sarah has broken her collarbone. Sarah has travelled with the team and she thinks that reverting back to seated starts in the aero position she will be a little slow getting out of the gate but hopefully will soon be up to speed and able to compete!

 

We'll be bringing you regular reports from the Championships over the next few days.