Published: Monday, 18th August, 2008 12:00
Paralympians prepare for Beijing
By Ann-Marie Canavan
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TWO DEDICATED athletes who train in Maidenhead will set off for the Olympics in Beijing this Friday.
Sporty duo Kathy Critchlow-Smith and Cathy Mitton who often use the facilities at the Windsor Ascot District Sports Association for the Disabled (WAMDSAD) in Braywick Road will join other Great Britain team-mates for the paralympic games which begin next week in the Chinese capital.
Fellow members of WAMDSAD will be showing their support for the sporty pair with a farewell gathering at the club.
Head of Operations Mike Davis said: “On Friday evening at the club we will have a send off for Kathy and Cathy as well as Doctor Christine Meaden who is going to the games as an assessor. We will be routing for the whole GB team.”
Kathy Critchlow-Smith has already taken part in two previous games and beat off stiff competition to claim a gold medal in Athens as part of the UK’s archery team. Whilst two time bronze medallist Cathy Mitton based in Leeds is hoping to claim victory in the table tennis tournament.
Both athletes have been members of the club for a number of years and Mr Davis says everyone at the organisation is very proud of the sporting talent that has been produced at the facilities over the past 32 years.
He added: “The club has been running for 32 years and we have always had members take part in the paralympic games and it is something of course we are very proud of.”
The Paralympic Games are a multi-sport event for athletes with physical, mental and sensorial disabilities. This includes mobility disabilities, amputees, visual disabilities and those with cerebral palsy. The Paralympic
Games are held every four years, following the Olympic Games, and are governed by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
The deputy mayor Cllr Catherine Bursnall is also expected to join the farewell party for the athletes good luck celebrations.
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