Shropshire soldier wins Paralympic rowing place
Wednesday 20th July 2011, 3:46PM BST.
A Shropshire soldier who lost both legs in an explosion while on patrol in Afghanistan has been selected for the Great British rowing team attempting to qualify for next year’s Paralympics.
Captain Nick Beighton, of Radbrook Green, Shrewsbury, was injured in a blast in the notorious Helmand Province in October, 2009.
He has now been selected to represent his country in the squad for the World Championships, which double as qualifying competitions for the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics in London.
The championships will take place in Bled, Slovenia, between August 28 and September 4, with Captain Beighton set to row in the adaptive trunks and arms mixed double scull event with Sam Scowen – who could not compete at last year’s World Championships because she did not have a race partner.
The Great British squad is hopeful of putting in an impressive performance in Slovenia, with four of its crews going to Bled after winning gold medals at the World Cup finals in Lucerne in Switzerland. The team from the UK also won four silvers and two bronze medals at the finals.
David Tanner, the GB Rowing Team’s performance director, said: “Lucerne was an excellent curtain-raiser for the World Championships.”
Even if Captain Beighton manages to qualify for the Paralympics, he will not be guaranteed a place in 2012 as the Bled regatta allows boats to qualify rather than crews – meaning teams can shuffle their rowers.
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