PRESS RELEASE
Congratulations to the nine athletes selected by the UK Sports Association to compete at the 2010 INAS-FID European Championships in Poland 21st to 28th November.
Flying the British flag and taking on the strongest teams in Europe will be Adam Thompson (Cheshire), Victoria Bromley (Wolverhampton), Jeffrey Jarvis (Leicestershire), Jacqueline Smith (Essex), Jessica Bromley (Wolverhampton), Alistair Feltham (Dorset), Duncan Feltham (Dorset), Neil Handley (Lancashire) and Simon Green (Bedfordshire).
2008 European Doubles Champions Adam Thompson & Victoria Bromley
The event is of particular significance given the International Table Tennis Federations (ITTF) recent announcement confirming the inclusion of athletes with intellectual disability (class T11) in the London 2012 Paralympic Games.
For the first time, athletes with intellectual disability will undergo sports specific on site testing at the European Championships under a new system that will be managed by ITTF. This is the result of research and partnership working between ITTF, INAS-FID and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and is part of the agreements made at the 2009 IPC General Assembly where the ban on athletes with intellectual disability was removed by the Assembly.
"I am delighted that Table Tennis is now confirmed for the London 2012 Paralympic Games" comments Tracey McCillen, Chief Executive, UK Sports Association "I hope it sets the scene for similar positive announcements from swimming and athletics in the weeks and months to come. The Europeans are important Championships for many reasons for Team GB not least of which is that this is the first event in the history of learning disability sport that on site sports specific classification becomes part of the programme".
UKSA continues to work with its members and Sports Governing Bodies to ensure athletes are given access to Governing Body programmes in time to ensure they have the same opportunity to train and meet standards as others in anticipation of London 2012 Paralympics.
The ban on athletes with intellectual disability competing in the Paralympic Games was imposed by the IPC after the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games and removed nine years later by a vote at the IPC General Assembly in 2009 after years of campaigning.
