Tuesday 26 June 2007
At just seventeen double Paralympic World Cup medal winner Elizabeth, ‘Libby’ Clegg may seem a bit young to be a role model but she already knows her achievements could go someway to getting disabled athletes the recognition they rightly deserve.
Libby, who excels in the 100 and 200 metre sprints, has degenerative eye disease - Stargardt’s Macular Dystrophy and is just one of over 15 thousand athletes who have benefited from the hard work undertaken by Scottish Disability Sport (SDS).
sportscotland today announced it will be investing £250,750 in SDS during 2007/08, reaffirming their commitment to disability sport in Scotland.
SDS works tirelessly to encourage the development of sport and physical recreation and with the continuous support and guidance of sportscotland, has opened up sport to so many disabled people who may otherwise have had little or no opportunity to get involved in sport.
Training at Grangemouth Stadium today, Libby explained the key role SDS has played in her success. “SDS invited me to a squad weekend not long after we moved to Scotland and it gave me a good chance to make some new friends and I also got to meet Janice Eaglesham, who is now my co-ordinator. I would be lost without Janice, she does everything for me. I had a few problems with coaching when I first arrived and she sorted it all out really quickly.”
Last year Libby became the youngest athlete, from either able-bodied or disability athletes to be included in UK Sport’s World Class Podium programme and lived up to her potential with bronze medals in both the 100m and 200m at the Visa World Cup in Manchester last month. “Being part of the UK Sport programme is great and it does make a difference. They say at my age that their is no pressure on me to do well but in fact the level of expectation is already there but I try not to let it affect me.”
She made her GB debut at the World Championships in Assen last September and surprised even herself by winning a silver medal in the T12 200m: “I had no idea I would win any medals but I received some strange motivation ahead of the event. A member of the management team said something that got me so angry that I just went out there to prove them wrong, it just wound me up so much.”
Libby secured a second medal in Assen but was later disqualified when her guide runner, former British international Lincoln Asquith, was deemed to have crossed the line before her. “It happens all the time but usually only once and Lincoln felt really bad afterwards, but these things happen. He’s made such a difference to my running and is great to have around. ”
Born in Bollington near Cheshire, she was encouraged to take part in sport from an early age but admits that athletics initially provided an escape from a tough time at school. “I was getting bullied at school and I’d run round the block to beat the stress. I was only nine at the time and had just been diagnosed with my eye condition but Mum suggested I join a running club. It was really difficult at first as I was running in mainstream events with able bodied athletes. I had a really nasty fall that dented my confidence but I didn’t stop trying.”
The family moved to Newcastleton in 2002 with Libby attending Edinburgh’s Royal Blind School with her two brothers James and Stephen, who have also been diagnosed with Stargardt’s Macular Dystrophy. “The move to Edinburgh made such a difference to me and has really helped my confidence and has gone a long way in enabling me to achieve what I have so far.”
Now at 17 she is balancing her status as a top athlete with everything else that a teenager has to contend with, including exams. “It’s difficult, I hardly have any free time and when I do I’m either studying or sleeping!
With exams now completed for the year, her next aim is to achieve the qualifying time for the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing. “I already achieved the 200m qualifying time at the Grand Prix in Glasgow but as I was running with athletes from different classes so I’ll have to do it again before the deadline of June next year. I have no real targets for Beijing as I don’t know what to expect when I get there. We also don’t know what to expect from Chinese athletes, so we’ll just have to wait and see.”
Communities and Sport Minister Stewart Maxwell welcomed the funding for Scottish Disability Sport. Speaking after meeting Libby at Grangemouth Stadium the Minister said: “The Scottish government is committed to making sport widely available to all through a diverse range of opportunities.
“It is important that sporting talent is recognised, nurtured and we increase participation and improve performance in Scottish sport.”
Accompanying the Minister, Julia Bracewell OBE, Chair sportscotland said: “Libby is an inspiration to so many athletes, able bodied or disabled, and I’m sure her achievements at the highest level will encourage others to get involved in sport. We wish her well in pursuit of her Paralympic dream.
“We will ensure that through our investment in Scottish Disability Sport everyone has the opportunity to take part in sport and benefit from all that sport has to give.”
Gavin Macleod, Chief Executive Officer SDS said: "SDS is indebted to sportscotland for their ongoing support of sport for people with a disability in Scotland.
“We are committed to providing athletes such as Libby with the opportunity to realise their full potential in their chosen sport and sportscotland's investment and advice will support the further development of our sporting pathways. We are currently in the process of launching our new athlete academy which will play a pivotal role in identifying our high performance athletes of the future."
- Free photographs from today’s announcement are available from Steve Lindridge, Ideal Images – 07718 919597
- The £250,750 investment is made up of £175,750 from the sportscotland Lottery Fund and £75,000 from sportscotland Exchequer funding from the Scottish Executive.
- Last year sportscotland invested £224,250 in SDS.
- sportscotland supports 60 Scottish sports governing bodies and in 2006 invested over £8 million in these organisations.
- We passionately believe in the benefits of sport from the enjoyment and sense of achievement that participation brings, to the shared pride that national success generates.
- Our mission is to encourage everyone in Scotland to discover and develop their own sporting experience, helping to increase participation and improve performances in Scottish sport.
- We aim to achieve our mission by leading and supporting our partners, investing National Lottery and Scottish Executive funding where it counts and advising on policy and strategy for the future.