Sport-by-sport - Goalball
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| Chairman | Mike Reilly | |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Executive | N/A | |
| Performance Director | Dawn Newbery |
Sport Profile
| Funding Award (2009-2013) | £513,453 |
| Best London 2012 Performance | Women reached quarter final. Men finished bottom. |
| Athletes on World Class Performance Programme | 13 |
| Past Performances | |
| Press Officer | |
| Press Officer tel | |
| Website | http://www.britishblindsport.org.uk |
| National governing body | British Blind Sport |
The Paralympic year got off to a good start for goalball, when in March the British Paralympic Association announced that both the men’s and women’s teams had been awarded their home nation slots for the London 2012 Paralympic Games, meaning that the whole squad could focus 100% on preparing for London.
Goalball is a basic funded sport, which means UK Sport has provided minimal funding to cover core staff and basic preparation for competing at the Paralympic Games. However, the sport received a boost in April 2012 when UK Sport announced they would benefit from some additional funding from the Team 2012 initiative, to help the teams in the critical period leading up to the Games.
This Paralympic cycle (2009-13) has also seen goalball establish its own National Governing Body, GoalballUK, having formally been part of British Blind Sport. UK Sport has helped the sport to develop its governance structure in order that it can support both its participation and performance ambitions for the future.
Supporting goalball in another area, UK Sport worked with British Blind Sport, Sheffield City Council and Yorkshire Forward on the successful bid for the 2010 Goalball World Championships, which were hosted in Sheffield. With up to £234,000 of investment from UK Sport’s National Lottery funded Major Events Programme, the event was the first qualifying tournament for the 2012 Paralympic Games and gave the GB teams vital experience of competing in front of a home crowd.
Did You Know?
The ball used in goalball is the same size as a basketball, but twice the weight.
Selected athletes:
Georgina Bullen
Jessica Luke
Amy Ottaway
Louise Simpson
Anna Sharkey
Joe Dodson
Simon Goodall
Niall Graham
Adam Knott
David Knott
Michael Sharkey
