George Block only started swimming competitively last year – now he has won Newcomer Of The Year at the Kellogg’s ASA Swimtastic Awards.  George earned the gong, sponsored by The Sun, for showing amazing progress in a very short time and for using the sport to help him beat asthma.  After just one year of training, George, 13, from Dagenham, Essex, made it to the finals of the London and Southeast Regional Championships.

He is now among the eight fastest swimmers in the region for his age group in the 100 metres butterfly.

Paralympian hero Ellie Simmonds presented George with his Swimtastic award at a glittering ceremony in Sheffield.

She said: “It’s so important to teach kids to swim. We’re surrounded by water so it’s important to keep safe, but it’s also fun and great for fitness too.

“My parents got me into swimming at the age of five. Each year I went up a level and picked up a Kellogg’s ASA award.

“I would have loved an event like this, where you meet the athletes you look up to. They can inspire you and who knows, these winners might be the Olympians and Paralympians of the future!”

Swimming has been more than just a fun sport for George. The regular exercise has helped him get his asthma under control.

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Prof Laura McAllister, chair of Sport Wales, said the legacy she wanted from London 2012 was “more children playing more sports”.

The signs so far are good.

“There has been a wonderful response to gymnastics particularly after the men won the bronze and Beth Tweddle won bronze,” she said.

“There’s a gymnastics academy near Blackwood called Valleys Gymnastics [where] they had a membership of under 100 and it’s grown to about 650 in the last year.

“Since the Games, they’ve had about 150 to 200 kids looking for places.”

Welsh Gymnastics said hundreds of people had expressed an interest in joining clubs in Wales following the Olympics, with Planet Gymnastics in Cardiff, Neath-Afan Gymnastic Club in Neath Port Talbot and Ynys Mon Gymnastic Club on Anglesey among the beneficiaries.

Prof McAllister said disability sports clubs had also reported a boost, with Swansea Stingrays disability swimming club a good example.

“They’ve told us they’ve received a huge increase in interest and a lot of disabled kids are coming in to have swimming assessments,” she said.

The club meet at the national pool in Swansea, the training venue for 2012 double Paralympic swimming champion Ellie Simmonds.

For some sports, such as cycling, success has been building for many years because of the continuing success of British riders such as Bradley Wiggins, Mark Cavendish and Wales’ own Geraint Thomas, who won Olympic gold for the second time in the team pursuit this summer.

Governing body British Cycling said in the summer there had been a 25% increase in Welsh members in the last year, and enthusiasm has not waned since.

Newport council said that during the Games there was a huge surge of inquiries about using the city’s velodrome, which hosted Olympic and Paralympic training camps.

Taekwondo success

Newport cabinet member for leisure and culture, Debbie Wilcox, said: “We have seen increased interest from people who have been inspired by Team GB track cyclists and want to try it themselves and we are able to provide this opportunity.

“Such has been the demand that all taster and beginners sessions are fully booked until next year.”

Jade Jones, from Flint, was one of Wales’ three gold medallists in the Olympics with her memorable taekwondo success.

One of her former coaches said the teenager was an inspiration to young people in north Wales, and there were plenty trying to follow in her footsteps.

Martin Williams, who coached her for about seven years, said: “We’ve had an influx. I’ve put a new beginners’ class on in the Pavilion [the leisure centre where Jones used to train which is being named after her] and it’s steadily picking up.

“I think more people are aware of taekwondo now, especially in the north Wales area.”

Rower Tom James, from Wrexham was part of the successful men’s coxless fours team for the second successive Games, and also took gold.

The sustained success of British rowers had been a significant factor in attracting members, said Mike Lee, rowing captain for Penarth Rowing Club in the Vale of Glamorgan.

“We’ve grown the club from having a handful of members to having up to about 45 now with a waiting list.

“I think that’s partly because we’ve got a very, very good coach who is retired and gives all his time and effort.

“But the Olympics has definitely played a part and inspired people to take up rowing.”

The Paralympics is also providing an inspiration for participation in disability sport.

Michelle Daltry, national development manager for Disability Sport Wales, said there had been “tremendous interest” since the Games.

New opportunities

She said one example was Swansea Storm wheelchair basketball club.

“They were a struggling club with three or four members but now they’ve got 15 regular players and there has been as many as 20 turning up,” she said.

In the Vale of Glamorgan, the council said several sports clubs were trying to offer new opportunities for disability sport.

Barry College is setting up a boccia club for its students, while the Caerau Bowmen club, based in Barry, says it wants more disabled archers.

The response is all music to the ears of Prof McAllister.

“In a nutshell, we want more children playing more sports and not just the traditional netball, hockey, football, rugby,” she said.

“Maybe attract children who are not naturally sporting – it’s about reaching out over the normal structures.

“We will always capture the sporty kids and enthusiastic kids, it’s the ones beyond that.”

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Hundreds of pupils surprised the 15-year-old with applause and cheered his name as he arrived.

He said: “I got a massive cheer, it’s great to see all my supporters.”

He became Great Britain’s youngest gold medallist of the London Paralympic Games as he set a new world record in the S7 400m freestyle final.

His fellow students waved union jack flags and banners after he was given a lift to school by the Mayor of South Tyneside.

‘Biggest surprise ever’

Craig was told he had received an invite to train with Newcastle United.

“That was the biggest surprise ever,” he said, “I can’t play football but I love Newcastle United. They’re the team I’ve always supported and I can’t wait to go and see them all.”

While fighting back the tears his mother, Kim Craig said: “Seeing all of the footage again has brought it all back.

“He’s made his mark now, he’s shown disability doesn’t mean no ability and he’s proven it.

“I’ve been on a rollercoaster up until now, and now it’s hit me, he said ‘I can climb’ and he can and he has.”

Head of year, and self-confessed “school-mum”, Paula Young said: “I think I was the second happiest woman in England when he won that gold medal.

“All the children are really excited to have a gold medallist at their school.”

Courtesy of The Guardian

European record holder Henshaw had qualified fastest and emerged as the main contender for gold as she swam neck and neck with 14 year old Ukrainian sensation Viktoriia Savtsova down the back 50m.

The Ukranian took the touch in a desperate lunge for the wall but having finished fourth on her Paralympic debut in Beijing, Henshaw insisted she could not begrudge coming 0.03 behind Savtsova for silver in 1:39.16 – the second fastest time of her career.

“Right now I am so happy,” said Henshaw. “Maybe in a couple of days when I look back at it I’ll see this, that or the other where I could have got that 0.03 back.

“But I can’t express how happy I am to win a medal at home. I was just desperate not to finish fourth like last time.

“There were four of us there who could have made that podium so I’m just so happy to have won that medal – it hasn’t quite sunk in yet.”

Defending Paralympic champion Johnson also clocked a season’s best as she came home third in 1:40.90.

And having now won a medal at three consecutive Paralympics, the 26 year old insisted it was a relief to have reached the podium after struggling to find her best form earlier in the season.

“I’m definitely glad I got a medal in front of a home crowd,” said Johnson.

“This morning was quite easy and I thought I had more tonight. I honestly don’t know why it didn’t happen.”

Rob Welbourn won the fifth Paralympic medal of his career with bronze in the S10 400m Freestyle.

The European champion dictated the pace in the early stages, pushing the leaders to an opening 200m of 2:01.54 before turning first at 250m.

USA’s Ian Silverman (4:04.91) and Canada’s Benoit Huot (4:06.58) pulled away in the final 50m to claim gold and silver, but Welbourn came safely home for bronze in 4:08.18.

“I’m really pleased with that,” said Welbourn, who has now won an S10 400m Freestyle medal at the past three consecutive Paralympics Games.

“I said this morning it was going to be a tough final and it definitely was so I’m really happy to come away with a medal.

“Normally I start off slow and build into it but I had a chat with my coach and he made me realise I needed to be in the race at the start. We know I’ve got a strong back end so we thought I’d be able to hang on better than the others if I took it out a little bit.”

Teenager Hannah Russell continued to impress on her Paralympic debut as she won her third medal of London 2012.

The 16 year old set the second fastest time of her career as she clinched S12 100m Backstroke bronze in 1:10.15.

Both Russia’s Oxana Savchenko, who set a world record of 1:07.99, and Azerbaijan’s Natali Pronina (1:09.46) ducked under Russell’s British record 1:09.52.

Russell, who had already lifted silver in the 400m Freestyle and bronze in the 100m Butterfly, admitted she was expecting both swimmers to hit top gear in the final.

“I’m really pleased. I know it wasn’t a PB swim but I’m still really happy with it,” said Russell.

“I knew my rivals have a lot of experience and could easily go a lot faster in the final and I was prepared for that.

“Overall I think it’s been an amazing experience. It really is a dream come true for me to be here so to get medals on top is a bonus.”

Competing at his sixth Paralympic Games, James Anderson finished fourth in the S2 50m Backstroke.

The 17-time Paralympic medallist had set a season’s best to qualify third fastest for the final but he was beaten to the wall by Russia’s Dmitrii Kokarev in third.

James O’Shea was just 0.45 seconds off the podium as he finished fourth in the SB5 100m Breaststroke.

The 34 year old has only been swimming competitively for two years but has shown marked improvement this season and clocked the third fastest time of his career on his Paralympic debut, touching in 1:38.30.

The 17 year old had already lifted 400m Freestyle silver and 100m Backstroke bronze but rose to the top spot of the podium with a dominant performance in his main event.

Having qualified second fastest, the European champion looked the man to beat throughout, turning second after 100m before taking over in the breaststroke leg.

And after beating his own European record to finish a body length clear in two minutes 24.63 seconds, Hynd admitted he couldn’t have hoped for a better final.

“That went really well. It was everything I dreamed it could be so I’m really happy,” said Hynd.

“I’ve worked a lot on my breaststroke so I’m really pleased I was able to hold my own on that stroke.

“The noise gave me a hint that I’d won but I wanted to see it to believe it so I turned and saw the one next to my name and that’s when I knew I’d done it.”

Oliver’s brother Sam Hynd was also in action in the SM8 200m Individual Medley, defending his bronze medal from the 2008 Paralympics.

Sam set a season’s best 2:28.03, but he was always playing catch-up in the second 100m and couldn’t quite reel in the Netherland’s bronze medallist Maurice Deelen (2:27.17).

Louise Watkin equalled her British record in the S9 50m Freestyle as she scored silver in her first individual event of the Games.

The four-time Paralympic medallist from Beijing had qualified fastest for the final and touched in 29.21 seconds for her medal behind China’s Lin Ping (29.12).

“I got bronze in Beijing so to move up to silver here it feels unreal,” said Watkin.

“I put everything from this morning aside because I knew I had to focus on tonight and I’m just so happy with that result.

“It’s such a short race, you don’t have any time to make an error so to equal my best is really good as well and something I haven’t done for a long time.”

For more swimming news visit www.paralympics.org.uk/gb