The 2008 UK School Games are now over and the competition was a great success!
A dramatic closing ceremony marked the end of the 2008 UK School Games on Sunday 21st August at the University of Bath.
Speeches, presentations and fireworks signalled the end of the four-day event finishing with the handover of the flag to Wales, who will host next year’s UK School Games.
The Games took place at the universities of Bristol and Bath between 28th and 31st August, 2008, and aims to replicate the Olympic Games for young people with nine different sports.
Organised by the Youth Sport Trust, the charitable body charged with raising national standards of PE and school sport, it seeks to create an inspirational and motivational setting that encourages more young people to participate and succeed in sport.
Mobilis Healthcare was an official sponsor for the competition, supplying fully equipped touchline bags and first aid advice.
The 2008 UK School Games captured the imagination and determination of the Beijing Olympics, and raised the bar of providing competitive sport at the highest level for elite young athletes.
Here are some of the highlights of winners from the 2008 UK School Games...
Katrina Alder
This year, co-team captain Katrina Alder collected the trophy for the first time for England Central, winning the event with 256.5 points.
Alder, who also won individual gold medals in the 100m backstroke and 4x100m freestyle relay, said: "It has been great to compete here as a team and we are delighted to be UK School Games champions."
This time last year Katrina Alder was swimming her way towards the 200m individual medley gold medal.
Through her achievements with ESSA, the sixteen-year-old has been selected to be the Young Sports Ambassador for Wigan.
The 2008 UK School Games medalist is modest when asked about her amazing performances and credits her mother for her bubbling enthusiasm.
“My mum took me to swimming lessons when I was little. I kept going and actually found I was pretty good,” she jokes, “and from there I just kept swimming and got better and better.”
Aged just 13, the Fred Longworth school pupil won two medals at the National swimming competition, taking individual titles in the 200m and 400m races.
The youngster’s most notable sporting achievement to date is winning the bronze medal at senior level nationals.
Kirsty Gilmour
In this year’s games, Kirsty Gilmour and took the top prize in the girls badminton doubles with Kirsty McGlynn.
Maybe Gilmour was always destined to do well, with an uncle who went to two Commonwealth Games and a father who at one time coached the national junior team.
Both at home and abroad, Gilmour has been winning title after title and has competed in Denmark, Germany, Turkey and Iceland. However, she rates winning the U15 AROS Cup 2008 Girls Singles title as her favourite.
Last year it was her trip to Germany for the U15 Langefeld tournament that kept her from competing at the UK School Games, so she relished the opportunity to add yet another crown to her name.
“I don’t belong to a club, I only play at school, but they are very supportive when it comes to competing. They have been very helpful in allowing me to go to these competitions,” said the 14-year-old.
“I train about 18 hours a week on top of my school work, but the Scottish Institute of Sport is great and not too far from me.
“I was 13 when I got my first call up to Scotland. It was a bit weird as I was an age group above what I should’ve been in, so I had never experienced anything like it before.
“My parents were obviously very proud and they travelled down to watch me make my debut in Milton Keynes.”
“I hope that I can help raise the profile of the sport in the country because it doesn’t get much coverage. People think it’s easy but it’s not at all.
Michael Wheeler
Rising shot put star Michael Wheeler is dreaming of London 2012 after securing gold at this year’s games.
The Graveney School sixth-former made his debut at the four-day event smashing the record by throwing 18.86 metres.
At 16, shot putter Michael Wheeler has already received coaching from World Champion Reese Hoffa, competed at a World Youth Championships and set his sights on competing at the 2020 Olympics, never mind London.
“My career will really peak in 2020, when I’m 28 but in the meantime there’s no point in getting disheartened if things don’t go right.
“The World Youths was at first intimidating
for me, but I soon realised that these guys were much stronger and I therefore I had to get up to that level.
“I also went to the Champs in Ostrava with Ashlee Nelson, so to hear that she was selected for the Beijing Olympics this year was really inspiring. She’s a really great person.”
While the world record holder Randy Barnes remains Wheeler’s sporting idol, the former St Joseph’s College student was last year given the opportunity to meet the reigning World Champion Reese Hoffa.
“I met Reese last year at the London Grand Prix and I got photos with him and also Dan Taylor.
“Reese also coached me at Loughborough last December. He gave me technical pointers on how to keep it low in the circle and also improve my reaction time as well as positioning.”
