The Astra Tech Junior Challenge was a feast of a weekend, which delivered brilliant shows of athleticism and edge-of-seat action from Stoke Mandeville Stadium, in Aylesbury. It was a throroughly successful weekend and we look forward to 2010!
Winning German Team with Nikki McCormick – Astra Tech National Sales Manager (far right) and Stephen Burns – Astra Tech Key Account Manager.
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After a weekend that saw Great Britain beat The Netherlands and then Italy and Sweden in the pool games and Semi-final of the Astra Tech Challenge, Great Britain were silver medallists at this year's Astra Tech Challenge.
The Astra Tech Challenge boasts some of the leading nations in Europe including Sweden, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands and Belgium and was played May 29th – 31st following Great Britain winning the right to host the championships last year. The quality of basketball and players included many stars from the Beijing Summer Paralympic Games, including Britain’s Helen Freeman who, amongst some other team mates, were at the BT Paralympic World Cup last week in Manchester.
Chairman of GBWBA, Malcolm Tarkenter remarked, It is fitting that Stoke Mandeville Stadium hosted the Astra Tech Challenge to mark 25 years since the Paralympic Games was last hosted in the UK, when it was hosted at Stoke Mandeville.
The weekend began with an exhibition game between Great Britain and the Netherlands as a fitting tribute to the first ever International Wheelchair Games which also took place at Stoke Mandeville between the two countries in 1952.
Astra Tech wishes to thank all those involved in organising the tournament. Most notably Mr Charlie Bethel and Haj Bhania, GBWBA Programme Director and Coach respectively. We look forward to continuing to support Wheelchair Basketball and the Astra Tech Tournament into the future … a weekend which is highly recommended!
Look out for more updates in the future!