World Para Powerlifting Asian-Oceania Open Championships Team Announced

British Weight Lifting are pleased to announce the team that will attend the World Para Powerlifting Asian-Oceania Open Championships taking place in Kitakyushu (Japan) between 8th- 12th September.

The team is as follows:

Athletes:

Micky Yule

Louise Sugden

Coaches

Tom Whittaker

Ben Richens

Support Team

Katie Collis (physio)

The team will depart on September 4^th and return on September 13th, with the competition taking place between 8^th-12^th September.

It is the third regional championships of the year and the third opportunity for athletes to begin efforts to secure top 8 Tokyo qualification rankings.

In addition to competing, the team will assess the Japanese environment ahead of further simulation in 2019 and the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

One of the development needs within the World Class Programme is to better understand the environment, culture, climate and travel stress athletes are likely to experience in 2020 throughout the games time window.

Therefore a small delegation capable of reflecting and sharing learning has been selected for this non-mandatory event.

The wider GB team competed in the Tokyo-mandatory European championships in May, securing some early top 8 ranking positions. After all 4 regional championships have taken place in 2018, the team will be further informed about world standards and what is required to secure individual qualification in early 2019.

Paralympic Performance Director Tom Whittaker commented, “I am excited to see Micky Yule, Louise Sugden and the wider team learn about Japan and disseminate this to the wider athlete group. Both athletes are well placed to challenge for top 8 Tokyo qualification rankings and have justified their selection with continual progress throughout 2018. They deserve the opportunity to represent Great Britain and we wish them well in their final preparations”.