Sue selected for London

Sue Gilroy has become the first person from Barnsley to book their place at either the London Paralympic or Olympic games.

The schoolteacher from Dodworth will  compete in front of her home crowd in her fourth Paralympics that run from August 29 until September 9.

“It is brilliant to be selected and I can’t wait to play in front of a British crowd at the biggest event of all,” said Gilroy who teaches at Shawlands school.

“I have always dreamed of being able to do that and it will be the pinnacle of my career. If I get a medal then it will be a dream come true.”

The selection comes after a very difficult 2011 for Gilroy that saw her twice undergo surgery to remove tumours from her abdomen.

“Last year was horrendous and I was very ill for all of it. I didn’t know what was wrong with me for quite a long time and that was the worst thing. It affected my training and meant that I could enter very few tournaments. All my rivals were able to train more than  double the amount that I could so I slipped down the rankings.

“I feel so much better now and thank goodness I made it through.”