The first summer Paralympics were held at Stoke Manderville, London in 1952. Now the Paralympics are fully integrated into the Olympic movement, with the number of sports and competitors growing all the time.

I started taking part in sport at an early age, origionally through football and following Newcastle United, I was a member of the junior magpies and played football regularly, mostly as a flamboyant goalkeeper. After I left Percy Headley school in 1989 to go into mainstream, I started going back to an after school sports club at Percy Headley. There I took part in various sports from boccia to British bulldog and for the first time athletics.

My first coach was Norman Burns, an ex Paralympic athlete and medal winner, Norman has sadly passed away. I cut my athletics teeth training in car parks, back fields and tiny sports halls.

Up until the age of 15 I was torn between athletics and boccia, I was in the England & Wales squad for both. My parents were continually advised that someone with my level of disability would never make it in athletics and that cerebral palsy 'sufferers' couldn't develop muscles through strength training. I'm glad to say I think I've proved a few people wrong.