Sheffield Steelers

29/3/2010

Sir Philip Craven announced as patron of Sheffield Steelers Wheelchair Basketball Club 

Sir Philip Craven MBE has been appointed as patron of one of the UK's leading basketball Clubs - The Sheffield Steelers Wheelchair Basketball Club. Sir Philip is currently President of the International Paralympic Committee but is finding time to help out his old team.  

He was approached by the Steelers last month and did not hesitate in accepting their invitation to become a patron of the Club which was once home to the 5-times medal winner. He played for the team from 1992 to 1996 during which time the club won numerous titles, including the National League Championships and the 1994 European Championship Cup Finals - The Steelers remain the only British club to have won this title. A five-time Paralympian in both wheelchair basketball (1972 to 1988) and swimming (1972), Sir Philip has won gold medals in the Gold Cup - World Championships, European Championships, Commonwealth Games, and the European Champions Cup.

The announcement comes following a successful start to the year which saw all four Steelers teams win all of their matches at the recent play-offs across the country. Sir Philip said: “I am delighted to be able to support my old club in this way and to help spread the word about the fantastic work that its members do. The Steelers are a great team and gave huge support to me towards the end of my career - and we also proved to be something of a force to be reckoned with, winning the Euro Cup in 1994 - something which I hope they will be repeating very soon! The Club provides such vital support to many people, both on and off the court, and I am only too pleased to be able to help them widen their net of support across the wheelchair basketball community.

“I am a firm believer that disability is a perception of others, not a truth, and this is a philosophy which the Steelers embody. The club's inclusive nature is something that we have always considered hugely important - even 20 years ago when we were first starting out and not everyone viewed wheelchair basketball in that way - and it has proved to be a sustainable way of running the club; from the work it does with schools, raising sporting awareness and encouraging wheelchair users to maintain an active lifestyle, to the competitive side of winning cups, leagues and even the odd international trophy.”

As Colin Price, Chairman of the Steelers, explained: “As a club we focus on bringing out people’s abilities – whatever people can do, whatever skills they bring, can be of benefit to their team - we develop the positive. The chair is just a tool for the sport and anyone can use it; everyone can get involved, be they able-bodied or otherwise.  We welcome anyone who would like to try the sport to come along to one of our training sessions. It doesn't matter whether someone is interested in the recreational side or wants something more competitive; we have a range of teams to suit everyone.”

Jeremy Brooke, partner with Simpson Sissons & Brooke, the club's main sponsor explained: "We have been working with the Steelers for over a year now and we know only too well the difficulties they have in terms of funding and profile. We are very grateful of Sir Philip's patronage as his experience of both the sporting side and the more commercial issues will be a great asset to the club. For any club to prosper it has to be able to attract new blood whilst also responding to the needs of its current members. We are currently working hard to raise the profile of the club both in the local community and the wider wheelchair basketball community - over the past 18 months we have seen membership increase from 25 players and volunteers to over 50 and hope to see this continue."

The Club organises a number of roadshows, visiting schools across the region with the aim of getting young wheelchair users involved in sport. The team’s ethos is to “bring out people's abilities”, encouraging confidence, motivation and independence as well as fitness and strength.  

The Sheffield Steelers Wheelchair Basketball Club is a registered charity founded in 1987 by a handful of ex-patients from the Spinal Injuries Unit at Lodgemoor, a division of the NHS Sheffield Teaching Hospital Trust. They are an inclusive club with players of all abilities, from amateur through to world-class. Members come from across South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire, ranging from 4 – 60 years of age, with a variety of disabilities from amputees to meningitis sufferers and paraplegics. The Sheffield Steelers have four different teams, depending upon age and ability: the superleague, whose number includes a Beijing Bronze medal-winner and other ex-paralympians, the first division and the third division as well as the juniors. They also run a training session for patients of the Spinal Injuries Unit. The club’s ethos is to “bring out peoples’ abilities”, encouraging confidence, motivation and independence as well as fitness and strength.  

The Steelers train at the Northern General Hospital Spinal Injuries Centre Sports Hall, they meet every Tuesday from 4.30pm onwards. If you are interested in supporting or joining them please visit www.sheffield-steelers.co.uk or email chairman@sheffield-steelers.co.uk

The Steelers next home game will be at the English Institute of Sport on the 5th April when they will take on the Nottingham Jaguars. The game will begin and 12 noon and coach Tina Gordon is hoping for a good display from the 1st Division team which has only lost one game this season.

The Sheffield Steelers is sponsored by Simpson Sissons & Brooke which is led by three of Sheffield’s brightest solicitors. The firm, which was established in May 2007, specialises in family law, conveyancing, asset management and personal injury. 

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