Weightlifter Sonny Webster has today been selected by Team GB for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games - just 24 hours after graduating from the University of Bath. Webster, who completed his three-year Sports Performance course this summer, will make his Olympic debut in the men’s 94kg division after being crowned as British Champion in that weight category earlier this month. The 22-year-old is one of only two weightlifters in the Team GB squad and will be joined in Rio by Rebekah...
Nearly 2,000 people of all ages got into the Rio spirit on Saturday when they enjoyed a wide range of sports and activities during an Olympic-themed Family Fun Day at the University of Bath Sports Training Village. Free have-a-go sessions in athletics, badminton, fencing, martial arts, tennis and trampolining proved to be massively popular, as did the chance to experience life as a performance athlete through health and speed testing. Children collected stars as they...
University of Bath-based wheelchair fencer Piers Gilliver can begin preparing for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games in earnest after finishing his qualification campaign ranked number one in the world. The 21-year-old won a silver medal at the IWAS European Championships in Torino, Italy on Thursday to confirm his status as the top epee fencer during the two-year qualification period. It was Gilliver’s ninth medal in 12 ranking competitions since September 2014 and his third podium...
University of Bath-based wheelchair fencer Piers Gilliver won his fifth World Cup medal of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games qualifying campaign after another impressive display in Canada. Epee bronze in Laval maintained the 21-year-old’s ranking as number one in the world and all but wrapped up qualification for Rio with just two tournaments – the European and American Championships – to go. Gilliver, who went into his latest competition as the top seed, won all...
Natasha Starling was named as the University of Bath’s Sports Personality of the Year during a great night for tennis at the annual Blues Awards ceremony. The Business Administration student topped a poll of members of the Students’ Union Sport from a shortlist that also included fellow tennis player Alex Walker, swimmer Jay Lelliott and archer Lizzy Rees. She was presented with her award by the University of Bath Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell (pictured)....
University of Bath-based fencers Tom Edwards and Chris Hay both finished on the podium at the British Fencing Championships in London Docklands. Only a narrow 15-14 defeat for Biology graduate Hay to Calum Johnston in the semi-finals prevented an all-Bath epee final. Edinburgh’s Johnston went on to edge out defending champion Edwards 13-12 to take gold, with Hay sharing the bronze medal with Aberdeen City’s Neill Tannock. Sports & Exercise Science Masters student Edwards was...
University of Bath sporting scholar Alice MacAulay won gold and silver medals at the 2016 Delancey British National Alpine Ski Championships, which were staged in Tignes, France. The Natural Sciences student, supported by a Santander Sports Scholarship, saved her best performance of a mixed week until last as she won the National Junior Championship Giant Slalom title in 2:19.44. “It feels great to be champion and it’s always nice to finish off the week with...
Fencers who train with Bath Sword Club at the University of Bath are celebrating a weekend of British Championships success and national call-ups. Seventeen-year-old Ben Bates led the way as he won foil gold at the U23 Championships, an age group in which he still has another five years. He got off to a rocky start in the first round, losing two of his preliminary fights, but rallied and progressed smoothly through the tournament to...
Sharp-shooting University of Bath sporting scholar Kristian Callaghan will go into a busy period of international action with confidence high after winning his first British Airgun Championships senior title. The Integrated Mechanical & Electrical Engineering (IMEE) Masters student, a three-time junior champion at the event, compiled a score of 191.9 to secure victory in the 10m discipline. He is now equal first in the Great Britain 10m Air Pistol rankings, as well as outright number one...
University of Bath sporting scholar Noah Rogerson gained valuable international fencing experience when he represented Great Britain at the prestigious Boston Grand Prix in the United States. More than 300 elite sabre fencers – including two Olympic champions and five World Championship gold-medallists – took part in the event at the historic Harvard University, one of the last competitions in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games qualifying calendar. Rogerson, a Mathematics student who is supported by...
