A WHEELCHAIR basketball player is bouncing after being approached to train with Team GB.
Stephen Johnson, a student at St Aidan’s Academy, Darlington, was spotted after playing well for Tees Valley Titans in the Junior League finals in Nottingham.
A GB coach spoke with him during the tournament and suggested he join the national training camps, which hone the country’s finest players.
The Year 8 student has been wheelchair-bound for the past eight years since he was run over by a Land Rover, damaging his spine.
He took up wheelchair basketball when he was at primary school and over the past two years has developed his natural talent for the game.
The 12-year-old plays point guard for Tees Valley Titans and also played for Darlington in the recent Schools Games, where he competed against players much older than himself.
“I love it,” he said. “I always have a ball in my hand and at home, while I have a hoop, I’m trying to persuade my family to make me a full court in the back garden.
“I was really pleased to be approached by the GB coach and am looking forward to joining the training camps. I think he picked up on the fact that I am fast, accurate with my passing and can also shoot.
“When I had my accident and was in hospital for six weeks I never imagined that I would be able to play sport, let alone represent my country. The dream now is to play for Team GB at the Para-Olympics in Japan.”
Stephen has regular physiotherapy for his condition and is unable to feel his legs at the moment. He hopes one day to have an operation on his spine to improve his condition.
“The basketball really helps; it motivates me and gets me out of bed in the morning,” he said.
St Aidan’s Academy principal Nicole Gibbon said: “Stephen is an inspiration and his success in basketball shows what can be achieved in life with the right mind-set, no matter how big the obstacles may seem.
“It’s an incredible honour to be spotted by your country and I am sure that this will lift aspirations throughout the school. Well done Stephen.”
