Optua is celebrating after its Disability Sport Showcase Days received the official London 2012 Inspire Mark.

The Inspire Mark is only given to the most accessible, participative, inspiring and stimulating projects and events which have been inspired by the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012. This is the first disability sport project in the region to get an Inspire Mark.

Disability charity Optua has run seven Showcase Days across Suffolk, allowing hundreds of people with disabilities to try a huge range of disability and Paralympic Sports. The eighth takes place later this month at Northgate Sports Centre on 24th July 2010 as part of the London 2012 Open Weekend.

The Showcase Days are part of Optua Disability Sport Academy, a project directly inspired by the 2012 Paralympic Games which aims to get more disabled people into sport. The events are accessible to people of all ages and all disabilities and have been held in Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds, Sudbury, Lowestoft, Mildenhall, Stowmarket and Woodbridge. Each one has been very exciting and has also enabled the community to come together by involving local leisure facilities, sports coaches and volunteers.

Colin Poole, Chief Executive of Optua, said: “This is fantastic news and I’m delighted we have been given the 2012 Inspire Mark. Our Showcase Days have inspired many disabled people to get into sport and it all started with the news that the Olympic and Paralympic Games were coming to the UK. We came up with this idea on the day it was announced and five years later we are very proud what we have achieved! There are people aiming to be part of the Paralympic Games who we’ve helped and many more who now take part in regular sport and gain the social and health benefits this gives them. We know that sport can change people’s lives and the benefits will go on well beyond 2012.”

As well as the Disability Showcase Days, Optua has also helped to set up and support disability sport clubs and opportunities across Suffolk and beyond. Optua has also worked closely with other key organisations such as Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Sport who are working to ensure Suffolk makes the most of the opportunities which the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games present.


“This is the first disability-sport Inspire project in our region and the Disability Showcase Days demonstrate Optua’s great work in increasing and promoting participation in sport and physical activity, whilst strongly contributing to London 2012’s vision of inclusivity,” said Joseph Ballard, London 2012 Inspire Programmer for the East of England.

Adam Baker, Suffolk Project Manager for the 2012 Games, added: “The award of a London 2012 Inspire Mark is well deserved. Optua has consistently and imaginatively used the inspiration of London 2012 Paralympic Games to encourage more disabled people to become more active and to provide more disability sport opportunities in Suffolk. Their work is helping to create a meaningful legacy for Suffolk from the Games.”

For more information about Disability Sport in Suffolk or the Showcase Day on 24th July 2010 please call 01473 836770 or email [email protected]. You can also register via www.beyourbest.org.uk