Not quite murder on wheels

When the Paralympic Games kick off in London next year, one of the most hotly anticipated spectator sports will be wheelchair rugby, the fast-paced, aggressive, exciting sport that once earned the nickname “murderball”. One of the GB team’s leading lights, Mandip Sehmi, talks to Disability Now about his aspirations for 2012

As part of the Great Britain wheelchair rugby team that finished fourth in the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing, Mandip Sehmi is determined to go at least one better and collect a medal in front of a home crowd in London.

The 30-year-old from Warwickshire is now one of the senior members in a Paralympic sport rapidly growing in popularity. He became disabled after sustaining a spinal injury following a car accident in 2000, after which time he was introduced to wheelchair rugby during his rehabilitation, and has since gone on to take successive gold medals at the Wheelchair Rugby European Championships, with Great Britain ranked 6th overall in the world rankings.

He says that the thought of competing on home soil in 2012 is something that is never far from his mind.

“The excitement of a home game just can’t be described,” he says.

“As an athlete it’s something you dream of; the opportunity to represent your country at the highest level, it’s the greatest honour.

“Beijing was amazing and it will always be very special to me as it was my first Paralympics, but I think the main difference with London 2012 will be the fact the whole nation will be behind us: family, friends, everyone. I’ve been to the stadium where we will be playing and it was such an amazing feeling, even though the seats were empty. I hope every seat when the Games get underway is taken by a GB fan!”

After the disappointment of finishing fourth at the last Games, often described as the most difficult place to finish, Mandip says that he is just concentrating on ensuring that he and the team are as prepared as possible to go one better next year.

“My personal goals are to make sure I am in the best shape I can be to compete in the biggest games of our lives. When you play a team sport there are so many others that count on you; I want to win gold with my team and I’m going to do everything I can to achieve that.

“Our main competitors are the USA who are the current Paralympic and World Champions, but it doesn’t end there, other top teams include Australia and Canada. You have to take each game as it comes, everyone’s a threat so we won’t take any team lightly.”

So how strong does he feel the GB wheelchair rugby squad is looking right now? With the massive increase in popularity in recent years, are there lots of potential young players waiting in the wings?

“We have gone through a huge transition phase, lots of new stuff, I can’t tell you too much, you’ll just have to watch!” he says.

“But we have a lot of new talent in GB, some might not be ready in time for London, but lots of work is being done to ensure the grassroots players are developed to become future champions.”

He says that despite existing interest in the sport, 2012 provides an opportunity to further raise its profile, both in the UK and around the world.

“It’s a massive opportunity. I’ve already done a lot of work with Channel 4 who are introducing the sport and players to the nation so that when the games come round everyone will understand so much more.

“The game was originally created for people with spinal injuries but any one with impairment in three limbs can play and this has opened the door for so many new players. Ones to watch out for are Aaron Phipps and Myles Pearson for GB, new talent with huge potential.

I have to mention Riley Batt who plays for Australia and is probably the best player in the world. With speed, trickery and big hits he’s definitely one to watch.”

• Mandip Sehmi can be found on Twitter as @Mandipsehmi