Paralympic archive: improved facilities (1988)
In 1988 ITN reported from the Sobel Centre in north London – at the time one of the few sports centres in the UK offering facilities for people with disabilities.
Ahead of the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, the then UK sports minister, Colin Moynihan, said there were not enough sports facilities for disabled people, writes Ian Searcey.
At the time only a few sports centres in the country, such as the Sobel Centre in north London, catered for people with disabilities. The Sobel offered ease of access of wheelchairs, as well as lifts and other necessities.
In 1988 there were some 5 million people with disabilities in Britain – but only one in 20 got the chance to participate in active sport.
Ricky Townson, then 18 and a prospect for the British basketball team in Seoul, told ITN it meant it was very difficult for someone in his position to get into sport.
To address problem of sporting access for people with disabilities, Colin Moynihan had established a committee, including javelin champion Tessa Sanderson and swimming gold medallist Duncan Goodhew.
It was hoped the committee’s report, due nine months’ after the piece was broadcast, would lead to increased support for Britain’s disabled athletes.
