David bound for Brazil

David bound for Brazil

22 June 2016

A YOUNG Downpatrick footballer will be joining the Boys from Brazil in September when he takes part in the Paralympic Games.

Twenty-four year-old David Leavy, captain of the Northern Ireland Cerebral Palsy team, has been selected to represent Great Britain in Rio de Janeiro. 

David, who has just returned from a pre-tournament training camp in Rio, will be the first Northern Ireland player to play for GB in the Paralympics. 

David is set to make his Paralympic debut after first discovering 7-a-side football when watching the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

The former St Patrick’s Grammar School and Queen’s University student, who plays fro Rialta in the Belfast & District League, captained Northern Ireland at the 2015 World Championships and has scored an impressive ten goals in 29 international appearances.

“It’s a real honour to be selected to represent ParalympicsGB and I’m delighted that all of my hard work in training has paid off,” he said.

“The standard of competition at the Paralympics is incredibly high, but we’re confident in our abilities as a team.”

David says he’s really focused on the Games and enjoyed his recent taste of Brazil — including the heat.

It is only 20-24 degrees in Rio at the minute, but by the time we go in September that will have risen to the 30s,” he explained.

“We got the chance to visit the famous Maracana Stadium where the Games will open and close, but we didn’t get inside as there is an awful lot of work going on.

“It is a fantastic opportunity to get to play against the best players in the world and I can’t wait to get over there.

“We are all putting in extra training and I am also working with the Sports Institute to enhance my fitness levels.”

He continued: “Having cerebral palsy means that I get extremely tired in latter stages of games and when that happens I lose a bit of co-ordination, but hopefully that will not happen too much in Brazil.

“I will spend the next few weeks getting into better shape for the pre-Games camp in London and I go over there for a month at the end of July.

“I really enjoy the cut and thrust of the action in the middle of the park and will be playing alongside some great players in the GB Team. I intend grabbing this fantastic opportunity with both hands and hope that we can make our mark in Brazil.

“I graduate in a couple of weeks and then it’s all systems go for Brazil.”