Goalball UK confirms GB Men line up alteration ahead of IBSA European A Division Championships 2023.
Chris Colbert joins the Men after injury concerns mean David Scott is unable to take part.
Both the Men and Women’s squad will travel to Montenegro for the major competition which is also a selection event for the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
For the Men this is their first appearance in the A division Euros since 2017 and for the Women it represents their third Paris 2024 qualification opportunity in the space of 12 months. They will be looking to build upon their 7th place finishes at both the World Championships and World Games.
Both squads will compete against top teams from across Europe in the hope of coming away with automatic selection to the Paralympics.
The 12 athletes selected are:
GBR Women
Georgie Bullen, Antonia Bunyan, Sarah Leiter, Meme Robertson, Megan Smithson-Booth and Lois Turner.
GBR Men
Matt Loftus, Josh Murphy, Caleb Nanevie, Joe Roper, Dan Roper and Chris Colbert
Reserve: Stuart Hudson
Gary Fraser, High Performance Lead at Goalball UK, said “We are proud to send two squads to represent Great Britain at the European Championships. For the Men it’s their first time competing in the A division since 2017, and for the Women we are aiming to build on their 7th place finishes in both the World Championships and World Games. This competition is the final major event in a busy 12-month period and is the last in the cycle prior to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.”
Goalball UK’s High-Performance programme is supported by UK Sport, Boost Charitable Trust and the Peter Harrison Foundation.
Goalball UK would also like to thank Perfection Travel and Events Ltd, Direct Business Group, SOL PV, PE Office and Northern Accountants for their support as shirt sponsors for the squads.
The IBSA Goalball European Championships take place from 6th – 17th December 2023 in Podgorica, Montenegro. It is expected that the event will be live streamed on IBSA’s YouTube channel with more details to follow closer to the event.
GB group round schedule
| Date | Match | GB Women | GB Men |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday 10th December | Group rounds | 15:30 GBW v Turkey | 13:00 GBM v Lithuania |
| Monday 11th December | Group rounds | 13:00 GBW v Germany | 14:15 GBM v Belgium |
| Tuesday 12th December | Group rounds | 08:00 GBW v Ukraine | 10:30 GBM v Germany |
| Wednesday 13th December | Group rounds | 11:45 GBM v Greece | |
| Thursday 14th December | Quarter finals | ||
| Friday 15th December | Semi finals | ||
| Saturday 16th December | Finals |
