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Medal boosts 2012 ambition for Chorley paralympian
Chorley paralympic runner Graeme Ballard has another medal to add to his trophy cabinet after picking up a bronze in Dubai last week.
The 30-year-old athlete took part in the Fazza International Games, competing in both 100m and 200m.
He finished third in the shorter distance and just missed out on another bronze in the 200m.
Graeme said: "It was good to get a medal. There are things I need to work on. I was leading both for some time but faded in the last 30 metres.
I could have been talking about two golds.
"It was a good way to prepare for the season."
Graeme, who has cerebral palsy, has previously competed at the 2004 and 2008 paralympics in Athens and Beijing respectively.
Now he is setting his sights on London 2012 and Runshaw College, where he has just finished his studies, is helping his fund-raising effort.
He had his 1,500 monthly funding withdrawn after a poor injuryhit performance at Beijing.
His mother Barbara said: "We feel Graeme was badly treated. He worked hard for 10 years but lost all his funding on the basis of three days.
"He trains six days a week and his performance in Dubai shows he can do it.Wereally appreciate the fundraising efforts of everyone at Runshaw.
"They have held a raffle and an auction to try to keep his 2012 dream alive."
The money raised will go towards his travel, accommodation and training costs.
Graeme needs to hit a target time of 12.4 seconds in the 100m sprint to be able to compete in London and he finished in 12.7 in Dubai.
In the 200m he needs to finish in 25.5 seconds and he has just clocked 25.8.
If anyone would like to help Graeme, they can contact Claire Fisher at Runshaw College on 01772 643005.
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Weather for Chorley
Wednesday 08 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -5 C to -0 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Light sleet showers
Temperature: -0 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South west
