Ga naar Pagina Vorige  1, 2, 3 ... 27, 28, 29 ... 46, 47, 48  Volgende

Roped in for world championship triumph (27 februari 2008) North-east tug o war team members have pulling power in Scottish win By Leanna MacLarty SCOTLAND has topped the leader boards in recent years of some of the world’s more unusual sports, including curling and elephant polo, and now the nation can add another string to its bow. The country’s national tug o war team has taken first place at the recent world indoor championship, after a gruelling weekend in Faenza, Italy. Three members of the squad to take part – Bill Meston, Ross Davidson and James Gerrard – are long-term competitors with Kinneff tug o war team, the only indoor group in the north-east. Mr Meston, of North Gallaton, near Stonehaven, has played the sport for more than 40 years, since it replaced football as his passion with the young farmers’ group. The 58-year-old said: “It’s just a lot more exciting than football, where you’re lucky to score a goal every game. “With tug o war, you are getting a winner and loser every few minutes.” In competitions, categories are determined by the collective weight of all eight team members, and teammates employ a variety of techniques to keep their weight at the right level. Mr Meston said: “To get into the lightest category, we spent five or six hours in the sauna the day before to get our weight down. “We can also dehydrate ourselves to get more weight off. “You have to be very careful though, if you don’t do it right you won’t have the energy or power to pull.” The Scottish squad took gold medals for two of the four senior men’s competitions, the 560kg (88 stone) and 640kg (101 stone) categories. They walked away with second place for the remaining two, the 600kg (94 stone) and 680kg (107 stone). The women’s team also made it on to the scoreboard, taking third place in the 480kg (76 stone) category. The Kinneff team members had been training hard with the national team since September for the world competition. The men spent at least three evenings a week practising and building up fitness levels, by running, cycling and using weights and rowing machines. Mr Meston said: “There is no muscle in the body that tug o war doesn’t seem to reach.” The Kinneff group is keen to recruit new members and anyone interested should contact Mr Meston on 01569 762489.

Ga naar Pagina Vorige  1, 2, 3 ... 27, 28, 29 ... 46, 47, 48  Volgende