British Wheelchair Basketball is delighted to hear Great Britain’s Terry Bywater has been appointed to represent the European Zone on the IWBF Athlete Steering Committee.
The five-time Paralympian has been involved in the sport at the highest level for 20 years, making his debut for Great Britain at the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games when he was just 17-years-old.
A popular and well-known figure within the sport, the 37-year-old, from Middlesbrough, has competed at 20 major championships, claiming 14 senior international medals. His most recent international achievements saw Bywater secure his fourth European gold medal in September 2019, a year after helping the GB Men to an historic World title in Hamburg.
Speaking about his appointment to the IWBF Athlete Steering Committee, Bywater said:
“I’m very happy to have been chosen for this role and excited to be part of the Committee to help shape how the athletes voice is heard within IWBF and its organisation in the future.
“With over 20 years of experience playing wheelchair basketball at the highest level and playing in 20 major championships, I know exactly how an athlete thinks and what an athlete needs.
“I’m very passionate about the sport that I love and have dedicated my life to. I feel that I have the qualities to be on the Athlete Steering Committee and to help IWBF as much as I can moving forward.”
Bywater, who first started playing wheelchair basketball at age 13, added:
“I feel it’s very important to have athlete representation within IWBF to help make the correct decisions to not only shape the sport for the here and now but also for the future.
“The future of our wonderful sport is down to the athletes and we need to make sure we keep improving on all levels making the future of wheelchair basketball even better than what it is now with lots of great competitions across the globe.”
Bywater’s appointment to the IWBF Athlete Steering Committee follows the departure of Netherlands’ Carina De Rooij, who stood down due to personal commitments and time constraints.
The IWBF Athlete Steering Committee was set-up to support IWBF in establishing and institutionalising a common voice for IWBF athletes in the governance of the sport with the establishment of an IWBF Players’ Commission.
The group have been actively preparing, discussing a number of topics such as how to establish and elect a future Players’ Commission, how the Commission shall be composed, and what duties they shall carry out.
The Steering Committee have invited all international wheelchair basketball players to have their say in shaping the future commission. Find out how you can have your say here.