Devon physio to compete in World Dragon Boat Racing Championships

AN NHS physiotherapist from East Devon has been selected to compete for Great Britain in the 2015 World Dragon Boat Racing Championships in Canada – just two years after taking up the sport.

Sue Bath, a musculoskeletal (MSK) physiotherapy team lead for the Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust, said she was ‘overweight and unfit’ when she moved to the area in 2013.

She did an internet search for ‘things to do in Exeter’, joined the Exe-Calibre Dragon Boat Club soon after and hasn’t looked back since.

Sue, 50, has raced for Exe-Calibre’s mixed and ladies crews in the National League and competed in the Henley Winter Series, the Great River Race water marathon in London and the Vogalonga regatta in Venice, Italy.

Since October 2014 she has trained with Exe-Calibre during club sessions, on her own and with the Great Britain squad – a minimum of five water-based sessions and four to five land-based sessions each week.

Sue has combined her training with a busy full-time job based at Honiton Hospital.

She also manages physiotherapy services at Honiton, Ottery St Mary and Sidmouth hospitals plus a GP clinic at the Blackdown Practice in Hemyock, near Cullompton.

The training and hard work paid off when she came through trials in Stockton-on-Tees and received a phone call inviting her to represent the Great Britain senior squad in the world championships.

The showpiece takes place at the Welland International Flatwater Centre in Welland, Ontario, from 19 to 23 August and will feature around 4,000 competitors from more than 30 countries.

“I am delighted to have been selected for the team and am really excited about representing Great Britain at the world championships,” said Sue, who has worked in the NHS for 28 years.

“As a teenager I represented the county and region at various sports, but this will be my first experience representing Great Britain.

“In my second year dragon boat racing I really got the bug and thought I would try out with the GB team, mainly for the fitness workouts but also with the vague thought ‘could I really get selected for the team?’.

“I had quite expected to have some good training sessions but not get selected as I’ve only been doing dragon boat racing for two years.

“However, the encouragement of my colleagues in the Trust, together with the support of my team members in Exe-Calibre, has driven me on to achieve more than I thought was possible.

“I tell my patients every day that they can achieve if they commit, and now I feel I am truly demonstrating that in person.”

Sue, a mother-of-two who lives in Sidbury, near Sidmouth, is one of six Exe-Calibre members to be selected for the senior squad.

The club, based at Haven Banks in Exeter, also has three members in the junior squad.

Sue thanked the Trust for its support by enabling her to alter her working patterns around her training and by agreeing to the required leave.

Sue is seeking sponsorship to help cover the costs of her team uniform, flights and accommodation.

For more information, call Sue on 01404 540551.