Elgin’s Gregor Ewan has been selected for the wheelchair curling team which will travel to Beijing in March to represent Great Britain at the Winter Paralympic Games.
Beijing will be Ewan’s third successive games, having competed at Sochi in 2014 – where he won bronze – and PyeongChang in 2018.
The Elgin curler will play alongside fellow Scots Meggan Dawson-Farrell, Hugh Nibloe, David Melrode and Charlotte McKenna in China.
The five athletes are the first names to be announced on the ParalympicsGB team sheet ahead of the Winter Games.
Having experienced the uncertainty which comes with playing sport in the midst of a pandemic and grinding out results when possible, Ewan is delighted to have been selected for Team GB and hopes to build on his previous appearances at the Games.
“It definitely lifts a weight off your shoulders to know that you’ve been selected for the team because it is a lot of pressure, right down to the wire everybody is fighting for that spot,” Ewan said.
“I’ve had the bronze model, been close to getting another medal. The Paralympics is the pinnacle, it’s the best competition that we’re ever going to play in.
“To be there it’s great, but to win a medal – you’re on cloud nine.”
Ewan’s third appearance will make him the most experienced Paralympian in the team when they travel to China, with three members of the squad making their Games debuts.
He hopes he can use his past experiences to help guide his teammates and be a reassuring voice if things were to become difficult on the ice.
An internal support system will be more important than ever for Ewan and his fellow curlers as they will travel to Beijing without friends and family.
His wife, who Ewan says is his number one supporter, will have to watch from afar as tickets for the games are to be given exclusively to those who live in mainland China.
Ewan added: “I’m a great believer that the right word at the right time will lift people, but the wrong word will sink the whole team.
“If I can nudge or put my hand on somebody’s shoulder to help them play better or say the right thing in their ear, I’ll do it to make sure that the team goes forward.”
Teamwork makes the dreamwork
While some of the team may not have as much Paralympic experience as Ewan, the five curlers have already played together on the international stage, having competed at the World Championships in China last year.
Ewan admits they may not have had as much time on the ice together, despite the World Championships, but is glad they have the shared experience of an international competition.
He said: “Having the time out in China at the Worlds and being in the bubble helps, but we haven’t had a lot of game experience because of Covid.
“So getting as much game experience as possible and learning each other’s habits makes a bigger difference to our overall performance.
“I can’t win this myself; I need the team around us to turn up and play at the same time. Our main goal is to play well, to support each other and have the same drive.”
Although the Games are two months away, Ewan is already determined with his mantra to ‘focus, just focus on how I’m playing’ already in motion, which is something he will continue to follow when he arrives in Beijing.
A busy schedule on the ice should prevent distractions, as Ewan and his teammates will solely focus on the task at hand.
He said: “We don’t really have the time to enjoy anything else because of playing one or two games a day and travelling. You’ve got to concentrate on the ice.
“We’re speaking about 30 hours of ice play through the whole eight days, so we’ve got to concentrate on that first and foremost.
“Then, if there is time, we can enjoy watching the other Paralympians competing.”