Tennis: Paralympian star Kevin Simpson visits West Lothian school

Jan 28 2010 by Eric MacKinnon, West Lothian Courier

KEVIN SIMPSON is a true champion.

A full time athlete who has overcome adversity and incredibly tough challenges to rise to the top of his sport and star on the international stage.

It is no wonder then that when he talks people listen making him the ideal candidate for the Champions in Schools (CiS) initiative.

Last week Paralympian wheelchair tennis player Kevin was at Inveralmond High School speaking to students as part of the two-year pilot programme launched in 2008 by the business-led charity Winning Scotland Foundation and supported by Quality Meat Scotland and West Lothian Council.

Simpson, a former pupil of Bo’ness Academy, believes he and over twenty other Scottish athletes involved with Champions in Schools can offer real benefits to the kids:

“After coming back from competing in Beijing I was approached by the Winning Scotland Foundation about a new initiative starting in West Lothian,” explained Simpson.

“I’m from the area myself and I thought it was a great opportunity to go into schools and help with a very worthwhile project.

“The kids have the chance to hear from people like me who not long ago sat in their position and who have been inspired to take advice, set goals and achieve a dream.

“The response I’ve had has been huge with great feedback from the pupils.

“It has gone so well that this year the number of athletes taking part has tripled and it has gone outwith West Lothian through another couple of councils.”

Simpson was working on an oil rig in the Mexican Gulf in Louisiana when a loose metal plate fell on him from 90ft in the air and changed his life forever.

He didn’t know anything about his accident until he woke up in an American hospital bed.

A loose metal plate had fallen towards three workers on the platform but only Kevin was struck.

The Linlithgow-based athlete suffered a broken back and legs, shattered ankles, ribs and a shoulder too.

He had also ruptured a spleen and punctured a lung leaving his life in the balance.

The accident left him drifting in and out of consciousness in an American hospital for three months before being transferred home to Scotland.

He had survived but his left ankle was left in such a state that it had to be bolted and secured onto his leg and he had to wear a back brace and leg calipers to keep his body straight.

It was seven months before he could even stand upright with the aid of a supportive machine.

No one could blame Kevin for feeling sorry for himself but the 31-year-old has fought back to become a top Paralympian wheelchair tennis star.

And now he is using his story as a tool of hope and inspiration for schoolkids across the West Lothian area.

Simpson also hopes his experience of relearning to walk following his accident and reaching Paralympic level in wheelchair tennis will resonate with two school-kids at the school in wheelchairs.

“I can help them see that they may be in a wheelchair but they can still do whatever they want,” he insisted.

“They must never feel they can’t do something and be discouraged by others self-doubt.

“If I had listened to people who told me I couldn’t do something, I would have got nowhere in life.”

And while Simpson’s own experience is an example of character-building and mental toughness, during a previous school visit he also noted kids positively respond to his own experience of healthy eating:

“I used to drink lots of fizzy drinks. But once I started competing, I found my body couldn’t handle it.

“I’d no energy so I saw a nutritionist, ditched the fizzy drinks and followed a more balanced diet.

“As a result I’ve more energy and feel more alert on court. I think the kids can relate to the fact that like them I once didn’t eat enough fruit and vegetables but that now they form an essential part of my diet.”

It was while in rehab at the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow when Kevin was first introduced to wheelchair tennis.

He was surprised to see a fellow patient push by in a wheelchair carrying a tennis racquet.

Kevin revealed: “I was in rehab in Glasgow when I saw a patient pushing by with a racquet so naturally I asked him where he was thinking of going with that when he replied he was going to play tennis.

“He explained to me how wheelchair tennis work and advised me there was a club in Glasgow which met every Monday so I took it up and started going along.

“It really helped me with my fitness and my rehab and provided something a bit different.

“By 2004 I was playing full-time and I set my goal to qualify for the Beijing Paralympics which I managed to do.

“My next goal is for the London Paralympics in 2012 and I’m working hard ahead of that and am now training twice a day and at the gym three times a week.”

Susan Jackson, Senior Director of Winning Scotland Foundation and a 2006 Commonwealth Games gold medallist, is sure having athletes of the pedigree of Kevin Simpson can spur school pupils on.

She said: “These role-models can have an incredible influence upon young people, profound and long-lasting, because pupils can see the direct benefits of a life dedicated to achievement, good health and positive thinking.

“It will be a tremendous outcome for the athletes, pupils, schools and indeed the nation if as a consequence of Champions in Schools, more young Scots choose to get active and are inspired to adopt a positive ‘can do’ attitude in sport and life.”

Jo Bell, the Active Schools Manager for West Lothian Council for the past four years added: “Champions in Schools is a hugely rewarding experience for the participating pupils and staff in West Lothian.

“Whether it’s adopting healthier eating or more regular physical activity, the programme can motivate people to reach their goals and realise what can be achieved with dedication and hard work.”

Bill Tevendale, head teacher of Inveralmond Community High School is also confident the Foundation’s role model initiative is greatly beneficial to his young charges: “Champions in School’s is giving the (primarily S3) pupils exposure to a winner – someone who once sat where the pupils sit and been motivated to set goals, work hard and achieve his or her full potential.

“These athlete visits offer terrific pointers about how the young pupils should adopt a healthy lifestyle and aim to be the best they can be in life.”