OVER the period 17 – 21 March, Cape Town played host to the South African National Disability Games, sponsored by Toyota.

Harlow AC’s Bebe Jackson was one of a small squad of British athletes selected to participate. Her versatility has now been recognised as she went not only as a sprinter, but also as a jumper and thrower. She was picked in the Under 20 T44  and F44 categories for the 100m, Long Jump and, for the very first time, the Discus.

On Saturday, she was in sprint action and won her race, in a field of mixed T44, T47 and T42 athletes. Naturally, she will want to be running fast and close to her 14.04 best, but 14.7s was a good early season marker.  

On Sunday, she doubled up by throwing and jumping, Discus came first. She only took up the event at the end of last season, throwing for a point in a Southern League match. She has worked hard to perfect a technique that works for her and in Round 2 everything came together as she hit 20.46m. This smashed her previous mark of 15.61m and was good enough to secure her victory in the event.

Buoyed by this success, she was able to approach her final event in relaxed and confident mood. Only last weekend, in Sheffield, Jackson had jumped 4m exactly at the British Indoor Para Championships, and did so from minimal training. A week of focused training in warm weather must have felt like welcome luxury. Warm weather and confidence culminated in a jump of 4.36m, increasing her personal best by eleven centimetres, and was a winning mark.