Fife athletics star Ben Sandilands ready for 'step up' to Paralympics

For Sandilands, 20, has earned selection to compete for Great Britain at disability sport's most prestigious competition, something which his proud mum Claire is understandably delighted about.

"The worlds are every year and the Paralympics are every four years, so they are a level above,” Claire told the Fife Free Press. “It will be an amazing experience for Ben.

"Everyone thinks that the Paralympics are the pinnacle of disability sport.

"There are a number of different sports going on at the same time, while at the worlds it's just athletics.

"Ben was delighted last year that there wasn't any pressure or expectations on him going into the worlds.

"It was a great experience and to come away with the gold was just the icing on the cake.

"He's been to Paris before and the support was fantastic. He knows the people in the team now and this will be similar although in 2023 he stayed in a hotel and this time he will be staying in the athletics village with other GB team members and athletes from other countries.

"We just want Ben to enjoy it again and I think he will."

Ben heads to the Paralympics having not competed in this spring's World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan, with Claire explaining: "We just felt that Ben had quite a lot on his plate to go to everything and it was American runner Michael Brannigan who won the 1500m there, to become the 2024 world champion.

"I don't know if Michael - world record holder and winner of the T20 1500m at the 2016 Paralympics in Brazil - will be Ben's biggest threat for a Paralympics gold medal.

"Owen Miller, Ben's training partner and fellow Fife AC member, ran a wonderful race four years ago in Tokyo to win the Paralympic gold medal, beating Brannigan (who finished fourth) and he's always been inspiring Ben and giving him the confidence that he can beat Brannigan too.

"I hope Owen will be going to this year’s Paralympics too.

"He was supposed to go to the worlds but didn’t go as he picked up an injury.

"Ben – who was picked in the first round of picks for the 2024 Paralympics – is also hopeful Owen gets selected in the second round because that’s his team-mate, he’s really fond of Owen and they work really well together.

“In the upcoming Paralympics T20 1500m, Ben just wants to do what Owen did, get his head down, run his race and try and remember his tactics.

"Sometimes for Ben and many other T20 athletes, that goes out the window.”

When asked to explain the T20 class Ben runs in, Claire said: “It’s for intellectual impairment athletes.

"Ben has been assessed twice for that internationally by different people and it’s all been ratified.

"He finds things difficult like remembering instructions, pacing, even sometimes how far his running distance is.

“He can’t visualise how far it would be unless he’s on the track. Even then he sometimes doesn’t even remember how many laps it is.

"He finds it all very difficult but everyone has that in the T20 category.”

Ben – who has just completed an SVQ2 Horticulture course at the SRUC Elmwood in Cupar – and Dunfermline resident Miller are both coached at Fife AC by Steve Doig.

"They have both been team members since Ben was 12,” Claire added. "Ben has seen Owen achieving all he has and Ben looks up to him as a real kind of hero figure.”

Having watched Ben’s worlds win in person last year along with her husband Rory and Ben’s brother Jake, the trio of spectators will be joined at the Paralympics crowd by Ben’s sister Katie, herself a well decorated Fife AC member, plus Rory’s parents Tony and Jenny.

The family members are enthused by Ben’s fine form in races held so far this year.

Claire added: “Ben ran 3:48 – just one second off his PB – to win at a British Miler Club meet in Watford.

"He’s not done that much racing as he’s been away at a few training camps. He’s been at two this year already.

"We’re just keeping him fit and healthy."

Ben will next be in race action in the men’s ambulant 1500m at the London Diamond Meet this Saturday. He won it last year.