Paratriathlete makes his mark on the bowling green
Visually impaired triathlete and sportsman Gavin Kilpatrick has challenged himself to take up a new sports venture and has come out victorious.
Accomplished sportsman Gavin Kilpatrick is no stranger to climbing the podium and he has represented the country extremely well locally and abroad as a paratriathlete.
He was a bronze medalist at the Beijing Paralympics for track cycling and has competed at various international competitions.
Kilpatrick is a visually impaired athlete with Stargardt Macular Dystrophy (SMD), an incurable, degenerative genetic condition affecting central vision in the eyes.
Now, the exceptional athlete has taken up a completely different challenge. He recently joined Brackenhurst Bowls Club where he played his first novice bowls tournament (Tower Novices) and won his first game, under the directorship of Kelvin Bain over the weekend.
“I played against a guy who has been playing for eight months. I won the first game 7-5 and for the second one, I was down six shots with two ends to go. I was done, but somehow I managed to pull a cat out of the bag and scored three points on each end to draw the game, which meant I won,” explained Kilpatrick.
He described the game as a ‘nail-biter’, since he only started playing the sport at least six weeks ago.
According to Kilpatrick, his determination in these different sporting codes best reflects the character of uniquely abled athletes and highlights the depth of their mental ability as athletes.
“I’m still going to be in cycling and triathlon, but I think after all my illnesses last year, I’m going to take it a bit easy. In March we will be going to Cape Town to compete for the South African Disabled Bowls Championships and we’re looking forward to it,” he said.
