Paralympic World Cup plusses

PARALYMPIC WORLD CUP
Dates: 7-11 May Venue: Manchester

By Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson

David Weir won both the 400m and 1500m races in Manchester

There are plenty of reasons to be happy with the performances of the British team at the Paralympic World Cup in Manchester.

Across the four sports - athletics, cycling, swimming and basketball - there were some good displays and some real positives to take as we get closer to the Beijing Paralympics in September.

In athletics, once again wheelchair racer David Weir was fantastic, winning both the 400m and 1500m races in style.

In the former, he was challenged over the first 300m by the Chinese athlete Lixin Zhang before pulling away for victory.

"It shows them what they need to work on before Beijing - and some do have work to do"

Next weekend some of the squad are travelling to the Swiss Open, which is an important event as the final date for getting Paralympic qualification times gets closer

So it was a good time for the guys to have a big international event on home soil.

It gives the entire squad a chance to figure out where they need to be at this time of the year and show them what they need to work on before Beijing - and some do have work to do.

Of the other Britons, Ian Jones and Graeme Ballard did well in their sprints. Graeme has had some tough times over the past couple of years and it is good to see him doing well and looking happy.

The Chinese contingent in the athletics were more or less what we expected

However, I thought we might have seen some different athletes at this event and I'm still surprised that we are not seeing vast numbers of Chinese athletes competing.

"Britain's cyclists did amazingly well with eight golds and a host of world records"

In the women's 100m Ting Zhang, who won both the 100 and 200m was good but she has been good for the last 18 months or so.

It will be interesting to see her against Paralympic champion Chantal Petitclerc of Canada and American world record holder Tatyana McFadden later in the year.

Graeme Ballard was beaten by the world champion and world record holder Wai Wai So from Hong Kong China but, again, he has been around for a couple of years.

Are these the best athletes they have got or are they the second level, with the best ones being left at home? Time will tell.

Of the Britons in the other sports, the cyclists did amazingly well with eight golds and a host of world records.

It was great to see former judo player Simon Jackson, who has only just come to the sport, bringing all that power and fitness to the tandem sprint and kilo events and I think it will make his rival Anthony Kappes race better.

OLYMPICS 2008 BLOG "I saw a plethora of world records and plenty of reasons to be cheerful about Britain's medal chances in September" BBC Sport's Elizabeth Hudson

Swimming also enjoyed a successful competition. You look at the team and they have a strong structure and seem to bond well and there are plenty of youngsters coming through into the team.

The basketball teams still have work to do. On the women's side there seems to be a lot of pressure on youngster Helen Freeman and that may be something to consider as they gear up towards Beijing.

With the 100-day mark to the Games mark approaching, the sports are entering a crucial preparation phase but there is plenty of confidence in the air for GB.

Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson was talking to Elizabeth Hudson.