Britain wins wheelchair rugby gold at inaugural Invictus Games

Wheelchair rugby player Stuart Robinson admitted the way Britain overcame early nerves to win gold at the inaugural Invictus Games was credit to their character.

The 32-year-old was a crucial part of the British wheelchair rugby team that triumphed at the Invictus Games, presented by Jaguar Land Rover, beating the USA in a dramatic final.

Britain beat their American opponents 13-12 – the winner coming with just seconds remaining in front of a sell-out crowd at the Copper Box Arena in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

And Robinson, who had to have both his legs amputated after driving over an IED in Afghanistan in 2013, admitted not wanting to let the British public down had spurred the side on to victory.

“We were a bit nervous and apprehensive to start with but as soon as you get out there on the court you can blank the atmosphere out and start to concentrate on the game,” he said.

“The gold medal was always in the back of our minds and we would have been disappointed if we didn’t leave with it.

“The final was a bit closer than we would have liked but it’s the result that matters and luckily we were able to play well enough to edge out the win.

“Wearing the Union Jack on the shirt acted as a huge motivation. All the people that were there had gone along to see how we perform as Great Britain.

“It’s also an honour that not many other people are going to get the chance to do, so to be given that opportunity was fantastic.”

The Invictus Games, presented by Jaguar Land Rover and championed by Prince Harry, is an international sporting event for wounded, injured and sick service personnel.

The events saw more than 400 competitors from 13 nations take part in nine sports across four days and Robinson revealed the camaraderie on show had made the Games unforgettable.

“Sport is like being in the military. It has the same kind of ethics; you work together as a team and are looking out for each other, and you always want to win and be the best that you can be,” he added.

“One of the guys on the British Paralympic team came down to watch us at one of our training camps and he seemed very interested to watch us and see how we were getting on.

“We’ve got a lot of improving to do to get up to the British team standard for the Rio 2016 Paralympics but this is a great starting block for us to kick on from.”

By Jonathan Green

Jaguar Land Rover is proud to be the presenting partner of the Invictus Games, the international sporting competition for wounded, injured and sick Service personnel. For more information visit www.jaguar.com and www.landrover.com