11-time Paralympic Gold Medallist David Roberts will not be part of Team GB. 16 July 2012

David Roberts has lost his fight to join the Paralympic team at London 2012, despite a successful appeal to be reconsidered for the Games, it was announced today.

British Swimming national performance director, John Atkinson, made the announcement following a three-month appeal process by the legal team of Roberts’ agent, Definitive Sports Management, which saw Roberts’ fight against his non-selection for the team.

Welshman Roberts, 32, made his Games debut 12 years ago and since then he has won 11 gold medals in three appearances, including four in Beijing’s 2008 Paralympics. He was not part of the originally selected 16-strong GB Paralympic swim team after suffering from a string of injuries and illnesses over the last three years, including a bout of pneumonia earlier this year, which saw him miss the first British team trials in March when he was advised to cut back on training by doctors. His grounds for appeal were that the selectors had not followed their own selection criteria, and the independent appeal committee ruled that Mr Atkinson was required to take Roberts’ medical record into consideration when making his selection. Despite the ruling in his favour, it was revealed today that Roberts will still not be selected for London 2012, where a single medal win would have seen him eclipse Tanni Grey-Thompson as Britain’s most successful Paralympian.

On the outcome, Roberts said: “I’m totally at a loss. It’s awful to think that I will never be able to compete in the Paralympics in Britain, my home nation. I fought for the opportunity to be reconsidered tooth and nail, but after months of waiting and hoping, it wasn’t enough. I’m still not going to compete as part of the team that I’ve trained with for 14 years.

“Even though this news has shattered my Paralympic dreams, I am very grateful for the help and support that was given to me by my friends, family, agent, solicitors, fans and even the community in South Wales. Their positivity and care kept me training even when I didn’t have a clear goal to train for, helping me fight during an awful couple of months. I’m sorry that I won’t be able to compete in these Games for them.

“Despite not being able to compete in the event that I’ve been gearing up to for years, this won’t necessarily be the end for me. I’m still at the top of my game, I feel that I still have medal potential and I will continue to train. I’m now looking forward to marrying my fiancé in December and who knows where life will take me from there.”

Jamie Baulch, who heads up Definitive Sports Management, said: “It’s devastating for David to have battled so hard without being selected for the team, despite winning the chance to have his case heard. It’s a sad end to training through months of painful fighting for the opportunity to compete in London. We are proud to have been a part of his fight to make sure that he had the full and fair hearing he deserved. Although he will not be selected, David has shown determination, strength and drive against adversity – and it’s these qualities that mean he is still a force to be reckoned with in future competitions. Despite this disappointing news, we will continue to support David over the next few months so that he can bounce back from this upsetting outcome and look to the next challenge.”