Scottish Wheelchair Rugby League captain Graeme Stewart has spoken out about how crucial sports are to people with disabilities writes Jack Crawford.

Balloch’s Stewart broke his back in three places when he was 16 in a rope swing accident.

And the 50-year-old highlighted the importance of competitive activity for disabled people as it keeps them physically and mentally fit.

He said: “Sport is very important for disabled people for their mental wellbeing. The amount of sports I do is ridiculous - rugby league, basketball, rowing, marathon kayaking.

“I used to play tennis, anything that I’ve fancied over up the years.

“Physically and mentally I’ve noticed in the past that if I’ve not been training I’ve put on a wee bit of weight. You notice it and it impacts your life no end.

“I always make sure I’m doing something so I don’t put on that weight as it does impact you so much.”

Whilst the athlete admits that the injury left him ‘shattered’, he says that help from his family helped him to get through a tough time.

He said: “It was pretty shattering at the time as I was training for the Scotland rowing squad.

“I’d already been in the Scotland squad and then you’re told you can’t do it anymore, that’s it you won’t be walking anymore, and you’ll be in a wheelchair for the rest of your life.

“There were other things that I had planned to do career wise, I wanted to join the RAF, and different things like that.

“If I didn’t have the support from my family I would have been in a lot worse a place than I would have ever been.

“They were my rocks, it’s clichéd but it’s true.”

Stewart was approached to join the Wheelchair Rugby League team in 2012 and went on to captain the side in the World Cup in the same year.

There were only six sides at the latest World Cup this year, but Stewart says that there are signs that the sport is growing and hopes to pass on the side to a younger generation. He said:

“We’re trying to increase it and the amount of people that play in it and that want to play it.

“We’re a bit limited for players in Scotland at the moment but we’re trying our best to increase the numbers. Spain and Italy have come on board and joined the World Cup this year. We just hope we can keep on increasing it.

“I’m kicking on a bit now. I’m 50 so I won’t go on forever.

“What I want to see is a full Scotland squad filled up with younger guys. It’s all about getting it out there, and letting them know about the opportunity to play it.”

Amongst his other sporting activities and achievements, Stewart has also climbed both Ben Nevis and Ben Lomond which is an experience he describes as the hardest thing that he has ever done. He said:

“It was absolutely shattering and it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

“The fourth day was the worst. It was from eight o’clock in the morning until half past 10 at night, just crawling up and the weather was terrible.

“It was raining, it was -12 and we got there in the dark and stayed in the wee hut at the top of Ben Nevis.

“It’s a shoebox basically and there was about 12 of us in there and it was interesting.

“I literally crawled up. I was sitting on my backside basically, lifting myself up and moving myself forward.”