Mercedes for Matthew and a bus pass for Grant
By ALAN THATCHER
England doubles partners Nick Matthew and Adrian Grant are heading for Glasgow to compete in the Commonwealth Games. And both of them will be able to boast their own special transport.
While world champion Matthew received a free Mercedes from his team sponsor, Grant had a bus named after him!
Three-time world champion Matthew will drive into this summer’s Commonwealth Games in a brand new ‘A’ Class Mercedes car thanks to Benz Bavarian.
England No.1 Matthew, who is is currently recovering from minor knee surgery, said: “It’s a fantastic car and I’m delighted to have started driving it this week. I do plenty of miles travelling to tournaments and training sessions so having the right car is really important.
“The ‘A’ Class is stylish and sporty which hopefully suits my image as a professional athlete but I’m also about to become a Dad for the first time so safety and reliability are important to me too. I play for the team at Duffield in the national league and Felix Frixou, the Managing Director of Benz Bavarian, the team sponsor,is a great friend of mine.”
Felix Frixou Managing Director of Benz Bavarian, said: “We are proud to have been associated with Nick for over 10 years. We have supported each other and he’s proven himself to be the perfect ambassador for our brand.
“We look forward to seeing him representing England in the Commonwealth Games and also playing for Benz Bavarian in the upcoming PSL season.”
Matthew and Grant won gold in the men’s doubles in Delhi in 2010 and they are tipped to do the same in Glasgow next month.
Grant has had a National Express coach named in his honour as he prepares to serve up gold at the Commonwealth Games.
The UK’s largest coach operator has dedicated one of its iconic white coaches to Dulwich man Grant after the 33-year-old athlete was selected to compete for Team England in Glasgow.
National Express is an Official Partner of Team England and has been supporting English athletes by offering all medal winners from the previous games in Delhi with free travel until the Games this summer.
As a further show of support for Adrian, National Express has extended his free travel on its coach network by four years to help him as he trains and prepares for competitions.
Adrian, who trains at the South Bank Squash Club in Wandsworth Road, London, said: “I was really surprised and thrilled when I heard I was going to get a coach named after me. I can’t wait to see it rolling around London and I’m grateful for the support National Express has given me.
“A huge proportion of my income goes on travel costs so my coach pass has been an amazing help to have for four years. It’s taken a lot of the stress out of preparations and I hope that I can repay National Express by winning a medal in Glasgow.”
National Express is running direct daily coach services from London to Glasgow during the Games, with single fares starting at £15 providing Team England fans with a convenient and affordable transport link.
Arthur Gaskin puts his foot in it
Arthur Gaskin was clearly in an extravagant mood as he enjoyed taking part in the Loch Ness Classic in Inverness.
One afternoon, while on a shopping spree with Aussie Steve Finitsis, he treated himself to a pair of sparkling new trainers. I’ll let Arthur tell the story on his Blog:
“In Inverness for the Loch Ness Open. A day before i travelled I treated meself to a new pair of Nike blazers that were on sale. Having not really tried them on in the shop and wearing them travelling I quickly realised they were too small and not bringing an extra pair I had the option of walking in my socks or to purchase a new pair!
“Ragin! Finding a retail park located behind the hotel, myself and room mate Steve Finitsis went for a look. En route back to hotel sporting a new shiny pair Asics, we decided to take a short cut to the hotel (more i as Steve had noticed a fence and a river in the path of the shorter route)
“Steve got over no worries. On jumping the fence I got caught a little from the fence, which could,ve been taken as a sign maybe to turn around?!
“Next obstacle was a river, successfully navigated by Steve by planting his foot on a grass patch. I followed suit but missed and by the time I got across I had one squeaky clean runner and one unrecognisable runner (and sock) covered in muck and water!
“I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but it was quite funny in one way and Steve got a good laugh out of it (especially while taking the picture of me applying the hairdryer to the shoe). I’ve always thought laughing is good for the soul, so laugh it was…”
Arthur clearly needs a shoe sponsor. Any offers, please contact Squash Mad.
Declan James explores the realms of self-inflicted injury
Getting hit by a squash ball is a very painful experience. England player Declan James came off court sporting a multi-coloured bruise during the recent Select Gaming Kent Open.
The unusual element is that this injury was self-inflicted as Declan wound up to strike a big crosscourt …. and sent the ball into his left leg.
Ouch!