Torpoint David Wetherill's super shot in top 50 sport moments

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Wednesday, January 02, 2013
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Western Morning News

Table tennis player David Wetherill, who pulled off a spectacular diving shot at the Paralympics, says he is stunned it was voted one of the top sporting moments of 2012.

His diving forehand at the London 2012 Games – dubbed the Superman – was picked by the International Paralympic Committee for fourth place in its top 50 sporting moments of the year.

  1. David Wetherill: I'm honoured to be viewed as one of the moments of the Games

    David Wetherill: I'm honoured to be viewed as one of the moments of the Games

"We train very hard for moments like this. It was very instinctive," Wetherill told the Press Association.

"I was running off pure adrenaline and just knew that if I could get to the ball then I could get it on the table."

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The 23-year-old from Torpoint, Cornwall, who admits he had a few bruises in the morning said: "Nothing was going to let that ball go past me so I just went for it and gave it my all.

"I remember trying to get my wrist around it because I knew I had to get a decent angle otherwise my opponent would still have won the point.

"It wasn't until I got up and looked at the scoreboard that I realised I'd won the point.

"The crowd was so loud that I couldn't hear the ball hit the table and I couldn't hear my coaches reply when I looked up and asked him.

"It wasn't until after the match that I realised what a great shot it was – at the time I was just happy to win the point. There was incredible support."

Both sets of coaches applauded the strike. The crowd went wild and it immediately became a global internet hit.

Wetherill, who was competing in the class six singles category, was knocked out of the tournament by Italy's Raimondo Alecci.

But he is determined to compete at the Rio 2016 Paralympics.

He said: "It is an honour but there's a lot more to me than just that shot. I never believed it would become such a hit. It is crazy to think that so many people have seen it.

"London 2012 has been momentous for Paralympic sport and I'm glad I was able to demonstrate some of what Paralympic athletes are capable of. To quote the commentator, it's 'amazing, ridiculous and fantastic' and I'm honoured to be viewed as one of the moments of the Games.

"Paralympians have been doing amazing things for years and hopefully more and more people are realising now that the standard is not so far away from Olympic standard."

The IPC's top 50 moments were selected by nominations from National Paralympic Committees and International Federations.

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