PARALYMPIC AND PARA SPORTS NEWS

Ian Silverman breaks 400m individual medley mark
Reigning 400m freestyle world and Paralympic champion Silverman provisionally shaves 0.15 seconds off SM10 world record at national competition in Richmond, USA.

Vote now for January’s Athlete of the Month
Nominees for the award include: Alena Kaufman, Shingo Kunieda, Roman Petushkov, Markus Salcher, Anna Schaffelhuber and Mike Shea.
Five things to know: Czech Republic's sledge hockey team
With a new coach but an experienced lineup, can the Czech Republic medal for the first time at Sochi 2014?

Joint IPC Shooting and ISSF visit to Rio ‘encouraging’
Delegation in charge of visit to site of 2016 Paralympic Games leaves comfortable with progress.

Serbia: 12 facts on the Sochi 2014 Paralympics
London 2012 was a gold rush for Serbia, who have never won a medal at a Paralympic Winter Games
Sochi 2014 is ready whatever the weather
Organisers have implemented a range of innovative solutions to ensure the weather does not interfere with the Games.

Brazilian post office Corrieos to play key role in Rio 2016
More than 30 million items will need to be delivered to Rio for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Can Loyd Remi Solberg reignite Vancouver 2010 magic?
After ups and downs due to injury, the Norwegian sledge hockey forward hopes to keep his team’s medal streak alive.

Denmark: Nine facts on the Sochi 2014 Paralympics
Denmark will be hungry to bring back the glory days of the 1990s when they drew in their winter medals.

Mongolia: Five facts on the Sochi 2014 Paralympics
The Asian country’s strength will lie in cross-country skiing at the Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi.

Swansea 2014 launches ‘Champions’ programme
With just 200 days to go until the start of the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships, Swansea 2014 has launched its drive to recruit 1,000 volunteers.

Joann Formosa in shock over Australia Day honour
The para-equestrian champion was one of 35 Paralympians named to the Australia Day honours list.
Schaffelhuber makes it 11 World Cup wins from the last 12
Vancouver bronze medallist now looks a strong contender for gold at Sochi after impressive start to 2014.

Denis Colle: A tough year to retain my European No.1
Belgian’s Denis Colle is currently the best European para-snowboarder on the circuit thanks to training in the USA, but is keen to point out that the quality of his competitors is improving all the time.

Elizabeth Broad: Top 5 nutrition tips for Paralympic alpine skiers
The author of ‘Sports Nutrition for Paralympic Athletes’ explains how Paralympic alpine skiers can get the most out of their training.

SKY Perfect shares full Sochi 2014 broadcast plans
Japanese Paralympic fans will be able to see coverage of Sochi 2014 at all hours of the day on demand.

Sochi 2014 reveals names of some Paralympic Torchbearers
With less than one month to go until the start of the Paralympic Winter Games Torch Relay, the Sochi 2014 Organising Committee has revealed some of the names of the torchbearers.

Belgium: Seven facts on the Sochi 2014 Paralympics
Having not won a medal at the Winter Paralympics since 1994, Belgium will hope to make an impact in Sochi.

Channel 4 to broadcast 150 hours of coverage from Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games
Biggest ever UK TV commitment to Winter Paralympics with 50 hours of TV coverage

Australia start move toward World Equestrian Games
Top para-equestrian riders in the Oceania region took part in their first competition of 2014.