George Bates has helped the GB Men’s Wheelchair Basketball team create history and win 2018 World Championship gold after a thrilling final against the USA.
The showdown produced a dramatic and historic 79-62 victory for Britain over the Rio Paralympic champions in Hamburg – and their first ever global gold.
Loughborough College alumnus Bates top-scored for GB with 18 points in the semi-final against Paralympic silver medallist Spain and in the final jointly led the scoring with Harry Brown with 17 points and an an outstanding 87% FG average.
“It’s an amazing feeling to win the world championships. To go out there and beat the USA (arguably one of the best defensive teams ever) by 17 is an unbelievable achievement, and just shows that all the hard work we’ve put in over the last year was worth it.”
Former Loughborough College Sport student Bates captained Central England to Gold at the 2011 School Games and played for Leicester Cobras before moving to GSD Porto Torres in Europe and returning to play for Sheffield Steelers in the 2017/18 season. After helping the U22 team to Gold in the 2014 European Championships, the 2017 European Championships was the 24 year old’s first international appearance for the GB men’s senior team and saw the squad bring home silver.