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Army veteran Dave Wilkinson is determined to continue his Invictus journey. Although not selected to represent Team UK at the Invictus Games in Sydney, in 2018, he remained positive and focused, taking all the feedback from his coach and support network.
He spent time training and working on improving his fitness levels, and his commitment was rewarded with selection for Team UK for the Invictus Games at The Hague in 2020. The Invictus programme has enabled him to build his confidence and also support those in a similar situation.
He said: “Since I have been on the Invictus journey it has opened my eyes to not only do this as an individual, but also support others and help them get into something they are passionate about. As an amputee, I speak to various people, including individuals with limitations, to see how I can improve as a person, but also help the person improve too.
"I want to show others that, regardless of your disability, whether it is mental or physical, there is something out there for you to compete in and do well, but, also, you can achieve anything in life. This will give me both drive and focus to ensure that I can achieve my goals in supporting others.
“Not being able to train as a team, face to face, during the pandemic made it hard for everyone. Both wheelchair rugby and sitting volleyball coaches set up training for us to do online, which was great. I focused on other training, whether it would be training at home, taking the dog for a walk and then going back to the gym once we were able to. The online workshops from Help for Heroes were very useful.”