Scott's star on rise for new cross country skiing season

Cumbernauld para-athlete Scott Meenagh (right) with Olympic swimmer Callum Skinner (pic by Alistair Ross)

The 27-year-old has been named Graham + Sibbald’s ‘Rising Star’ and over the next year he will receive support from the chartered surveyors as he begins to compete on the world stage in his new sport.

The announcement was made at an event held in the Merchant’s Hall in Edinburgh recently.

On the day 150 Graham + Sibbald staff and guests were present to hear from previous Rising Stars Craig Benson (swimming) and Callum Skinner (cycling) and new Rising Star Meenagh.

Meenagh played his first game of rugby for Cumbernauld on his 11th birthday and he was hooked, going on to play at every age group up to senior level.

He joined the 2nd Battalion Parachute Regiment in 2009 and was injured by an improvised explosive device in Helmand province in 2011 which resulted in amputation of both of his legs.

“When I was injured I was very low for a while and it took me time to come to terms with what had happened to me,” he said.

“Slowly I came round to what had happened to me and I remembered back to the times when rugby had been a massive driver in my life.

“It kept me on the straight and narrow and taught me so much about teamwork, never giving in, treating other people with respect and working hard.

“I was missing sport at the time and those memories threw me back into competing.”

Since being wounded he has been involved in ice hockey, archery sailing and rowing amongst other pursuits.

He has won medals at the Endurance Games in America for water-skiing and has competed in two Invictus Games and claimed medals there too in rowing.

“Rowing made me feel like I was an athlete again and redefined me,” he added.

“I loved the Invictus Games and then to get into the GB team and push for Rio was amazing. I just missed out on going to the Paralympics, but being around some of the guys who did go made me realise that I still love competing so much.

“To get to that level of fitness and competition so quickly after my injuries gave me a real boost and now I have refocused my goals and I am looking at cross-country skiing now.”

“I want to now show people what I can do in this sport and I have been training hard. The Armed Forces Para-Snowsport Team have now been good enough to let me work with them and in December I will be taking part in my first World Cup event in Finland.”