A BIG SLICE OF SUCCESS FOR ARRAN
A Rutherglen teenager had to punch above his weight to keep his hopes alive for a place at the taekwondo European championships.
Arran Stewart, 14, was due to fly out to Holland for an international competition on November 26.
But his 72kg weight category was axed from the event schedule the day before due to no other entries – leaving him with a dilemma.
And after deciding not to try to lose any more weight to take part in the 68.7kg category, Arran ended up bagging a silver medal in the heaviest section against some fighters weighing 80kg to 90kg.
He was also the youngest boy in the category and just missed out on a gold, losing to a Dutch international.
Arran said: “They pulled the weight just before we were going to fly over so I knew I would have to either go up a weight or lose five kilos.
“And I nearly did. I tried to lose as much as I could the day before and lost three kilos but my coach told me to stop or I would make myself sick.
“So I was put into the heaviest weight category against boys who were older than me – and heavier.
“When I got the silver I was gobsmacked.
“All I had to do was try my best and, to be honest, the last fight was really, really close.
“There were only a few