By Nick Butler

Belgium, whose team is pictured at the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympics, are using a warm weather training camp to boost their fortunes ©Getty ImagesA warm weather training camp has taken place in Lanzarote to prepare 17 top Belgian Paralympic athletes from three different sports for the 2015 season.


The camp, organised by the Belgian Paralympic Committee with the support of InBev-Baillet-Latour, took place at Sands Beach earlier this month and consisted of Para-athletes from athletics, swimming and cycling.

It is seen as a key marker for athletes from the European nation, and an opportunity to get an early advantage ahead of a busy season consisting of a number of big competitions.

These will include the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Swimming World Championships in Glasgow in July, the IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha in September and the International Cycling Union (UCI) Para-Cycling Road World Championships in the Swiss town of Nottwil in late July and early August.

In a longer term sense the camp is a stepping stone on the road to the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, where Belgium will be aiming to improve upon 36th place on the medals table at London 2012, when the nation won three gold, one silver and three bronze medals. 

But the latest camp was also a promotional opportunity seeking to raise the profile of the team and its athletes, with journalists and some corporate partners were also invited to join the camp on the Spanish island.

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