Release Date: 17 June 2008

Wheelchair racer Kurt Fearnley has been named best in the Commonwealth in an awards ceremony in Glasgow, Scotland last week.

Fearnley beat out an English archer and a Cypriot athlete to be named Outstanding Elite Male Athlete with a Disability at the 27th Commonwealth Sports Awards. Unable to attend the awards due to training commitments for the Beijing Paralympics, Fearnley's win came as a surprise to him.

"I hadn't heard anything after the awards last Thursday so I assumed I didn't win. My mate saw an article in the paper saying that only two Australians had won (Swimmer Lisbeth Trickett and Lawn Bowler Kelsey Cottrell) so again, I assumed I'd missed out" Fearnley said.

That was until Monday morning when Fearnley received an email from the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Commonwealth Games Association, Perry Crossthwaite, telling him that he had a trophy to deliver.

"When I got that news I was so excited. To be named best in the Commonwealth is the highest international honour that I've received, and to be recognised in the same company as previous winners like Ian Thorpe, Paula Radcliffe and now Lisbeth and Kelsey is just awesome".

Fearnley was recognised after dominating the sport of wheelchair athletics in 2007 with 10 wins from 11 marathon starts and a Gold medal in the 1500m at IAAF World Athletics Championships.

To follow Kurt's Beijing preparations visit his Blog at http://kurtfearnley.bigblog.com.au/index.do