Dumbarton's Martin Perry determined to make most of World Championship wildcard

Dumbarton’s Martin Perry admits that finding out he had secured a wildcard for the Para Table Tennis World Championships in November was a whirlwind of emotion.

But after securing his spot following a tense six-week wait, Martin is now determined to enjoy the opportunity on the biggest stage.

In July, Martin travelled to locations as far afield as Argentina and Thailand aiming to secure his place in the World Championships, however a defeat left him waiting anxiously to see if he had the wildcard.

Late last month, he was granted a wildcard - despite a prank from performance director Gorazd Vecko initially making him fear he’d missed out.

Martin, who has a condition known as congenital limb loss and deformity which resulted in him being born with no hands and only one leg, said: “It took me by surprise.

“When automatic qualification didn’t quite go to plan then I knew we’d apply for a wildcard, but you can never count on being awarded one.

“I just carried on as normal with my training and my preparation. I’ve still got other competitions this year before the World Championships, so it was business as usual.

“Every day and night it was at the back of your mind though. Am I going to get it?

“I was actually at training when it was released. I’d been refreshing it for as long as I could, but I had to go out at some point.

“The performance director phoned me. He said it was, as expected, bad news and we hadn’t got it.

“I said I understood and thanked him for trying. And he was like ‘Martin, I’m only kidding’.

“I didn’t know what to do!

“I ran to the computer and there I was. I feel a bit guilty because my wife wasn’t the first one to find out, the whole table tennis club did.”

Martin is now focused on preparations for the