Grace-ful skipper the captain of GB Team
If Telford Ice Rink had not been closed for refurbishment in 2012, Grace Garbett might never have tried her hand at inline hockey.
But just over three years after she took her first steps in the sport, the Telford-based 11-year-old is preparing to captain Great Britain at two major international tournaments in America next month.
Garbett has been selected to skipper the under-10s side for both the AAU Junior Olympics and the World Junior Championships in Corona, California.
The honour caps a rapid rise through the ranks for Garbett, who only tried the sport of inline hockey, or roller hockey as it is also known, as an alternative to ice hockey when her home rink closed temporarily.
Her delighted father Mike said: "Grace had taken up ice hockey at seven years old for Telford and she started playing roller hockey when the rink closed for refurbishment.
"If the rink hadn't shut we wouldn't have known anything about roller hockey. But we heard about Shrewsbury Scorpions, who train at Sundorne Games Hall, through other ice hockey players we knew.
"Grace decided to take up the sport to keep her ice skills sharp because the skills needed for roller hockey are very transferable and vice versa.
"She went to a training session, gave it a go and she hasn't looked back since."
Garbett, who plays as a centre, still turns out for the Scorpions and has since established herself as a rising star in the sport.
She made the Midlands team which trains in Lutterworth before being spotted by national scouts while taking part in a regional match in Rotherham.
The Thomas Telford School pupil has played for Great Britain under-10s before and helped guide them to the Junior Olympics gold medal in 2013 as well as a bronze in the World Junior Championships that same year.
And following trials for the national team last winter, she was again selected for both events, with the additional honour of wearing the armband.
Mike said: "She had to take part in three trials to be selected for Great Britain and she was confident about her chances afterwards.
"But you never know until the letter drops onto your doorstep to confirm your place. When it did she was over the moon and when she found out she had been selected as captain she was in bits."
Garbett is one of only two girls who has made the team for the tournaments, which take place in July.
The team is mixed gender and rules allow girls aged 11 to play at under-10s level.
She said: "I am so proud to be made the captain of Team GB and will work my hardest to help the team win a medal again."
The team will play up to 15 games over the course of the two tournaments and Garbett is hoping that her latest international selection will provide another important stepping stone on the way to her ultimate ambition of winning senior GB honours in both inline hockey and ice hockey.
Mike said: "Her ultimate ambition would be to play for the GB senior team in both sports.
"She hasn't chosen to concentrate on one sport and they are very much connected.
"You have got a lot of ice hockey players who play roller hockey in the summer and she just wants to go as far as she can in both."
