BRAZIL-BOUND Borderers have been wished the best of luck by Scottish Borders Council, as they prepare to jet off to Rio for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Mark Robertson, Patrick Wilson, Grant Ferguson, Chris O’Hare, Samantha Kinghorn, Libby Clegg, Stephen Clegg and Dan Wallace will all be representing the region.

In the Olympics, Mark from Melrose will be playing rugby sevens, Grant from Peebles will be taking part in the mountain biking and Chris from West Linton will be competing in the athletics.

In the Paralympics, Patrick from Peebles will be taking part in boccia and Samantha from Gordon will compete in the athletics.

Councillor Vicky Davidson, Scottish Borders Council’s Executive Member for Culture, Sport, Youth and Communities, said: “I am delighted that so many sportsmen and women who hail from our region will be competing at the very highest level in the Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer.

“It is an incredible achievement to reach what is the pinnacle of sport, and I am sure I speak for everyone when I wish them all the very best of luck and look forward to watching them compete on the biggest stage of all.

“They will be fantastic ambassadors for Great Britain and the Scottish Borders and I am sure that their selection for the GB team and their performances in Rio will inspire the next generation of sport stars in our region,” she added.

“It is a great shame that some local sportsmen and women were not able to make it to the Olympics and Paralympics this time, particularly Scott Brash, a gold medal winner at London 2012 and someone who would undoubtedly have been a gold medal contender in Brazil, but hopefully we will see them at Tokyo in 2020.”

Councillor Graham Garvie, Convener of Scottish Borders Council, added: “On behalf of everyone in the Scottish Borders I’d like to wish our Olympic and Paralympic athletes every success in Rio and hope that they enjoy what will no doubt be an incredible experience.

“We will be cheering them on from home and whether they return with a medal or not, we are extremely proud of them. For a number of them this will be their first Olympic/Paralympic Games, but hopefully not their last.”

Stars representing our region at the games are:

Mark Robertson – Rugby Sevens (Olympics) – Melrose
Patrick Wilson – Boccia (Paralympics) – Peebles
Grant Ferguson – Mountain Biking (Olympics) – Peebles
Chris O’Hare – Athletics (Olympics) – West Linton
Samantha Kinghorn – Athletics (Paralympics) – Gordon
Libby Clegg – Athletics (Paralympics) – Newcastleton
Stephen Clegg – Swimming (Paralympics) – Newcastleton
Dan Wallace – Swimming (Olympics) - Duns