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In a study involving young people who had been persistently bullied, 22% said that bullying made them give up their interests.

(Beatbullying, 2010)

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Who watched coverage of the 2012 Olympics over the

summer?

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Even those who didn’t see any of it will have no doubt

heard about the brilliant Team GB…

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Who finished 3rd in the medals table with an amazing 29 Gold, 17 Silver and 19 Bronze medals.

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These athletes may be heroes all around the world but their paths to success haven’t all been plain sailing…

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18 year old Tom Daley was bullied at school when he was 14, after returning from the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

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Threats to “break his legs” made his parents worry that bullying would affect his performance and training for London 2012.

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Daley gave a great performance at London2012 in the synchronised diving but sadly missed out on a medal.

Despite ‘giving it his all’, one person thought this gave them the right to send a hurtful comment to his Twitter account, telling him he had let his deceased father down.

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So, what did Tom do…?

He could have given up on his dreams, let the bullies win and throw away his passion and talent for diving

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Far from it…

With the help and support of his family, Daley had the last laugh and won a bronze medal this summer.

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In the weeks before the 2012 Olympics began, internet ‘trolls’ began posting rude comments about Rebecca Adlington’s appearance on social network sites.

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Rather than keep it to herself and let it have a negative effect on her performance, Adlington blocked her Twitter Account in the build-up to London 2012 to avoid being distracted by negative messages.

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She then went on to win a bronze medal in her 400m freestyle event.

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The 23 year old Olympic swimmer then took the courageous step in speaking openly to the press about her decision to take a stand against cyber bullying.

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Did anyone watch the Paralympics 2012 coverage?

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For those who didn’t, here are some of Great Britain’s amazing, talented athletes…

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Ellie Simmonds is swimmer and Gold medalist and has a form of dwarfism.

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Jonnie Peacock, 100m runner, Gold medalist had his lower left leg amputated aged 5 following meningitis.

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All of the Paralympians who competed have had to overcome numerous physical barriers and challenges in order to become the successful athletes they are today.

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Some have had to overcome other barriers as well, such as bullying…

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Sarah Storey, who was born without the use of her left hand, was bullied as a child for her sporting successes.

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Sarah had the last laugh, winning a gold medal in cycling in the 2012 Paralympics.

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Other than being great athletes, what all these people have in common is the courage and determination to not let bullying stop them doing the things they enjoy and are good at.

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Find your courage and ALWAYS speak out and get help if you are being bullied.

You never know, it could be you at Rio 2016!

Everyone has the right to participate, no matter what barriers they may face.

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“We’re better without

Bullying”.