Three BU journalism students are in Paris to follow the journey of a fellow BU scholar competing in the Paralympics.
Libby Evans, Abby West, and Tom Brash (from left to right in the photo) are visiting the French capital to report on Leo McCrea’s bid for para-swimming gold. Over three days, they will watch Leo compete, interview his family and friends, and report on other disability related stories for their student news website, BUzz. The trio will also receive in-person briefings from BU lecturers working at the games in a professional capacity.
Leo is competing in the SB5 100m breaststroke and the SM6 200m individual medley. A team of journalism students have been tracking his preparations at home, including attending a media day alongside the BBC and ITV in June.
BA Multimedia Journalism student Abby West said, “As soon as I heard about the opportunity to come to Paris to cover the Paralympics, I knew I wanted to be involved. It’s an honour to follow Leo’s journey, from interviewing him by the pool in Bournemouth to watching him compete at the highest level here in France.”
“I’m also looking forward to getting a glimpse of our lecturers' professional lives outside of the classroom. It just demonstrates that BU journalism students really are being taught by the best in the business.”
BU's Hamish Marshall is coordinating broadcast coverage for the Olympic Broadcasting Services whilst colleague Kris Temple is working as a stadium announcer in Paris. Both lecture on the BA Multimedia Journalism and BA Multimedia Sports Journalism programmes at BU.
Hamish Marshall said: “The students will be receiving the sorts of experiences money can’t buy. Nothing beats soaking up the sights and sounds of a major sporting event or the pressure of reporting first-hand.
“This will also an opportunity to broaden horizons and explore issues of diversity and accessibility in their journalistic work. I’m sure they will all grow both as journalists and people as a result.”
Leo McCrea is a swimming scholar and Sports Management student at Bournemouth University. He has been training with the BU High Performance Team. As part of SportBU strength and conditioning, coaches have also been helping Leo to optimise his performance in the pool.
