Stephanie Millward, who works in the credit services department of Wilts Electrical Wholesalers, is through to the Beijing Paralympics.

This is a remarkable achievement for Stephanie, 26, because when she was 15 she was a British Record Holder in swimming and training for the Sydney Oympics.

At 17 her world was shattered when she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and she was left temporarily blind and in a wheelchair.

For the last six years, Stephanie has been coaching young people in swimming but in the last seven months has really trained hard to see if she can qualify for the Paralympics. She has.

She is through to the 36-strong squad and is currently training before and after work. She is eating and doing everything right to make sure she gives herself every chance - with just the occasional jaffa cake to look forward to (high in carbs and protein!).

Stephanie will be flying out to Hong Kong on August 23 to acclimatise and train and then on to Beijing for the opening ceremony.

She will be competing in the 100m backstroke and 100m fly (both of which she holds the current European record in) and the 100m freestyle. Her aim is to get a gold medal in the 100m backstroke.

Kevin Burns, sales & marketing director at Wilts said: "This is an incredible achievement.

"Stephanie is a great asset to our business as she shows us how possible it is to reach your goal if you are dedicated and focused. She is both, and we are proud of her. Wilts will be shouting from the rooftops to cheer her on."

Stephanie said: "I'm very, very happy and can't wait for the experience. I hope it shows people just what you can achieve even if unexpected obstacles come your way. I feel confident after the results of the latest competitions that I have entered and I'm really training hard so I can give myself every chance of winning a medal."

Before Beijing, Stephanie will be swimming in the Paralympics World Cup this weekend in Manchester for Melksham Swimming Club, followed by the International German Swimming Championship later this month. Based in Trowbridge, Wilts employs 700 people across 73 outlets, offering 26,000 product lines and enjoys sales of £114 million.

For more information visit www.wilts.co.uk

5:00pm Thursday 15th May 2008

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