Paralympic medallists in the sports of wheelchair basketball, track cycling, swimming and athletics will star at three world class venues in the city at the annual event on 20-25 May.

Leading the North West’s hopes for medals are five Paralympic cycling champions from Beijing, who will take to the track at the Manchester Velodrome on 20-23 May. Jody Cundy (Manchester), Anthony Kappas (Stockport), Sarah Storey (Manchester), Barney Storey (Manchester), Simon Jackson (Rochdale) and Ric Waddon (Manchester) are part of a ten-strong British team.

At the Manchester Aquatics Centre, Jenny McCoughlin (St Helens), Heather Frederiksen (Leigh), Natalie Jones (Manchester), Rachel Latham (Wigan) and Matthew Walker (Stockport) will represent the North West as part of the British team on 25 May, whilst Elizabeth Simpkin (Southport), competes in the International Open for GB on 24 May.

The Manchester Regional Arena is hosting two sports this year: athletics on 24 May, with local hero Ian Jones (Manchester) taking to the starting blocks along with fellow North West athletes Shelly Woods (Blackpool), Graeme Ballard (Chorley), Michael Churm (Manchester), Sophie Hancock (Chorley) and Jenny McLoughlin (Stockport).

Wheelchair basketball will also be hosted at the Arena from 20-23 May, with Abdi Jama (Liverpool), and Dan Highcock (Liverpool) taking on the region’s hopes in the men’s match and Laurie Williams (Manchester) competing for the British women’s team.

Peter Mearns, Executive Director of Communications and Marketing at the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), a partner of the event, said: “To see so many North West athletes competing on home soil is wonderful and I am hopeful that this advantage is reflected in their results.

“The Northwest Regional Development Agency is pleased to support the BT Paralympic World Cup again. It is a major event which is attracting more competitors and visitors every year, and contributing a significant amount to the regional economy. Events such as the BT Paralympic World Cup help to further cement the Northwest’s reputation as the ideal location for international events.”

Councillor Mike Amesbury, Executive Member for Culture and Leisure at Manchester City Council said, “On behalf of the city of Manchester, I would like to send my support to all the athletes competing in this year’s BT Paralympic World Cup in Manchester, particularly our own competitors from the North West, some of whom are fresh from incredible performances at the Beijing 2008 Paralympics including Manchester-based cyclist Sarah Storey, who brought home two gold medals from Beijing and Manchester’s top athlete and double bronze medallist, Ian Jones.

“The BT Paralympic World Cup is the first major multi-sport elite disability event to be staged since the Beijing Paralympic Games and Manchester is delighted to be hosting this prestigious event for the fifth year. I would like to wish all competitors every success for this and the London Paralympics in 2012, and look forward to welcoming them all to Manchester in May.”

The BT Paralympic World Cup will be staged in Manchester from 20-25 May, with over 400 competitors from over 31 countries scheduled to compete.

Athletes will compete in four sports at world class competition venues in Manchester: wheelchair basketball and athletics hosted at the Manchester Regional Arena, swimming at the Manchester Aquatics Centre and track cycling at the Manchester Velodrome.

Tickets for the BT Paralympic World Cup are now on sale and can be purchased via the event website: www.btparalympicworldcup.com or the ParalympicsGB website: www.paralympics.org.uk or by calling 0844 847 1622. Tickets cost £3 per session.

BT is the title sponsor of the Paralympic World Cup; the sponsorship runs up to and includes the 2012 BT Paralympic World Cup. The official 2009 stakeholders of the BT Paralympic World Cup are the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), Manchester City Council and UK Sport. The BT Paralympic World Cup is run in association with ParalympicsGB and is sanctioned by the IPC, the UCI and IWBF.

The BBC, the official televised partner to the event, will broadcast live from the Manchester Aquatics Centre on Monday 25 May 2009 on BBC Television.