By James Crook

151139106May 1 - Britain's gold and double silver medal-winning equestrian rider Sophie Wells was on hand at ParalympicsGB's second Sports Fest at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield to get more disabled people involved in the sport with the help of a mechanical horse.

The Sports Fest followed the inaugural event in Surrey last December which aims to introduce disabled people of all ages to a variety of new sports as part of the London 2012 legacy.

Wells was joined alongside fellow Paralympic stars such as Jody Cundy and Hannah Cockroft as the athletes demonstrated their sports and spoke to attendees about their careers and how to get involved in their respective sport.

"It's a really good opportunity to let people have a go when they might not have previously thought of trying a certain sport," said Wells.

"It's fantastic to be here with other Paralympic athletes to share our story with kids and show them what could happen.

"It makes the day special and, as an athlete, it is humbling to see so many people who are inspired by what we've done."

151232418Sophie Wells won gold in the team event and also took two individual silver medals at London 2012

More than 700 people attended the free two-day event and tried out a variety of sports from goalball to table tennis under the supervision of a host of British Paralympic stars.

Wells was pleased with the attention Para-equestrian generated at the event.

"There was always a long queue at our stand as equestrian is one of the most popular sports," Wells explained.

"And that mechanical horse definitely generates interest.

"It was fantastic to be involved in Sports Fest.

"It has a really strong legacy aspect as people want to see the medallists and hear their stories.

"It brings people through the doors and helps to engage them in sport."

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