Hammer thrower and former Clydebank Rugby Club player Mark Dry will be competing in Rio 2016 next month.

Dry discovered the news last week, and since then it has been non-stop for the Highlander.

He played for the rugby club during 2010-12.

The 28-year-old said: “It’s been pretty non-stop since (I found out), we came straight back from Amsterdam so it’s been sorting things out from there and when that came through it’s been kitting out and interviews and bits and bobs.

“Luckily I’ve had a week off training to finish the rest of my prep off going into Rio but it’s just been busy trying to get stuff into Rio, speak to family and just sort out where we’re going from here.”

Dry won a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2014 at Glasgow, and he’s aiming high once again.

He added: “The aim for when I get to the Olympics is to make the final, we’ve got three of us there and there’s two qualifying pools and the top 12 athletes make the final.

“Everybody gets three throws, it’s a big pressure pot, everybody has got to get it together in those three throws.

“The top 12 overall make the final so we’ll try and get as many Brits as we can there.”

Dry moved down from the Highlands to work in Glasgow, and through friends and colleagues he discovered Clydebank Rugby Club.

He said: “ the former Scottish record holder Chris Black to help me so I managed to get a job down in Glasgow and I wanted to play rugby.

“I had an acquaintance at the time that put me in touch with Ronny Simpson, the physio, he did a lot of the physio on the Strongman Circuit and he trained down at Dumbarton with the weight lifting gyms so I did my athletics stuff down there, I did my athletics stuff at the gym down there.

“And Ronny put me in contact down there and yeah, they took me in and I felt like the rest of the family and I just loved playing there for 2 years, it was an unbelievable time there.”

The athlete spoke fondly of his time at the rugby club, and said that he was thrown in at the deep end in his first game with the team.

He added: “I remember the first game I played for them. I hadn’t really spoken to them, but they heard that there was a guy that was reasonably fit down there so I turned up and had a game with them.

“They threw me the number 10 shirt and I was like ‘What? I don’t know anyone, I don’t know any of the players’. I didn’t know anybody and I was thinking you can’t stick me in at 10. I thought whatever, I’ll get on with it, but yeah, that didn’t last very long.”

Dry said that playing with the Bankies were some of the best times of his life, and wishes he could juggle his hammer throwing and rugby at the same time.

The athlete spoke fondly of his time at the rugby club, and said that he was thrown in at the deep end in his first game with the team. 

He added: “I remember the first game I played for them I hadn’t really spoken to them, but they heard that there was a guy that was reasonably fit down there so I remember turning up and having a game with them.

“They threw me the number 10 shirt and I was like “What?” I don’t know anyone, I don’t know any of the players” I didn’t know anybody and I was thinking you can’t stick me in at 10. I thought whatever, I’ll get on with it,  but yeah - that didn’t last very long.”

Dry said that playing with the Bankies was some of the best times of his life, and wishes he could juggle his hammer throwing and rugby at the same time.

He said: “It was the time of my life, I wish I could go back there. I wish I could work all this around it as I had so many friends up there.

“I had so many good times before the match, during the match, after the match and at training. They are just a great bunch of guys. I really miss playing for them. 

“They’ve been really supportive ever since and when I was there and not as good as I am now, they always believed in me and supported me in (hammer) competitions.

“The guys came down to watch me compete when I was somewhere close enough. Year on year I’ve had nothing to do with the club, but I always help out and share their stuff, 

“I pop my head in when I go back through Glasgow and whenever I go down that way I pop my head in the clubhouse on a Saturday and see who’s around. 

“And they supported me the whole way through, they’ve always been big supporters of mine and they’ve always helped me. 

They knew I was going somewhere so I really appreciate it. People come and go but it’s really good to be a part of that family, I really did love them.”

And the Highlander hopes he gets a chance to throw on the shirt again at some point in the future.

He added: “I’d like to, I always want to go back for the old boys games, jump up at Christmas and have a couple of run outs but I’d love to go back and throw a jersey on.

“It would be unbelievable. I know I definitely will at some point no matter what as long as some of the boys that were around when I was there are at the club.”

“I will definitely go back and do something there even if it was a one off, whither its an off year as my body needs to taken a beating, you know I want to keep doing this but sometimes your body needs a rest so maybe I’ll take a half season off,  go train with them and and give my body a break.”