BT PARALYMPIC WORLD CUP Venue: Manchester Dates: 20-25 May Coverage: Live on BBC Two, 1500-1715 BST, Monday 25 May; Daily reports on the BBC Sport website
By Dame Tanni Grey Thompson BBC commentator and Paralympic gold medallist
As the Beijing Paralympics came to a close last September, there was a definite feeling that it was starting to be 'our' time.
Although the London bid was won back in 2005, until the 2008 Games were over it always seemed like such a long way away.
Beijing staged a spectacular Paralympic Games
Now the clock is counting down towards a number of tangible training sessions that make it very real to athletes and administrators alike.
Beijing provided both an amazing platform as well as a great Games (although sitting in the stands there was sometimes a feeling that the home crowd didn't quite get what was going on).
However, the 85,000-plus who came to watch the athletics every day raised the level of performance and expectation of the athletes, which I know is also true for the other sports.
It also raised the level of public expectation as swimmer Ellie Simmonds won two golds as a 13-year-old to concentrate British support and become a symbol of achievement.
The Paralympic World Cup in Manchester helps the cause and as it enters its fifth year, the event continues to provide a valuable platform for disability sport, both in terms of providing competitive opportunity but also in educating the spectators and the wider public.
Apart from all that sensible stuff, it is also a great event to be at!
British disability sport is looking strong heading into the next performance cycle
With just over three years until the start of the London Games, it is as important to carry on building up a strong spectator base as it is to give opportunities to young talent coming through.
For example, take the women's basketball team, where there is a new crop of young women coming through and now is the right time to introduce them to the world and to the next level of competition.
At the athletics, South Africa's Oscar Pistorius has been a strong supporter of the event. Many may be there to see how he has recovered from his boating accident earlier this year.
But he is also a very smart (and very nice) young man who realises that to reach his ambition of competing at the Olympic Games and continue in the Paralympic movement, he not only needs to run faster but continue to build his profile and have more people understand his story.
The good news is that British disability sport is looking strong heading into the next cycle.
Out of the sports that are taking place in Manchester over the next few days, swimming and cycling lead the way and delivered some amazing performances in Beijing to contribute significantly to the overall medal count.
Basketball is a favourite and I wish I had a pound for everyone who had ever said to me how dynamic they found it.
After Beijing, athletics have brought in a highly experienced head coach in the form of Peter Eriksson, who coached Canada's Chantal Peticlerc, among others, to a squillion gold medals.
Everything seems to be in the right position to build on this and get even better.
Oscar Pistorius will be one of the stars on show in Manchester
These are four of the sports in which the public expect Britain to do well and will help Paralympics GB deliver on its own medal target.
But there is a growing debate about whether the sports should alternate and after this year's event that is a valid one. Perhaps other sports should be given the chance to join in and have a share of the limelight.
There are lots of things that I am looking forward to, of course - Oscar undoubtedly and also British wheelchair racer David Weir. I do not think that he has reached his potential yet and if he can continue to stay motivated he could have an incredible three years ahead.
I thought that when I retired I would have loads of time to see other things that I did not look at when I was racing but the reality is that at major Games I still spend most of my life at athletics and only watch other sports after hours.
But this time I am really looking forward to the swimming and, as with the rest of the nation, I will be there cheering on Ellie to hopefully another famous victory.
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