Paralympics LIVE: Great Britain’s Brock Whiston wins silver on Games debut at Paris 2024
ParalympicsGB’s Jaco van Gass, Lizzi Jordan and Tully Kearney also won golds on day two
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The Paralympic Games kicked off in fine fashion on Thursday as the action got underway at Paris 2024.
And day two was another golden day for Paralympics GB who added to their medal tally with incredible performances in the pool and on the velodrome track.
Blaine Hunt started the medal rush with a silver in the men’s C4-5 1000m time trial at the velodrome before Matt Robertson won bronze in the men’s C2 3000m individual pursuit. Jaco van Gass then defeated GB teammate Finlay Graham in the C3 3000m individual pursuit to claim ParalympicsGB’s first gold medal of the day with Graham also adding a silver.
Elizabeth Jordon and pilot Dannielle Khan were also victorious as they won Britain’s fourth gold of the Games win the women’s B 1000m time trial while Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl also won bronze.
In the pool, Tully Kearney added to the gold medley she won in the women’s S5 200m freestyle yesterday by triumphing in the 100m event this afternoon and Maisie Summers-Newton defended her title in the women’s SM6 200m medley.
Elsewhere, Zachary Shaw qualified for the final of the men’s T12 100m, while team-mate Eden Rainbow-Cooper also progressed in the women’s T54 5000m.
Follow all the action, latest results and medals from Paris 2024 in our live blog below:
Teenager Poppy Maskill’s adorable reaction after winning Team GB’s first Paralympic gold medal
Swimmer Poppy Maskill set a new world record to deliver Great Britain’s first gold medal of Paris 2024.
The 19-year-old clocked one minute and three seconds to claim the women’s 100m butterfly S14 title on Thursday (29 August).
Asked how she was feeling, an overwhelmedMaskill appeared lost for words.
When asked if she realised how fast she was swimming, she told Channel 4 Sport: “I was just trying not to die.
“I was just trying my hardest to see what happens.”
GB v Denmark
Great Britain and Denmark are playing out a fine match in their second wheelchair rugby group game.
GB lead 16-15 with Stuart Robinson scoring half of his team’s tries so far.
There’s a buoyant atmosphere inside the Champs de Mars arena which will only improve if this game goes the distance too.
Twomey and Stacey between in table tennis
Bly Twomey was hoping to add to her bronze medal from yesterday in the table tennis today but, alongside partner Josh Stacey, has been beaten in the mixed doubles XD17 quarterfinals.
China’s Mao Jingdian and Zhao Shuai were too good winning the match 3-0 with 11-3, 12-10, 11-5 victories on their way to the semi-finals.
It was a tough outing for the Brits.
British cyclists perform in velodrome
Archie Atkinson has got his Paralympic Games off to a blistering start with a rapid time of 1:03.508 for the men’s C4-5 1000m time trial at the velodrome.
The top six times make it into this evening’s final and Atkinson currently sits top of the table.
Jody Cundy, a cycling veteran, is up next. The 45-year-old has five cycling gold medals to his name as well as three golds from swimming.
Cundy is the world record holder in the C4 category but he set that time 10 years ago. Cundy’s ride is strong, composed and quality. It’s a time of 1:02.384 and shoots into the lead.
That’s more than a second quicker than Atkinson, but the results of this heat mean both men qualify for the final.
Afghan taekwondo para-athlete makes history with first medal for the Refugee Paralympic Team
Zakia Khudadadi made history on Thursday at the Paris Paralympics by becoming the first athlete from the Refugee Paralympic Team to win a medal.
Khudadadi won bronze in the women’s 47kg category after defeating Turkey’s Ekinci Nurcihan. When the final buzzer sounded at the Grand Palais in central Paris, Khudadadi erupted in joy, throwing her helmet and mouthpiece into the air.
Afghan taekwondo para-athlete wins first medal for Refugee Paralympic Team
Zakia Khudadadi has made history at the Paris 2024 Paralympics by becoming the first athlete from the Refugee Paralympic Team to win a medal
Wheelchair rugby has begun
Great Britain are back in wheelchair rugby action following the hard-fought for victory over Australia yesterday. The mixed wheelchair rugby team are back in action against Denmark this morning.
The current scoreline is 8-8 which points to another tense match developing here.
Zac Shaw reacts to 100m heat win
Zac Shaw will have the chance to win a medal in the men’s T12 100m race after clinching his heat by one hundreth of a second.
After the race he said: “The floor was so wet, it was quite slippy. Then the crowd started going and when they pulled the false start back I wasn’t sure if it was because of the crowd noise.
“I’m relieved it wasn’t me, at the end I was on the floor because I was told I came second. I’m visually impaired so obviously couldn’t see the screen. It’s only now that I realised I’m in the final.
“You train for hours and hours so to win it by one hundreth is... yeah. I’m definitely going to try and medal [in the final]. I’ll give it my best and whether I get one or not it’ll be my best.
“I’ve come a long way after missing out on Rio and Tokyo and making a final at my first Games is something I’ve dreamed about since I was a child.”
Jurgen Klopp urges broadcasters to show more of ‘wonderful’ Paralympics
Jurgen Klopp likened the Paralympics opening ceremony to a Taylor Swift concert as he called for greater coverage of the Games after watching his long-time friend Wojtek Czyz play badminton at Paris 2024.
Former Liverpool boss Klopp regards Czyz’s story as the most inspiring he has ever heard and was a high-profile spectator on court one of the La Chapelle Arena on Thursday afternoon.
“I always watch it, if you can, because that’s already a challenge to start, try to find Paralympics on television,” said the 57-year-old, who left Anfield this summer.
“Nowadays it should be easier with all the streaming things but I think we all are ready to watch much more than we show. Only a few weeks ago we had the Olympics here and they had more cameras here, of course. Somebody has to start with it.
“Broadcasting is a business, 100 per cent, I understand that but I really think we should show much more because it’s so encouraging, it’s so wonderful.
“We experienced the Olympics here in Paris, and before that the world was in a big, big crisis maybe but for these two and a half weeks we forgot it, because that’s what sport can do and that’s what the Paralympics can do and there’s no difference, there’s absolutely no difference.
“The stories behind athletes are always special, because my friend is super special, and that’s what I love about sport, that it can change the world, sometimes only for moments and sometimes forever.”
Swimming twins qualify through heats
Eliza and Scarlett Humphrey, the blind identical twins swimming for Great Britain, have both qualified out of their heats in the S11 women’s 400m freestyle.
Scarlett set a time of 5:28.25 with Eliza’s finishing in 5:41.72.
Those times saw the twims reach tonight’s final in 6th and 8th spots but they’ll both need to improve if they want to challenge for the medals.
Anastasia Pagonis of the USA set the fastest qualifying run of 5:04.60.
Summers-Newton easily into final
It’s been a fine morning for Maisie Summers-Newton who has secured her place in the women’s SM6 200m individual medley final.
Her swim was a quick (just outside the world record time) and confident. She seems hungry to succeed and is in a great position to defend her title this evening.
Her time of 2:58.40 should also be good enough to qualify in top spot. The final race is at 5pm.
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