Day three of the 2018 Winter Paralympic Games provided a much need rest for the Scottish snowsports athletes in PyeongChang. However, the ParalympicsGB wheelchair curlers were back on the ice for back to back matches against Sweden and reigning Paralympic champions Canada.
Wheelchair Curling
Having secured wins against Norway and Finland and suffered a single defeat to Switzerland, the Great Britain rink of Ailien Neilson, Gregor Ewan, Robert McPherson, Hugh Nibloe and Angie Malone MBE knew that two wins on day three of the Games would keep them well in contention for the coveted top four finish in the round robin stage.
It was the best possible start to the day for the ParalympicsGB team as they took two in the first end against Sweden and singles in the next four ends to race into a commanding lead. It proved too much for the Swedish rink who couldn’t recover and Great Britain ran out comfortable winners by 6-1.
They knew that their next match against Canada would be a much sterner test and both teams took to the ice with an identical round robin record of three wins and one defeat.
Brimming with confidence from their win against Sweden, Neilson’s rink made the best possible start and raced into a five shot lead after five ends. Canada rallied to take a single shot with the hammer in the sixth end but Great Britain stormed back to take three in the 7th end and win the match by 8-1.
This result left Great Britain second in the round robin table equal with Germany and South Korea with four wins and a single defeat after three days of competition. China head the table with an unbeaten record.
A delighted Aileen Neilson commented;
“It’s been a good day at the office, you can’t ask for much more than two victories so we’re really delighted. We’re now at 4-1 which is a really good position to be in. We’re just getting the feel for it more and more, each day we’re reading the ice better, playing the shot better and things are working out, we just want to keep making sure we build on that.
“Any team, if they go out there and play at their best, is going to win the match – we did that against Canada, we played good shots at crucial times and it got us the win.
“We did keep it tight to begin with and that was deliberate, we wanted to see how the ice played, keep as few stones in play as possible and make sure we’re looking after the house.
“You can look at the margin of victory and see it as a lot but it’s not something we focus on too much, this competition is just about getting the wins and making sure we’re taking the performances forward.
“You can learn from losses but we want to be in a position where we’re playing well and winning the game, there is a lot of momentum you can take forward.”
The action continues tomorrow with double silver medallist Brett Wild back on the slopes with Millie Knight for the Super Combined event, Scott Meenagh back in action with the Biathlon 12.5km and the wheelchair curlers facing Slovakia and the Neutral Paralympic Athlete team.
For an overview of Channel 4’s comprehensive coverage of the Games go to;
http://paralympics.channel4.com/news/2018-winter-paralympics-day-day-coverage-guide/