Scots seal two medals on day two
The medals came in quick concession on day two of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, with both being won in the velodrome (Para cycling, track).
Fin Graham faced off against fellow ParalympicsGB teammate, Jaco van Gass, in the men’s C3 3000m individual pursuit. The Scot put in a tremendous performance but being four seconds off the golden time, he had to settle for silver.
“As we said coming into it, Jaco is the one to beat, reigning world champion and he was Paralympic champion in Tokyo. It has shown he is able to peak at the right time. In this event there is no hiding, strongest man on the day wins and today that was Jaco.”
The duo provided a lot of entertainment in the morning heats. Jaco leapfrogged Fin’s world record just minutes after the Scot set the new world best time.
“It was a carbon copy to Tokyo – I go out, break a world record and then I have it for about five minutes, I barely get off the bike before Jaco’s taken it off me!” Said Fin.
Also finding the podium was Scotland’s Jenny Holl, pilot for Sophie Unwin (England) in the women’s 1000m time trial.
The pair held their nerve as the six fastest faced off on the track in what was a thrilling final. The Scottish/English duo were just 0.3 seconds away from claiming the silver medal.
In other news, it was a positive result for Nathan Macqueen in Para archery, who felt right at home competing in the rain.
“We excel in shooting in the rain. It’s our weather. If it’s like this for the rest of the week I’ll be laughing”, said the Scot who qualified for the last 16 with a 142-138 win against Slovakia’s Martin Doric in the men’s individual compound open.
On his performance, Nathan said: “It went fairly well. My heart was in my mouth a little bit. I started pretty well but I was really emotional – I don’t know if it was because my family were out there. It feels like I’ve won the Paralympics and I’ve only won my first match. But here’s to the rest of it, we’ll put on a good show.”
The 33-year-old from Addiewell will meet Iran’s Hadi Nori on Sunday (1st).
On the boccia courts, although it was a first defeat for Patrick in Paris, Stephen’s winning ways continued and Kayleigh secured her first win of the Games.
Stephen was first up and faced Ukraine’s Artem Kolinko in the men’s BC4 singles second group game. The 40-year-old from Hamilton gave a convincing performance, winning 7-1.
“Artem is a pairs European champion so he’s a tough opponent with a good win in his first game. So in terms of the structure of the group it was important to get that win so I’m very happy”, said Stephen.
Looking ahead, he said: “Boccia can be quite a funny sport – you can have a good day and then a bad day so it’s about staying as consistent as possible. Two wins out of two, I’ve got one group game left so fingers crossed. If I win that one I’m through and I top the group so that’s my goal.”
In the women’s BC2 singles, Kayleigh Haggo took the win against Portugal’s Ana Correia in her second match. It’s the first win for Kayleigh in Paris, recording 6-2 on the board.
“I played fantastic yesterday, I was really happy with that performance. I didn’t play as well today but I got the win and that’s all that matters. Once I knew I’d won the game it was crucial to try and get some more points on the board as that’s really important for qualification to the quarterfinals. It’s a long wait to find out if I’m in or not.” Said the 25-year-old from Ayr.
The win for Kayleigh guarantees her a place in the women’s BC2 singles quarterfinals.
“I came here with no expectations and no pressure so to get into the quarterfinals would be amazing”, commented Kayleigh.
Patrick Wilson was last up out of the trio, waiting until 8:40pm for his second pool match. The Lothian athlete had a tough competition against Australia’s Daniel Michel.
Despite a strong start, taking the opening end by two points, the Australian fought back to win the remaining three ends. The end score being 7-2.
Patrick’s final pool game will be against South Africa’s Karabo Morapedi, tomorrow (31st).
Martin Perry and Will Bayley’s dreams of a medal in the Para table tennis doubles came to an end tonight when home favourites, Clement Berthier and Esteban Herrault (FRA), held on to the lead to secure their spot in the men’s doubles MD14 semifinals.
The British pair looked to have an incredible comeback. After trailing 0-2 the duo fought hard to draw equal before conceding the final game, 11-9. The final score being 3-2 (11-6, 11-9, 9-11, 7-11, 11-9).
“It was an unbelievable experience. To have that atmosphere, however many thousands of us there were against the two of us, we showed our character. We were two points away from a Paralympic medal.” Said Martin, following the match.
“We had all the momentum going into that fifth set, we had played exceptionally well to get there from 2-0 down. We always believed in each other. They are European champions, ranked two in the world. We have shown we can win major medals, we just need that bit of luck.”
Next up for Martin is the singles MS6 competition starting on Monday (2nd).
The Paris 2024 Paralympics runs from the 28th August – 8th September. You can follow all the action and find out how the 21 Scottish Para athletes get on by following Scottish Disability Sport on Facebook, X and Instagram, as well as on the SDS website. You can catch all the action on Channel 4. More information here.