Tag: hope gordon

Hope Gordon on Her Medal Win in Paris, Representing Scotland and the Importance of Female Influences in Sport

By Bethany Lee

Hope Gordon had an incredible 2024 Paralympics in Paris, leaving with a shiny silver medal in the women’s VL3 200m final alongside her ParalympicsGB teammate Charlotte Henshaw who took the gold.

Hope is now a three-time world silver medalist in Para canoe, storming through the world rankings.

Post-Paris, she hopped on a zoom with Scottish Disability Sport to tell us all about her Paralympics journey, how it feels to represent Scotland and what sport means to her.

 

So, have you recovered from the excitement and exhaustion yet of the Paralympics?

I’ve not really had time to sit by myself and think about it all since I got back. I’ve definitely tried to catch up on some sleep, especially after the homecoming in Birmingham, I had two days just to chill and I think I slept for 23 hours.

That must’ve been very needed. Take me back to that moment when you realised you had just won a Paralympic silver medal.

Well, we’ve kind of had the top two spots for the past few years, me and Char. Obviously we both want to win, but I was happy that she got it, and it was just really cool to get those top spots for ParalympicsGB. This is my first Paralympic medal so that was really special.

I also think to have so many family and friends in the stands, and knowing there’s a lot more watching back home, was really cool. It almost means more to me seeing how much it means to other people.

You were the only Scottish para canoer in the ParalympicsGB team – how does it feel to be able to represent Scotland?

I’m always so proud to fly the flag for Scotland within our team. Hopefully we will get more Scottish athletes within the system, I know there’s a couple that have just started out in a boat now, so hopefully over the next few years we see more racing. Maybe I’m the first, but I definitely don’t think I’ll be the last, so that’s the important thing.

It’s special to be the only one, and my family always makes sure there’s some Saltires in the crowd so that makes it easy for me to spot them!

And obviously you’re a brilliant para Nordic skier as well, did you feel different going into Paris after competing in the 2022 Winter Paralmypics?

It was a bit daunting going to the Winter Paralympics being so new to the sport and racing against massively established athletes. I was definitely a wee fish in a big pond, and it was quite significantly out of my comfort zone; but equally I actually think that benefited me going into Paris this year.

Even though it was a much bigger event, all I need to do is just paddle in a straight line as fast as I can and there wasn’t anybody on the start list in Paris that I hadn’t raced before so I kind of knew what I was doing, which wasn’t the case in Beijing.

You were the first female para-Nordic skier on the ParalympicsGB team. Do you think things have changed for female athletes?

I think with Paris this year what was really good was that we had the same events. In Tokyo within paracanoing, the guys had an extra event than the girls which obviously wasn’t great, especially since it was the event that I probably would have done. So, it’s a big step forward even from Tokyo to Paris and within our sport to have the same amount of events.

Within our team, the girls are super strong and it’s really cool to be a part of that. We got 8 medals, and the girls got 6 of those so it’s a strong team, especially on the female side.

On the Nordic side, it was a bit different being the only one. It’s just about taking opportunities and trying tings and just because you haven’t seen a female that looks like you doing the same sport, it doesn’t mean it’s not possible.

Fitting with that idea, it is Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week, and the theme is leadership. Are there any female coaches or influences in your life that have helped pushed you to where you are today?

I’ve had a few female coaches over my time. For swimming, when I was in Sterling, I had a female coach, Kerry, who got me through some quite tough times in and out of hospital.

I also think that such a big part of performance sport that people forget about is the volunteers, especially in rural areas. We would be absolutely lost without volunteers, and a huge portion of those, in my experience, have been female. My mum is actually one of those volunteers, it’s been a long time since I’ve been swimming at the clubs at home, but she’s still a volunteer coach.

When I joined the GB team, it was heavily male dominant from a staffing perspective, whereas now one of the main coaches is female, and the physio is female and she’s the best sports phsycio I’ve ever had, we would be broken without her.

Quite literally I can imagine! Do you think your younger self would believe where you are today and what you’ve achieved in sport?

I first watched the Paralympics in 2008 when I was in Yorkhill Children’s Hospital in Glasgow. I’d just had a procedure that hadn’t gone to plan, and it left me quite ill, I had to lay completely flat on my back for a long time and I was put into a little side room and there was this tiny TV in the corner, and I watched the Beijing Summer Paralympics. If you’d asked that 13-year-old lying in a hospital bed if I’d go and compete in a summer and winter Paralympics in the space of two years and come away with a meal, there’s no way I would have thought I could do one of those things, nevermind all three of them.

Sport has been massively important, doctors told me that if I wasn’t so active my condition would have spread or gotten significantly worse. There’s also the psychological side of it, it gives you structure in your day, it gives you a reason to get out of bed. I think for me when I was going through quite a tough time, it felt like I could leave my wheelchair at the side of the pool and forget about it for two hours.

I genuinely don’t know what I would have done if I didn’t have sport as a bit of an outlet to help me cope with things.

Finally, looking ahead, what is next for you?

I don’t know, is the honest answer, but I definitely hope I’ll be on the team in LA in a boat!

Alison Peasgood and guide Brooke Gillies running during the Para triathlon water to bike transition area. They are wearing their wetsuits and swimming caps and googles.

“Girls can do sport, we’re really good at it!” The Scottish women that smashed the Paris 2024 Paralympics

In honour of Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week, here is a roundup of all the Scottish women that competed at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, and what female leadership in sport means to them.

By Bethany Lee


 

The Paris 2024 Paralympics was a whirlwind event that ended with ParalympicsGB in 2nd place in the medals table.  21 Scots competed for the team and over half of them were women.

They are a testament to the greatness that can be achieved by women and girls in sport and that is what this week is all about (30 September to 6 October).

Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week aims to increase the visibility of female athletes and raise awareness for the benefits sport can have on physical, mental and social health and wellbeing.

This year a record breaking 46% of the ParalympicsGB team was female, including 11 Scottish women, whom all delivered incredible performances and brought home 11 medals.

 

Samantha Kinghorn smiling on the medals podium, holding her Paralympic gold medal and the Paralympic mascot.
Credit: ParalympicsGB

Samantha Kinghorn absolutely crushed it on the track winning her first Paralympic gold in the women’s 100m T53 with a time of 15.64, a new personal record. She also won four silver medals in Paris, bringing her to a total of six medals across three Paralympic games. There is no stopping Sammi!

 

Alongside Sammi in the Para athletics department was Glasgow’s Melanie Woods. Melanie herself used to be a Physical Education teacher, so she knows just how important female leadership is in sports. She left Paris with some huge personal best scores.

 

Scotland’s own Jenny Holl, pilot for tandem partner Sophie Urwin, had an incredible time in Paris absolutely dominating the track. The duo won two gold medals, as well as a silver and a bronze medal. Their gold in the women’s B Road race was particularly thrilling to watch, as they secured their win with an incredible final spirt.

Hope Gordon paddled her way to a silver medal in women’s 200m VL3 Para canoeing. The Scotswoman, originally from the Highlands, praised the women in her team in an interview with Scottish Disability Sport.

She said: “Within our team, the girls are super strong and it’s really cool to be a part of that. We got 8 medals, and the girls got 6 of those so it’s a strong team, especially on the female side.”

Hope Gordon paddling in a Para canoe race at the Paralympics
Credit: ParalympicsGB

Advising other women and girls hoping to get into sport, she said: “It’s just about taking opportunities and trying things, and just because you haven’t seen a female that looks like you doing the same sport, it doesn’t mean it’s not possible.”

She also praised all the women throughout her career working behind the scenes: “I also think that such a big part of performance sport that people forget about is the volunteers, especially in rural areas. We would be absolutely lost without volunteers, and a huge portion of those, in my experience, have been female.”

Kayleigh Haggo throwing a boccia ball at the Paralympics
Credit: ParalympicsGB/David Pearce

On the boccia court, Kayleigh Haggo was the only female athlete representing Scotland. She started playing boccia in 2022 and made her international debut last year. Despite not taking home a medal, Kayleigh made Scotland proud, winning many of her individual BC2 games.

Meanwhile in the Para triathlon, Dunfermline’s Alison Peasgood and her pilot Brooke Gillies, who have been competing together since 2021, narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing fourth in the women’s PTVI event.

On the basketball court Scottish players Robyn Love and Jodie Waite competed for ParalympicsGB, smashing their way through the qualifiers and finishing fifth in the playoffs where they defeated Germany with a score of 48-39.

In the pool, Aberdeen’s Toni Shaw and University of Aberdeen’s Faye Rogers were giving it their all. Toni fought hard in the women’s 400m freestyle S9 final, finishing fifth. Faye took home a gold medal in the women’s 100m S10 Butterfly, a brilliant debut for her first Paralympics.

For Faye, encouraging women and girls to do sport is essential. Speaking to Scottish Disability Sport, she said: “I think sport can give you so many opportunities, obviously socially but it’s keeping fit and keeping healthy. It’s given me the opportunity to go to Paris and win a gold medal!

“None of that would have been possible without strong female role models. Representation always matters, being able to see someone who looks like you or has a similar disability to you or is the same gender as you, that matters, and it really helps.”

Faye diving off the board into the swimming pool during a race at the Paris 2024 Paralympics
Credit: ParalympicsGB

Faye also spoke out about the tendency for girls to avoid sport when they’re younger: “Girls can do sport, we’re really good at it. It’s a shame that in schools a lot of girls try and avoid it because honestly when you do get involved it’s so much fun and it’s a shame that so many girls miss out on that. You don’t have to be doing it at an elite level, but that’s okay too, it’s so much fun!”

There are so many opportunities that sport can provide, and anyone can get involved. Who knows, you might end up on the podium yourself one day. 

Make to follow Scottish Disability Sport on FacebookX and Instagram, as well as on the SDS website

Fin Graham cycles across the finish line to win the men's road race. He punches his fist in the air

Double Gold Glory for the Scots on Day 10 in Paris 

On the penultimate day of the Games, the Scottish athletes bagged another three medals at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.  

By Lauren Cameron


On Saturday (7th), Fin Graham and Stephen Clegg found the top of the podium whilst Hope Gordon secured a silver to help bring Scotland’s medal tally to 20.  

Scottish rider, Fin Graham, secured his first Paralympic gold of the Games on Saturday morning’s men’s C1-3 Road Race in Paris. 

The 24-year-old outsprinted home favourites Thomas Peyroton-Dartet and Alexandre Leaute (FRA), with an impressive time of 1:43:19.  

The Highland athlete described the win: “It is the pinnacle of our sport… Paralympic gold, nothing compares to it. That’s what we work towards every four years, to be able to come away with that is amazing.” 

Despite securing gold, Fin admits the race was not without its challenges. 

“The French made it hard because it was two against one the whole race.” He added: “I didn’t really know what their plan was because they were talking in French the whole race.” 

Describing the race, he added: “Alex [Leaute] led up the final climb and I thought that was his attempt to lead Thomas [Peyroton-Dartet] out. In the last couple of races I’ve managed to beat him in a sprint so I felt fairly confident.” 

Fin’s confidence paid off, earning him his first Paralympic gold ahead of the Peyroton-Léauté duo. He adds the gold to his one silver that won on the track (men’s C3 3000m Individual Pursuit).  
 

In the swimming finals, Stephen Clegg won his second Para swimming gold of Paris 2024 in the men’s100m Butterfly S12. 

Stephen, 28, the world record holder in the event, crossed the finish line with a time of 57:49. 

The win is Stephen’s second gold after a triumphant performance in the 100 Backstroke S12 earlier in the Games, cementing his status as a double Paralympic champion in Paris. 

According to the Lothian athlete, Saturday’s  win is just the beginning: “I’m always striving for more and better. Every result I have, I am evaluating how it’s gone as a performance rather than just the result”. 

Reflecting on his journey to the Paralympics, he adds: “This is a reward for the roll of the dice I took 10 years ago. A lot of people thought I was crazy when I came back and take a shot at being a Paralympic champion.” 

Stephen dedicates his win to his family and friends: “None of this happens without them. I owe them everything.” 

Faye Rogers was also in action in the pool, finishing fourth in the 200m Individual Medley SM10 final. Despite not reaching the podium in her final event in Paris, she did take the title on day six – winning gold in the women’s 100m butterfly S10 on her Paralympic Games debut.  

In 2021, Rogers was involved in a car accident and three years on, she is a Paralympic champion. 

On her time in Paris, she said: “It’s been the best experience of my life, amazing from start to finish. But I’m glad to be done.” 

“The biggest learning I’m taking away from this experience is how emotionally draining it is in the best way. That 100 fly gold medal was crazy and a high but then there are also some lows. I don’t think I appreciated that going in.” 

ParalympicsGB’s success on Saturday continued with Hope Gordon, who took silver in the women’s Canoe Va’a single 200m VL3. 

Hope, from Golspie, shared her thoughts from Saturday’s race:  “I didn’t have the perfect race but there is no one I would rather stand next to on the podium than Charlotte [Henshaw].”  

She added: “I train with Dave everyday and he is like a brother to me. This is his fifth Games and for him to finally get that medal, it was so special to watch.”  

“We were happy with whichever way round it went and we just wanted to get as many medals on the medal table for ParalympicsGB”, said Hope.  

Robyn Love and Jodie Waite were in action on the basketball court for the final time, as ParalympicsGB’s women’s wheelchair basketball team took on Germany in the 5-6 Playoff Game. The team finished with a strong win, 48-39, to end their Paralympic campaign in Paris with a fifth place finish.  

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.