Poppy Maskill Wins First Gold Medal for Great Britain at Paris 2024 Paralympics

Poppy Maskill has made history by securing Great Britain’s first gold medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. The 19-year-old swimmer achieved this remarkable feat by breaking a world record in the women’s S14 100m butterfly final.

Maskill’s winning time was one minute and three seconds, which surpassed the previous world record by a third of a second. She finished the race with an impressive margin, winning by seven-tenths of a second.

As she stood on the podium to receive her gold medal in Paris, Maskill displayed a wide smile and waved to the crowd. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer took to social media to congratulate her on this extraordinary achievement, recognizing it as a fantastic milestone in her debut at the games.

In addition to Maskill’s gold, Great Britain also celebrated a silver medal in the pool, earned by William Ellard in the men’s S14 butterfly final. Ellard, aged 18, led at the halfway mark but ultimately finished second to Denmark‘s Alexander Hillhouse.

The first medal for Great Britain at these Paralympics was secured by cyclist Daphne Schrager, who took home silver in the C1-3 3000m individual pursuit. She was narrowly defeated by China’s Xiaomei Wang, who set a world record time in the process.

There was also a silver medal for the tandem pair of Steve Bate and Chris Latham in the men’s B 4000m individual pursuit. However, the day was marred by disappointment for defending champion Kadeena Cox, who crashed out of her race in the women’s C4-5 500m time trial, having qualified second fastest.

British archer Jodie Grinham, who recently experienced a scare regarding early labour, managed to shoot a personal best at the Paralympics while competing 28 weeks into her pregnancy. Her baby was reported to be healthy, and she achieved a ranking of fourth in the women’s compound event.

In table tennis, Great Britain also saw success as young players Bly Twomey and Fliss Pickard secured a bronze medal, further adding to the nation’s achievements at the games.