The Paris Paralympics are under way and you can plan how to follow the competition with our day-by-day guide – all times BST.
A team of 215 athletes will represent ParalympicsGB in the French capital with a target of 100-140 medals set by UK Sport.
At the delayed Tokyo 2020 Games, held in 2021, the GB team finished second behind China in the medal table with 124 medals, including 41 golds.
The Games began with the opening ceremony on Wednesday, 28 August, with the first medals decided the following day and action continuing until the closing ceremony on Sunday, 8 September.
Sunday, 1 September
Medal events: 53
Para-cycling track (men’s B 1,000m time trial; women’s B 3,000m individual pursuit, C5 3,000m individual pursuit, open C1-5 750m team sprint); Para-swimming (men’s SB6 100m breaststroke, S10 100m freestyle, SM8 200m IM, S11 100m backstroke, SM4 150m IM, SM3 150m IM, SB5 100m breaststroke; women’s SB6 100m breaststroke, S10 100m freestyle, SM8 200m IM, S11 100m backstroke, SM4 150m IM, SB5 100m breaststroke; mixed 4x100m freestyle relay); Para-table tennis (men’s doubles MD14, MD18, mixed doubles XD17); Shooting Para-sport (R3 – mixed 10m air rifle prone SH1, R5 – mixed 10m air rifle prone SH2); Para-athletics (women’s T12 long jump, T64 discus, T36 200m, F20 shot put, T53 800m, T84 800m, T35 200m, T34 javelin, T34 100m, T37 long jump; men’s F53 shot put, F40 shot put, F52 discus, T47 high jump, T44 100m, T13 100m, T53 400m, T54 400m, T11 400m); Para-archery (men’s individual W1, individual compound open); Para-rowing (women’s single sculls PR1; men’s single sculls PR1; mixed double sculls PR2, mixed doubles PR3, mixed coxed four PR3); Boccia (women’s individual BC2; men’s individual BC2); Para-badminton (women’s doubles WH1-2; men’s doubles WH1-2)
Three years ago in Tokyo, husband and wife Neil and Lora Fachie both won golds in the space of 16 minutes and the pair will be hoping to repeat the feat on the final day of the track cycling programme in Paris where they will be watched on by son Fraser, who was born in October 2022.
Neil and pilot Matt Rotherham are world champions in the B 1,000m time trial (final 12:51) with team-mates James Ball and Steffan Lloyd likely to be a big danger.
Lora and Corrine Hall will also face a tough challenge in the B 3,000m individual pursuit (qualifying 10:22, final 13:31) against world champions and team-mates Lizzi Jordan and Danni Khan and the 2023 world champions Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl.
And the GB team sprint team, likely to include Jody Cundy and Kadeena Cox, will be hoping to beat a strong China side in the final event of the programme (14:30).
It is a busy morning for the rowers as their competition reaches its climax with Lauren Rowles, aiming for a third consecutive gold, and Gregg Stevenson strong favourites in the mixed double sculls (10:50) while the PR3 mixed coxed four (11:30) will be hoping to continue GB’s unbeaten record in the class at major championships which goes back to 2011.
At the pool, there could be double breaststroke success for GB with Maisie Summers-Newton defending her SB6 title (16:37) while Grace Harvey will hope to go one better than her Tokyo silver in the SB5 event (18:51).
Brock Whiston and Alice Tai will be up against American legend Jessica Long in the SM8 200m medley final (17:07) while the mixed S14 4x100m freestyle team are well fancied to retain the title GB won in Tokyo (19:13), although this year’s team will be a brand new quartet.
Wheelchair racer Hannah Cockroft goes for her fourth consecutive T34 100m title (19:33) with Kare Adenegan hoping to claim another medal, while world champion Sabrina Fortune goes into the F20 shot put (18:00) in good form having improved her own world record in July.
Boccia player Claire Taggart will be aiming to win the first women’s BC2 Paralympic title (18:35) while the wheelchair rugby tournament reaches the semi-final stage with defending champions GB facing the United States (18:30).
All of the 11 triathlon races have been rearranged for Monday after tests on the water quality in the River Seine did not meet the threshold set by World Triathlon.
World watch
American high jumper Roderick Townsend is the star of the T47 event and he goes for a third title in a row (18:28).
After the retirement of 18:47) Ireland’s Jason Smyth, there will be a new champion in the T13 100m (with Tokyo runner-up Skander Djamil Athmani of Algeria and the T12 gold medallist Salum Ageze Kashafali of Norway bidding to lead the charge.
Did you know?
Lauren Rowles started her sporting career as a wheelchair racer before switching to rowing in 2015 and winning gold at the Rio Paralympics the next year with Laurence Whiteley.
In March, her partner Jude Hamer, who has represented GB in wheelchair basketball at the Paralympics, gave birth to their son Noah and Rowles has been passionate in speaking about sexuality, diversity and representation.
Monday, 2 September
Medal events: 61
Para-swimming (men’s S7 400m freestyle, S9 50m freestyle, S3 50m freestyle, SB14 100m breaststroke, S13 50m freestyle, SB4 100m breaststroke, S2 200m freestyle; women’s S7 400m freestyle, S3 50m freestyle, SB14 100m breaststroke, S13 50m freestyle, SB4 100m breaststroke; mixed 34 point 4x100m medley); Shooting Para-sport (P3 – mixed 25m pistol SH1); Para-athletics (men’s T12 long jump, F56 discus, T34 100m, F41 shot put, F64 javelin, T35 100m, T36 long jump, F11 shot put, T63 100m, T64 100m; women’s T11 1500m, F54 shot put, F53 discus); Para-archery (mixed team W1, team compound open); Para-triathlon (men’s PTS3, PTS2, PTS5, PTS4, PTWC, PTVI; women’s PTS2, PTS5, PTS4, PTWC, PTVI); Boccia (women’s individual BC1, BC3, BC4; men’s individual BC1, BC3, BC4); Para-badminton (women’s singles SL3, WH1, SL4, WH2, SU5, SH6; men’s singles SL3, SL4, WH1, SU5, WH2, SH6; mixed doubles SL3-SU5, SH6); Wheelchair rugby (team)
Highlights
After narrowly missing out on gold in Tokyo when badminton made its Paralympic debut, Dan Bethell will hope to figure in the final of the SL3 event (07:30-14:00) with defending champion Pramod Bhagat out after being suspended by the Court of Arbitration for Sport for a whereabouts failure.
Rachel Choong and Krysten Coombs will hope to figure in their SH6 singles finals with all GB athletes chasing their nation’s first gold medal in the sport.
It is an early start for the triathletes with all 11 medal events taking place (from 07:15).
The races start in the River Seine, which was at the centre of controversy during the Olympics over its water quality with training cancelled and the men’s race delayed by a day.
Because of weather concerns, all races had been moved to 1 September, but tests on the water failed to meet the threshold set by World Triathlon so all races were moved back to Monday.
The rivalry between former swimming team-mates Lauren Steadman and Claire Cashmore will continue in the PTS5 event (11:35) – the British pair won gold and bronze in Tokyo with American Grace Norman, the Rio champion, finishing second.
Dave Ellis and guide Luke Pollard will bid to make up for Tokyo heartbreak where they went in as favourites in the men’s PTVI event (11:00) but suffered a mechanical failure on the bike leg which ended their race.
In the women’s PTVI (11:05), Alison Peasgood won silver in Rio but was fourth in Tokyo. She is back at the top level after having son Logan last August and will be aiming to impress again with guide Brooke Gillies.
Ellie Challis was Britain’s youngest medallist at the Tokyo Games when she won silver in the S3 50m backstroke in Tokyo aged 17 and she will hope to go one better this time (17:05) while Louise Fiddes has a good medal chance in the SB14 100m breaststroke (17:20).
At the Stade de France, the Blade Runners take centre stage with the men’s T63 and T64 100m finals (18:38 and 18:46). Can Jonnie Peacock win a third gold medal in the T64 event? The Briton took joint bronze in Tokyo after back-to-back titles in London and Rio.
There are six boccia golds up for decision with David Smith hoping to secure a third BC1 title in a row at his fifth Games (10:40) while it’s also the wheelchair rugby decider (18:30) – an event where GB won a historic gold in Tokyo.
World watch
The home crowd will be cheering on French triathlete Alexis Hanquinquant as he hopes to continue his dominance in the PTS4 event (11:25).
Hanquinquant, who had his leg amputated in 2013 after a work accident, was always a keen sportsman and made his Paralympic debut in Tokyo, finishing almost four minutes clear of his nearest rival, and is the man to beat in the division.
Italy’s Valentina Petrillo, who is believed to be the first openly transgender athlete to compete at the Paralympics, will start her campaign in the T12 400m (heats 09:45; semi-final 19:37) – an event where she won bronze at last year’s World Championships in Paris.
While Hannah Cockroft has dominated the women’s T34 100m, Tunisia’s Walid Ktila has the same standing in the men’s T34 sprint and he will chase a fourth consecutive title (10:11).
And in the pool, American Morgan Stickney will start as favourite for the S7 400m freestyle (16:40) with Simone Barlaam of Italy hoping to defend his S9 50m freestyle crown (16:52).
Source: BBC
