The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Regatta came to close with a show of dominance from the British squad, who tripled the gold medal tally of the next best nation Australia. These two dominated the crew boat events, and the British topped the medal table with three golds and one silver. In the singles there was a significant turning of the tide.

After years of dominance two titans of the Para single sculls fell to long-standing rivals. On the men’s side the competition was bookended by controversy: Uzbekistan’s Kholmurod Egamberdiev did not race at Paris, reportedly due to anti-doping issues. And on the last day, Italy’s Giacomo Perini, having raced the final and finished third, was excluded for breaking the rules on communication equipment.

PR1 W1x

The first medals of the Paralympic Regatta were contested by the PR1 women’s single sculls. Norway’s Birgit Skarstein entered the competition as favourite albeit with two significant losses to Moran Samuel (ISR) earlier in the season which ended her eight year winning streak. Skarstein arrived in the final by way of a comfortable win in the second repechage having been narrowly beaten by Ukraine’s Anna Sheremet on the first day of racing.

In the final Samuel steadily built a solid lead, as she had in the heat when she went sub ten minutes to set a Paralympic Best Time. Behind her a three-way fight for the minor medals ensued. Skarstein, in second, tracked Samuel but unlike before she could not reel back the Israeli in the second half. Instead the Norwegian champion was left fighting off France and Ukraine. Boosted by the crowds Nathalie Benoit (FRA) sprinted home to a bronze medal, less than half a second behind Skarstein. Sheremet faltered in the final quarter and finished fourth, as she had in Tokyo, this time comfortably ahead of the South Korea and Brazil.

“I completed the series,” said Samuel, who now possesses a complete collection of Paralympic medals: bronze at Rio 2016, silver at Tokyo 2020, and gold at Paris 2024. On beating the defending champion she said: “It means a lot of hard work, dedication, determination and perseverance, not just of me. Of my wife, of my children, and the whole country of Israel. I had the bronze in Rio, silver in Tokyo. I had these two (Skarstein and Benoit) to race over and over again, and lose over and over again, to win this one race, which was the most important one.”

“It was the best race of my career,” said Benoit. “I was really determined, as it was my last race. I told myself that whatever happens I should savour every moment and make the most of every stroke. At the end I turned around and did a bad stroke, but really it was a race I savoured. It’s the first time in my career that I’ve been able to savour a race like that, even through the pain.”

PR1 M1x

Ben Pritchard, who set a Paralympic Best Time in the heats, got Great Britain’s Paralympic medal haul underway with a phenomenal performance in the PR1 men’s single sculls. By the halfway mark there were three front-runners gunning for the medals: Giacomo Perini (ITA), Roman Polianskyi (UKR) and Pritchard (GBR). Pritchard steadily ratcheted up the pressure on the Italian sculler before taking the lead and holding it all the way to the finish.

“It’s been a three year process,” said proud Welshman Pritchard. “It hasn’t sunk in. I’m elated. The biggest thing (was) about removing the outcome from the whole process, and today was a culmination of that. We did my process, my race plan, and look what paid off. The outcome is special. I’ve got friends, I’ve got family, I’ve got half of Swansea in that stand. I can’t wait to go celebrate with them.”

Behind him his long-standing rival (and good friend) Polianskyi’s had to settle for the silver medal, which was the first for Ukraine at this regatta. Perini, who crossed the finish in third place, was later excluded from the race after a successful protest lodged by Australia. Perini was found to have “communications equipment”, reportedly his mobile phone, in the boat during the final which is against the rules. So Erik Horrie (AUS) was bumped up to the bronze medal position.  

PR2 Mix2x

The PR2 mixed double sculls was a barnstormer. British history-maker Lauren Rowles secured her third consecutive Paralympic gold medal, this time with Gregg Stevenson at stroke. It was no easy feat and the British duo were tested to the limit by a determined effort from China’s Shuang Liu and Jijian Jiang, who led the race until the last 100 meters. (These two crews have a knack for bringing the best out of each other – last year’s World Championship final in Belgrade was another slugfest.) Despite slipping out of the top spot China held on to silver ahead of Israel who denied Ukraine a place on the podium.

“Unreal!” Gregg Stevenson said on winning gold at his debut Paralympic Games. His teammate Rowles said: “You either show up or your show out at these Paralympic Games! I don’t think you could put into words how much it means.” Silver-medallist Liu said: “It’s really exciting. We are old friends and old enemies with the British boat. It’s a pity we couldn’t win gold.”

PR3 Mix2x

The first ever PR3 mixed double Paralympic gold medal went to the reigning World Champions Nikki Ayers and Jed Altschwager (AUS). The A-final of this Paralympic debut event saw a fast start from Germany and a tight contest in the mid-race between Great Britain and Australia.

Ayers and Altschwager crept out to a half-length lead but the gap was doggedly shut down in the second quarter by Great Britain’s Sam Murray and Annabel Caddick. The British duo went bowball to bowball with the Aussies for the next few minutes but were unable to overhaul the champions who ramped up their efforts to win by just over a second. In the closing stages an exhausted Murray and Caddick held on to silver by 0.12s as the bronze-medal-winners Germany almost rowed through them.

“It’s a great feeling despite the result not being quite what we wanted. It was a very, very close finish. We put in a good race, we executed our plan and in the end the others were slightly better. We still get to go home with a medal,” said Jan Helmich (GER)

Australia’s Paralympic gold-medallist Ayers said of her medal: “It’s a symbol of hope and never giving up on your dreams. For every person out there with a disability, male, female, everyone. Never give up and keep striving for your dreams and it’ll come true.”

PR3 Mix4+

The racing at Vaires-sur-Marnes was closed out by the fours. Great Britain continued their fourteen year winning streak. They were pushed hard by USA and France in the early stages but rowed with composure to capture the gold medal. The Americans delivered a solid effort to secure the silver medal, and the French supporters were delighted to see their side win the bronze medal ahead of Germany, who missed the podium by just 0.06s.

“At the start we didn’t think it would be an advantage,” said Gregoire Bireau (FRA) of the home-support. “We thought it was a rowing race, it’s 2000 metres on a lake. But it was really an advantage. Today we really felt the fans pushing us. I think the six hundredths are partly thanks to them.” Emelie Eldracher, who coxed the American crew said: “It’s an unreal honour to be able to represent your country, and to be able to walk away with a medal with a boat that’s just been unified from the beginning is surreal.”

“Eighteen years ago today I was in a car accident that led me to becoming a Paralympic athlete. It’s an anniversary that I’m going to celebrate now with a gold medal. Every year this is going to be a golden moment,” said Giedre Rakauskaite (GBR). “The Paralympic Games is like a second chance. I always wanted to be an athlete when I was a child, and I thought that chance was taken from me and finding out in my 20s that I can still pursue my dream as a Paralympian was something that I latched on to and clearly didn’t give up.”