26 November 2015

Day three

The British team at the Paralympic School Games finished the competition by collecting five more gold medals which meant they collected 12 golds out of a possible 12 across the three days of action in Natal, Brazil.

Jack Agnew (coach: Heather Ardis) made it three out of three with victory in the T54 100m. It was the 16 year-olds shortest distance of the week and was narrowly outside his lifetime best. He stopped the clock at 16.92 to make it a hat trick of triumphs for the Lagan Valley athlete.

Jamie Edwards (Jen Slade) and Eden Rainbow-Cooper (Jenny Archer) also added their third gold medals of the week to their collection in the T33 100m and T54 400m respectively. Edwards, who only started racing at the end of 2013, crossed the line in a time of 20.51 to win the sprints event. Rainbow-Cooper won the quarter-mile event, with the Weir-Archer Academy athlete posting 1:05.92.

Souleyman Bah (Richard Holt) added his name to the list of Paralympic School Games champions after winning the T13 100m in 11.87. Kieran Maxwell (Andy Woodward), also competing over 100m in the T42 category, made sure of victory with a time of 15.48 to complete a successful Games for the British squad. 

The Paralimpiadas Escolares, supported by Sport England and TASS (Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme), is an annual event in the South American country, and has seen thousands of athletes compete across 10 sports against competitors from each of Brazil’s 27 states.

Day two

The second day of action at the Paralympic School Games in Brazil was another successful one as the British team picked up four more gold medals to take their tally to seven overall.

Jamie Edwards (Jen Slade) delivered another lifetime best in the T33 1500m, to add to his 400m triumph on day one. The Yeovil athletes clocking of 4:39.25 took over 16 seconds off his previous best, a staggering improvement for the 16 year-old.

Eden Rainbow-Cooper (Jenny Archer) moved down in distance but achieved a similar outcome with gold in the T54 100m. The Weir-Archer Academy athlete recorded a time of 19.31 to secure a second Paralympic School Games title in Natal after 1500m glory on Wednesday.

Also in 100m action was Daphne Schrager (Alan Richardson & Rob Ellchuk) in the T35 classification, earning another golden moment with her 17.30 clocking. The Bath-based athlete only began the sport in 2012 but in her first full year of competition, she has earned her first title for Britain.

Jack Agnew (Heather Ardis) added T54 1500m gold to his 400m title, confirming the double after crossing the line in 3:50.01.

Day one

The British team won three gold medals on the first day of athletics action at the Paralympic School Games in Natal, Brazil yesterday.

Jack Agnew (Heather Ardis) made it a victorious start to proceedings by winning the T54 400m in a lifetime best. The Northern Irish teenager stopped the clock at 57.04 to improve his previous best by over two and a half seconds. The Lagan Valley athlete will go for more silverware in the 1500m tomorrow.

Another Briton in fine form was Jamie Edwards (Jenny Slade) who won the T33 400m. The Yeovil based-athlete saw a significant improvement to his personal best, recording 1:06 to take over two and a half seconds off his best set earlier this year. He will also take on the 1500m on Friday.

The Weir-Archer academy athlete Eden Rainbow-Cooper (Jenny Archer) earned the gold medal in the T54 1500m, posting a time of 4:23. The 14 year-old showed her credentials to make it a trio of golden successes in Brazil. She will face the 100m on the final day of action in Natal.

The Brazilian event provides valuable experience of a multi-games environment to the young athletes. Polly Maton (Colin Baross) and Sabrina Fortune (Ian Robinson), who both competed at the IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha in October, won medals at the event in 2014.