Getty/Ian MacNicol
The 2024 Paralympic Games officially kicked off in Paris last week, and already, the athleticism on show has been nothing short of remarkable. The beauty of sports, and the reason so many of us get whipped into an athletic-fuelled frenzy during the Paralympic and Olympic games, is of course down to the sheer skill of the athletes, many of whom have profoundly inspiring stories.
The Games have certainly delivered so far. On TikTok, you can’t scroll very far without seeing an awe-inspiring feat of athleticism, from India’s Sheetal Devi shooting a perfect bullseye, to Australia’s mixed medley swimming team achieving the comeback of the Games so far. On the app, 103.2 million videos mentioning the Paralympics have been posted (and counting!), and the official Paralympics TikTok account has more than 4.6 million followers. We’re all hooked on the Olympic action, and there’s no better story than that of Australia’s own Alexa Leary, who overcame incredible odds to set two records and win gold in the 100-meter freestyle.
Below, we unpack Leary’s story, and the most powerful moments of the Olympics so far.
Alexa Leary Wins Gold In The 100m Freestyle
Paralympic swimmer Alexa Leary In 2021, Alexa Leary has won gold in the 100m women’s freestyle setting a 59.60 world record in the morning session and a gold-winning 59.53 in the 100 metres. Lear has had a long, and someone would say unbelievable, road to the Olympics. In 2021, Alexa had hopes of becoming an Olympic triathlete. She had started entering professional events and was training with her father when she got into a catastrophic bike accident.
Riding 70 kilometres an hour when her bike upended, sending her body over the handlebars. Alexa’s injuries included broken ribs, skulls, scapula and legs, along with severe brain injuries that doctors felt were fatal. At one point, doctors decided to switch Alexa’s breathing machine off, but to the astonishment of her doctors, Leary started breathing on her own. After six months in the hospital, learning to walk again and living with brain damage, Alexa refocused her energy and started a journey she has referred to as her “second life.”
She also fulfilled a prophecy. “It is actually so amazing the fact that when I was in ICU, my dad got a fortune teller,” Leary told ABC News. “The fortune teller read that I wanted to go to the Paralympics, and now I’m here, I’m like ‘, wow, I did it.’ Alexa celebrated by dancing and performing the robot on stage. Unsurprisingly, she was full of pride and said she was just getting started. “I’m like, wow, I’m amazed at myself that I am, I’m like, ‘Yeah, Lex, I love that for you,’ it just makes me want to go even harder at the next Paralympics to see what else I’ve got.”
We love it for her too.
Beyond, find more inspiring moments from the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
A Stunning Comeback In The Mixed Medley
Going into the 4x100m mixed medley at the Paralympics, the Netherlands were tipped as the favourites, but in a stunning comeback (dare we say, the comeback of the year), the Aussies have taken out gold. Going into the anchor leg, the Australian team was in fourth place, with Alexa Leary trailing six seconds behind the Netherlands, who were in first place. That was until she hit the accelerator so hard that she caught up and eclipsed their rivals, taking out the gold medal and breaking a Paralympic record in the process.
Nikki Ayers And Jed Altschwager Win Gold
Jed Altschwager and Nikki Ayers took out the gold medal in the PR3 mixed double sculls event, becoming the first Australians to win gold for rowing at the Paralympics. The win is one for the history books, but it’s the pair’s friendship that has equally captured Aussie hearts at the Paralympics.
“We have the same core values, the same core principles,” Altschwager told Nine Wide World of Sport following the win. “She’s an incredible human being… and we’ve been able to connect and, you know, get it done.”
Ayers added: “It’s a privilege and an honour just to even be able to wear the green and gold… But to be out here on the Paralympic stage in front of our families, and friends in Australia back home, and bringing home the gold, is just a life-changing moment we’ll never forget.
“It’s written in the history books so no one’s going to take that away from us, and I couldn’t be happier and more proud to do it with Jed.”
Sheetal Devi Shoots A Perfect Bullseye In Para-Archery
If we had to name the most viral moment we’ve encountered from the Paralympic Games, so far, it’s Sheetal Devi‘s perfect bullseye in Para-archery. The 17-year-old was cool, calm, and collected and she lined up her shot and the crowd absolutely erupted following the perfect bullseye. This shot won Devi a bronze medal, if you’re wondering how fierce the competition is.
Jamieson Leeson Won The First Women’s Boccia Gold Medal For Australia
Jamieson Leeson had a historic finish in the women’s boccia event at the Paralympics, becoming the first Australian woman to earn a spot on the podium in the sport. “Being the first female in the sport to bring home a medal for Australia not only means a lot to me but means a lot for the sport in general, and it just shows the progression that’s been made within Australia, as in the boccia team, but also within the whole Paralympic committee,” she Nine Wide World Of Sports.
Australia’s Daniel Michel also won silver in his Boccia event, and at 4:10am on Wednesday, September 3, Michel and Leeson will compete together in the doubles boccia competition.
British Archer Jodie Grinham Becomes First Pregnant Woman To Win A Paralympic Medal
Jodie Grinham, a Para-archer on Team Great Britain, became the first pregnant athlete to win a medal at the Paralympics this week. Speaking to media following the event, she explained she came to the Paralympics to win a medal, not just to be known for competing pregnant. “I wanted to show that I am not here to participate pregnant. I am here to compete and win medals pregnant. And I think I got that across, which I’m really glad about,” Grinham said. she said.
The archer also explained how being seven months pregnant impacts the logistics of competing, with adjusting her equipment to suit the needs of her body, which changes daily. “If the baby goes into my back, then I tip a bit more. So then we change the weight in the stabilisation again,” she said.
“It’s something that you do. Professional archers change equipment on the line 24/7. It’s no different than being pregnant. You’ve just got to be more aware about your body.”
Emily Petricola Defends Her Tokyo Gold
Emily Petricola had an emotional finish in the Velodrome on Friday at the Paralympic Games, overcoming a multiple sclerosis flare-up to cinch gold and defend her Tokyo 2020 title. “It’s been a really tough last eight weeks having an MS flare so this was no guarantee for me,” Petricola said. “This one has caused a lot of muscle spasm through my back, my left leg and then into my neck… my abdominal area — the whole thing is gone.”
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