The New Zealand Paralympic Team toasted two medals on day four of the 2024 Paris Paralympics.
NZ Paralympian No 211 Danielle Aitchison claimed a dazzling silver medal in the women’s 200m T36 and NZ Paralympian No 222 Nicole Murray snared a brilliant bronze in the women’s C5 3000 individual pursuit.
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On a memorable day, New Zealand boosted their medal tally to three at Paris 2024 to add to the silver medal earned by cyclist Anna Taylor on day two in the women’s C4 3000m individual pursuit.
Aitchison produced an outstanding display inside a hot and steamy Stade de France but ultimately had to concede defeat to the outstanding Yiting Shi of China, who set a Paralympic record of 27.50 seconds – to finish 0.14 ahead of the Kiwi.
The 23-year-old Hamilton-based athlete entered the home straight marginally down on Shi, who was hunting a hat-trick of Paralympic titles in this event, and the duo set up a rousing finish as the Kiwi desperately tried to hunt down the Chinese athlete.
Unfortunately, it was not to be for Aitchison, who set a world record of 27.47 seconds when winning the Kobe 2024 Para Athletics World Championships title in this event in May, but she still had the satisfaction of claiming silver and also executing one of the fastest competitive performances of her career.
“It was definitely a hard race, I felt strong coming out of the blocks and on the home straight I was neck and neck with Shi, it was a serious race," said Aitchison.
"I was a bit disappointed with the last five metres and got really fatigued. I’m feeling tired I had a late night (after the evening heats) and didn’t get to bed until this morning. I am happy with the time, which was great.
“I am very proud. My mum was in the crowd and it was really cool to have nine support people watching me. A very different experience from Tokyo.”
Raised in Patetonga but now living in Hamilton, Aitchison, who has cerebral palsy, embraced a range of sports from a young age but her passion for sprinting was cemented when competing at the Halberg Games in 2017 and two years later made her international debut at the Dubai 2019 Para Athletics World Championships, earning a breakout silver medal in the women’s 200m T64.
Continuing to improve under the guidance of long-time coach Alan McDonald, Aitchison, grabbed silver and bronze medals in the women’s 200m T64 and women’s 100m T64, respectively, at the Tokyo Paralympics and she has continued to impress on the international stage.
Last year she won gold in the women's 200m T64 at the Paris 2023 Para Athletics World Championships and earlier this year retained the title in Kobe.
Murray ensured New Zealand would celebrate a second podium in a little under three hours of competition by securing a comprehensive victory in the bronze medal ride from Claudia Cretti of Italy in the women’s C5 3000m individual pursuit.
Despite forgetting her prosthetic, the Kiwi had earlier in the day hacked more than two-and-a-half seconds from her national record in qualification, registering 3 minutes 37.599 seconds and the 31-year-old Cambridge-based Para cyclist was even more impressive in the bronze medal final.
Dominating from the early stages, by the 1000m checkpoint she opened up a lead of more than three seconds on her Italian rival and maintained the relentless pace for remainder of the race.
Rapidly closing in on the struggling Cretti, Murray flashed across the line in 3:36.201 to better her New Zealand record to complete an outstanding ride.
Murray, who lost her left hand in an accident aged five, has been immersed in a range of sports for as long as she can remember. However, after giving Para cycling a go in 2015 she enjoyed the rush and was quickly hooked.
Making her Paralympic Games debut at Tokyo 2020, Murray earned four top-six placings highlighted by a fourth-place finish in the women’s C5 3000m individual pursuit. Since then, the Ōtororanga-raised Para cyclist has gone from strength to strength and has claimed a glut of medals on the global stage.
“I’m over the moon. This is my first Paralympic medal it feels amazing, I’m glad I can honour the team and all the people around me and all the work they’ve put into me. It is cool to share that feeling with them," Murray said.
Frustrated to have left her prosthetic at the Paralympic Village for her qualification she added: “It definitely cost me time at the start of the race in qualification, but the team rallied and got the prosthetic to me for the final. I rode the final a lot smoother and a lot more consistently.”
All three Kiwi shooting para sport athletes were in action at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre, although, unfortunately, none of the trio successfully negotiated qualification to advance to the final.
Six-time Paralympian Michael Johnson, who finished fifth in the R4 mixed air rifle 10m standing SH2 event two days earlier, finished 20th in qualification for the R5 mixed air rifle prone SH2 event.
The Waiuku-based athlete finished strongly but his points total of 633.3 was not quite good enough to see him progress into the eight-strong final.
“It was extremely hot on the range, but I had my cooling gear. I was sighting great and my first five or six shots were good but then had a series of fliers (low tens). I thought I had better change things up, change my sights and then my scores started to increase. I needed a 10.6 average and I had a 10.55, so I ended up missing out, but it is tough at the top,” Johnson said.
Also on the shooting range, Kiwi duo Neelam O’Neill and Greg Reid missed out on advancing to the eight-strong final of the R3 mixed 10m air rifle prone SH1. In the qualification session, O’Neill finished in 21st with a points score of 629.9, with Reid in 31st totalling 626.4.
“My preparation for today was a little bit difficult because my body was so fatigued from yesterday. I was feeling quite confident but, unfortunately, I didn’t shoot as expected. But I am proud of how I shot because I maintained my consistency throughout," said Paralympic debutant O’Neill, 31, who finished 10th in the P2 women’s 10m air pistol SH1.
Reid, 62, the oldest-ever athlete to compete for the NZ Paralympic Team, said: “I felt good going in but I couldn’t settle into a good position and I ended up forcing my shots. I just didn’t find my groove and I finished further down the pack than I would have liked but I had fun, it was enjoyable.”
Featherston-based Reid will be back in action on Thursday in the R6 mixed 50m rifle prone SH1 event.
Two NZ Paralympic Team athletes come on day five on Monday. Paralympic debutant Matt Britz – the first Kiwi representative in Para table tennis for 48 years – will play his round of 16 match in the men’s singles class 7 event (9.30pm NZT), where he is up against Chalermpong Punpoo of Thailand.
Meanwhile, NZ Paralympian No 208 Will Stedman will compete in the men’s long jump T36 (from 5.15am Tuesday NZT) – the event where he claimed a silver medal at the Tokyo Paralympics.
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