Paralympics 2024: James Turner claims 400m T36 gold medal after ...

Para swimming: Alex Saffy wins bronze in butterfly final

1 hours agoTue 3 Sep 2024 at 6:19pm

Para swimming: Rachael Watson claims bronze in freestyle final

2 hours agoTue 3 Sep 2024 at 5:39pm

Tim Hodge's beautiful message to children fighting disabilities

3 hours agoTue 3 Sep 2024 at 4:15pm

Key Event

13h agoTue 3 Sep 2024 at 6:14am

???? Para athletics: Men's 400m T36 - James Turner, GOLD

???? Para swimming: Women's 100m freestyle  S3 - Rachael Watson, BRONZE 

???? Para swimming: Men's 100m butterfly S10 - Alex Saffy, BRONZE

The preliminary stages of women's sitting volleyball wrapped up on day six in Paris with the final matches in Pool A.

The first game on the schedule saw the United States defeat Italy 3-0 in sets, 25-21, 25-23, 25-15.

In the later game, China cruised to victory over France, beating the host nation 25-7, 25-5, 25-5.

The Chinese topped the pool, with United States in second spot.

The top two go through to the semifinals, early on Friday morning Australian time, where Pool B winners Brazil will face the US, and China will play Canada.

As you can see from this photo, our American friends are quite happy about the prospect.

Thanks to Chris De Silva for another brilliant overnight run on the blog, highlighted by a couple of medals in the pool.

I'm Andrew McGarry, and I will be taking you through the last section of day six, recapping some of the events and bringing you some stories you may have missed.

Australia's Jamieson Leeson and Dan Michel register a 5-2 win in their Pool A clash against Japan.

The Aussies won the first end 3-0 and that lead ultimately proved to be decisive!

Australia's Rollers have been knocked out of the wheelchair basketball after losing in the quarterfinal to Great Britain.

The Aussies gave a great account of themselves, but were ultimately outmuscled in the second half as the undefeated Brits finished 84-64 winners.

It was a relatively tight contest through three quarters before the Brits won the final term 28-13.

Bill Latham finishes as Australia's leading scorer with 20 points.

Jasmine Greenwood and Poppy Wilson are cruelly denied spots on the podium in a thrilling 100m butterfly S10 final.

Greenwood finished fourth with a time of 1:07.35, just 0.13 seconds behind the third-placed Katie Cosgriffe.

Wilson finished fifth with a time of 1:07.52.

Key Event

1h agoTue 3 Sep 2024 at 6:19pm

How good is this from the 18-year-old Alex Saffy?!

The WA product finishes with the bronze medal in the Men's 100m butterfly - S10 final, narrowly beating out countryman Col Pearse.

Col Pearse ends up swimming a 57.24.

Saffy breaks down into pure tears of joy after his incredible performance.

"It's crazy. I'm very happy right now," Saffy tells Channel Nine.

"It's just a lot of emotions, you know, it's been like three years of work leading, leading up to one night.

"I left my hometown in WA to south of Perth. Moved over to Canberra.

"I didn't know anyone. I'd just turned 16. I left my family and like barely get to see them. It was just a lot of sacrifices. And I'm just glad my family's here because I love them a lot."

Great Britain takes a 38-35 lead into the half-time break, and they'll feel they should've perhaps been further ahead.

The Brits led by as much as seven points in the second quarter, but Australia's Rollers finished the half well.

Jaylen Brown with some great energy in that quarter on the offensive end.

Tristan Knowles leads Australia with 17 points on 6-10 shooting, while Lee Manning leads Great Britain with 13 points on 6-7 shooting.

We're into the early stages of the second quarter of Australia's clash with Great Britain in the wheelchair basketball.

The Rollers are currently behind 24-23, with veteran Tristan Knowles scoring 13 points so far early in the second quarter.

Key Event

2h agoTue 3 Sep 2024 at 5:39pm

A terrific effort from Rachael Watson, who gets Australia's second medal of day six!

Watson finishes third in the Women's 100m freestyle - S3 final.

She was right in it at the halfway mark, narrowly trailing the eventual winner Leanne Smith.

Australia's 'Rollers' are in action in their wheelchair basketball quarter final against Great Britain.

The Brits topped their group, so it's going to be a tough ask for the Rollers to advance.

Australian teenager Telaya Blacksmith has given a great account of herself in her first ever Paralympic final.

The 16-year-old finishes eighth with a time of 59.37 as the world record holder Aysel Onder is stunned by Yuliia Shuliar for the gold.

The Australian men's wheelchair basketball team will face Great Britain in the quarterfinals in a few minutes.

But the women's side, the Gliders, didn't qualify for Paris.

Veteran Shelley Matheson provided some insights into the challenges the Gliders have faced.

China continues to dominate in the pool!

Just minutes after the men dominated the 50m backstroke - S5 final, the Chinese women do the same.

The gold medallist, Lu Dong, comes within a hair of beating her own world and para record set at the Tokyo Games.

China is currently well on top of the medal tally at the Paralympics and they continue to extend the lead.

They complete the first clean sweep of the Paralympics after dominating the Men's 50m backstroke - S5 final.

What an absolute swimming powerhouse nation they've become in both the Olympics and the Paralympics!

Are you still trying to get your head around how classification works at the Paralympics? Physiotherapist and classifier Tanja Spencer breaks it down for us.

Key Event

3h agoTue 3 Sep 2024 at 4:15pm

Brilliant stuff from Australia's Tim Hodge here after his fourth-placed finish.

"Something that my mum said to me was, you want to stand out for the right reasons, and having an impairment or a limb difference or any kind of physical or mental difference at all, is something that should be, I guess, celebrated, like it's all a part of life," he tells Channel Nine.

"For me, it's putting flames on my leg, for someone else that might behaving an interesting hair colour or a cool looking arm or anything.

"It's always good to stand out for the right reasons. And it helps with yourself-confidence and, even competing at these events, having 17,000 people cheer for you when you're missing a leg and part of a hand and things like that, it makes everything else kind of melt away and gives you a realisation that it's a physical difference, but it's not a difference as a person.

"You're just as good, if not better than everyone else. And it can be used to give yourself a little bit of a push. Just think if they can do it, so can I."

USA's Christie Raleigh-Crossley has taken out the gold medal in the Women's 100m backstroke - S9 event with a blistering swim.

Raleigh-Crossley's time of 1:07.92 is a new Paralympic record.

Here's your podium from that final.

Australia's Tim Hodge finishes fourth in the Men's 100m backstroke - S9 final.

Hodge just 0.41 seconds away from the third spot after swimming a 1:02.52 as Yahor Shchalkanau takes out the gold medal.

Here's the podium.

Australia's Stella Barton manages to qualify for the Individual Freestyle Event after finishing inside the top eight of the Individual Event.

Here's a look at the top eight athletes to qualify.