Paralympic Titles Are kept By Henshaw And Sugar

At a breezy Vaires-sur-Marne, Henshaw, a former swimmer, retained her kayak KL2 title and won her second Paris title, just ahead of teammate Emma Wiggs. 

Former sprinter Sugar added to her collection of gold medals from Great Britain by winning the KL3 event back-to-back, with fellow Briton Hope Gordon finishing fifth.

And after losing to Vladyslav Yepifanov of Ukraine, former Mr. England Jack Eyers secured a VL3 silver.

Henshaw powered to a Paralympic record in her win

Henshaw, 37 years old at the time and having undergone elbow surgery just a year before, delivered an outstanding performance by setting a Paralympic record in the VL3 final on Saturday. 

Demonstrating her strength right from the beginning of Sunday’s race, she swiftly created a lead over her competitor, Katalin Varga of Hungary, and confidently crossed the finish line in an incredible time of 49.07 seconds, further solidifying her victory. 

Notably, Varga, encountering a momentary setback as she paused her paddling mid-race, allowed Wiggs to capitalize on this opportunity to overtake her, ultimately securing the silver medal alongside her VL2 title with a finishing time of 51.56 seconds.

Henshaw stated “That was probably the hardest 200 metres weather-wise that I’ve ever had to do at a major,” 

“It was not pretty, probably not my best delivery in terms of how it looked but I’m really proud of how I managed to think quickly, draw on all my experience of water sports and managed to get that kayak to do what I wanted it to do and get over the line first.” She added.

Sugar was involved in a battle early on against home favorite

In the initial stages of the competition, Sugar found herself pitted in a head-to-head clash with the beloved local athlete and Tokyo silver medalist, Nelia Barbosa. 

However, showcasing incredible determination, the 33-year-old edged past her formidable opponent and surged towards the finish line with unwavering determination. 

Her final timing of 46.66 seconds not only secured her victory but also established a new Paralympic benchmark, leaving her French competitor trailing by a significant margin of 1.25 seconds.

Sugar said “It won’t sink in for a little while as you are so focused in on the race but I’m really proud,”

She continued We were well prepared as we train in Nottingham but it’s still a bit uneasy as you’d like it to be perfect flat. I just had to back myself in the first half to keep the boat moving, the second half got a bit windy but I had to use my experience and almost not try too hard. We’ve had a horrible winter at home but I think that put us in good stead.”

Among the other Brits competing were Ed Clifton, who placed seventh in the men’s VL2, and Jeanette Chippington, who, at 54, is the oldest member of the ParalympicsGB squad in Paris and is competing in her ninth Games.

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