Britain’s disabled swimmers, cyclists and athletes continued where they left off in Beijing by winning a string of gold medals at the BT Paralympic World Cup in Manchester.
Among the winners were teenage swimming sensation (and double Paralympic gold medallist) Ellie Simmonds, who set a new world record in winning the women’s S6 100m freestyle.
The teenager secured one of nine gold medals for Britain in the pool, with two won by 11-time Paralympic champion Dave Roberts, who triumphed in both the S7 50m and 100m freestyle.
South African Natalie du Toit, who competed in both the Olympics and Paralympics in Beijing, beat Britain’s Louise Watkin in the S9 100m freestyle, although Watkin won gold in the 50m freestyle.
Britain’s all-conquering cyclists from Beijing were also on form, winning ten of 14 gold medals on offer.
Darren Kenny took three of them, and there were two each for Sarah Storey and Jody Cundy, both of whom have struck Paralympic gold in both swimming and cycling.
Former judo champion Simon Jackson and his pilot Barney Storey also came away with two golds, as did Aileen McGlynn and her pilot Vicky Begg, who were riding together for the first time.
In athletics, there were four golds for Britain, with David Weir triumphing in the T54 1500m, Ben Rushgrove in the T36 100m, Libby Clegg in the women’s T12 100m, and Danny West in the F54-57 shot.
Weir, who also took silver in the T54 800m, said: “It feels good to win two medals and get the cobwebs out after Beijing. I’ve had five months out so I’m pretty pleased with my performance today.”
Meanwhile, South African Oscar Pistorius – who was competing for the first time since a serious boating accident earlier this year – won gold in both the T44 100m and 400m.
On the basketball court, Britain had two young, inexperienced squads, but the men’s team still beat Germany 69-49 in the bronze medal decider. The women’s team came fourth of four, after losing to China 63-50 in the bronze medal game.
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