Scots Paralympians congratulated

As the 2024 Paralympic Games draws to a close, First Minister John Swinney has commended Scottish athletes for their world-class performances which will inspire future generations.

21 Scottish athletes took part individually or in team events, securing 11 gold medals, eight silver medals and one bronze medal - contributing to ParalympicsGB’s overall medals tally of 124 medals.

Athletes from Scotland broke records in pursuit of gold medals, including Stephen Clegg’s record-breaking S12 backstroke time, Jenny Holl’s effort as pilot for Sophie Unwin on her way to gold and a world record in the Women’s B 3,000m individual cycling pursuit, and Sammi Kinghorn achieving a gold medal while setting a new Paralympic Record for the Women’s T53 100m.

The First Minister said:

“I want to pay tribute to and congratulate all of the ParalympicsGB squad, including the 21 Scots on the team, for your performances in Paris.

“You are all athletes at the top of your field, and Scotland has been cheering you on throughout these Games.

“Your performances will inspire people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities to take up sport, achieve their own goals and become more active in their own lives. The next generation will be inspired by where you are now, and the Scottish Government and partners will work to ensure there will be opportunities for them to follow suit.”

Forbes Dunlop, CEO of sportscotland, said:

“On behalf of everyone at sportscotland I want to congratulate every single one of the Scottish athletes who have represented Paralympics GB in Paris over the last couple of weeks. There have been some extremely strong performances from our athletes, including personal bests, Paralympic and World records and a very impressive haul of medals, demonstrating the enormous level of commitment and talent across the team. 

“All of this success is down to years of hard work from the athletes, their coaches and their wider support teams including Scottish Governing Bodies of Sport and the sportscotland institute of sport and we are proud to be part of the ‘team behind team’ supporting the athletes.”

Gavin Macleod, CEO of Scottish Disability Sport, said:

“Congratulations to all the Scottish Paralympians and their significant support networks in Paris. The performances are testimony to the inclusive approach Scottish Governing Bodies of sport are taking to ensuring para-athletes are supported. Not all of us will be able to reach the heights of these international high-performance athletes however, what we can do is commit to working in partnership to ensure that children, young people and adults can access quality PE, comprehensive sporting opportunities and the chance to move more every day.”