Athlete presence at Paralympics applauded
Commonwealth Sport President Chris Jenkins has praised Commonwealth athlete performances at the Paralympics and hailed the GAPS Programme coaches and athletes competing in Paris.
A total of 603 Commonwealth athletes competed at the Paralympics, with sixteen Commonwealth countries winning Paralympic medals that accounted for 17.4 percent of the total medals won.
Thirty-three athletes from 20 different nations who have attended the GAPS Programme competed in Paris – including Nigerian powerlifters Onyinyechi Mark who won gold and broke the World record twice and Esther Mworgu who won silver with a Paralympic record.
President Jenkins said, ‘’I congratulate all Commonwealth Paralympic athletes for their dedication, commitment to overcome significant challenges and the competitive spirit shown in Paris. I was delighted to see so many athletes from the GAPS Programme competing, which brought home to me the value of investing in the development of coaches to build sustainable development pathways for Para-athletes. I also congratulate all the coaches of Para-athletes – they make a fantastic and often unsung contribution to Commonwealth Sport.’’
GAPS supports the development of inclusive sport pathways throughout the Commonwealth, developed by Commonwealth Sport and Griffith University and delivered in collaboration with Stellenbosch University, University of Birmingham and the University of the West Indies. In addition to the GAPS athletes, there were 13 GAPS coaches in Paris.
‘’The performance of Commonwealth Para-athletes in Paris strengthens our commitment to GAPS and to have a fully integrated Para-sport programme in future Commonwealth Games to drive social change and inclusion across the entire Commonwealth Sport Movement, said Jenkins.’’
Four athletes in total from the GAPS programme won medals in Paris, with the other two being Nigeria’s Isau Ogunkunle (Table Tennis) and Trinidad and Tobago’s Akeem Steward (Athletics).
Other notable appearances and performances in Paris included Kiribati’s Ongiou Timeon, competing as the country's first-ever Paralympian, Mauritius winning its first-ever medal through Yovanni Phillippe in the men’s 400m, India increasing its overall medal count from 1 at London 2012 to 29 at Paris 2024.
National Paralympic Committees returning to the Paralympics after absence included Bangladesh (previous appearance 2008). Solomon Islands and Vanuatu (2012), and Tonga and Trinidad and Tobago (2016).
