The 2024 Paralympic journey came to an end for local athletes, representing Paralympics Ireland and ParalympicsGB, on Sunday 8th September with the closing ceremony taking place in Paris.  

This year’s Games were the first since Athens 2004 in which there were no medals won by an athlete from Northern Ireland. The retirement of dominant stars, Jason Smyth and Michael McKillop, and the absence of previous medal winners in Bethany Firth and James MacSorley meant the spotlight turned to new and emerging athletes. Of the nine athletes competing at the Games, six were making their Paralympic debut and all nine will likely have an eye on qualifying again in Los Angeles in 2028.  

Boccia star, Claire Taggart, was the most experienced of this crop of Paralympians having previously competed at both the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Games. This year was the first Paralympics to include individual boccia events that were split by gender, with Claire entering the competition with high expectations as current BC1F World Champion. An opening match 10-1 victory against Joselyn Leon gave Claire her first ever win at a Paralympics to kick start her quest for a medal. A quarter-final win against Hiu Lam Yeung set up a semi-final showdown against Soyeong Jeong, however it was the South Korean who would progress in a bitterly close 3-2 defeat. The competitiveness of elite level sport was highlighted in the bronze medal match, as Claire was unable to bounce back from defeat and had to settle for 4th place as she lost out to Gischa Zayana of Indonesia.  

In the Mixed Team BC1/BC2 event, Claire joined teammates David Smith OBE and Kayleigh Haggo in the quest for a Paralympic medal. An opening match defeat to PR China was followed by a fantastic win against Portugal to set up a quarter-final with Indonesia. In an epic encounter, the Indonesian side forced a tie break by winning the final end 2-0 to tie the match at 7-7 and would go on to win the match at the expense of the GB side. A tough draw of matches for the team as their defeats came to the eventual gold and silver medal winning sides, in a case of what could have been on another day.  

In wheelchair basketball, Katie Morrow made her Paralympic comeback having finished 4th at Rio 2016 as a 16 year old.  Her ParalympicsGB Women’s wheelchair basketball side had mixed fortunes in the pool stages as they overcame Spain in their opening game but lost to both China and Canada to set up a tough quarter final draw against USA. In a close match, GB will rue missed chances, particularly from free throws, as they narrowly lost out on a place in the semi-finals. The side would however regroup to put in solid performances against Japan and Germany to secure a very respectable  5th place finish at the Games. 

Swimmer Barry McClements also returned for his second Paralympics having competed at Tokyo 2020 for Paralympics Ireland, where he achieved a 7th place finish in the 100m S9 Backstroke. The Commonwealth Games bronze medallist should be delighted with performances at Paris 2024 as he progressed to the finals of both S9 men’s 100m Backstroke and S9 men’s 100m Butterfly events. An 8th place finish in the S9 Backstroke was followed up with a 5th placed finish in the S9 Butterfly. His time of 1:01.24 was a lifetime best in the event and was 0.16 seconds off a bronze medal.  

The future looks bright for local swimmers, as there were promising debuts in the pool for Paralympics Ireland’s Dearbhaile Brady and Deaten Registe. At just 17 years old, Dearbhaile followed a 10th place finish in S6 50m Freestyle with a 5th place finish in the S6 women’s 50m Butterfly event and, like Barry, was only 0.16 seconds off a bronze medal. Deaten, who only made his debut for Ireland earlier this year, showed his potential at 20 years old with a 6th place finish in SB14 men’s 100m Breaststroke finals in a great first performance. 

In paratriathlon the tandem twins, Chloe MacCombe and Judith MacCombe, were also making their Paralympics debut alongside guides Catherine Sands and Eimear Nicholls. The women’s PTVI event took place on Monday 2nd September with Chloe and Catherine finishing 6th and Judith and Eimear finishing 8th respectively. With status as Paralympians now secured, both sisters may be looking ahead to LA 2028.   

David Ross was part of the ParalympicsGB wheelchair rugby squad who would narrowly miss out on a medal after losing out to Australia 50-48 in the bronze medal match. As reigning Paralympic champions GB will have been targeting a medal, however 4th place is a respectable finish in what was a strong 8 team field with the majority of matches decided by only a few tries.  

The Para Equestrian Grade III event saw 23 year old Jessica McKenna make her Paralympics debut for Paralympics Ireland. Riding on horse, Davidoff 188, Jessica would finish 10th with a score of 65.033%. As one of only three athletes in the event under 30 years old, this will prove to be a great first experience for Jesscia.  

The Paris Games also provided the opportunity for family, friends and those involved in the various sports to attend and support athletes, which is not always feasible in past and future Paralympics. The 2016 edition was held 6,000 miles away in Rio De Janeiro and the Tokyo 2020 Games did not allow spectators to attend due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Future games in Los Angeles in 2028 and Brisbane 2032 will present further travelling dilemmas, which means the 2024 games could prove to be a once in a lifetime event for many. Disability Sport NI staff were able to attend the Games which provided the opportunity to witness firsthand the impact of this support. It was fantastic to see the level of support athletes received during their Paralympic journey and we hope this has provided inspiration to others who wish to follow similar pathways.  

Have you been inspired to take up a new sport? Do you want to provide sporting opportunities for disabled people? Check out the Active Living No Limits database to browse or advertise sport and active recreation opportunities across Northern Ireland: 

www.activelivingnolimits.co.uk