Comments from ParalympicsGB swimmers following this evening’s session.
Will Ellard
Result: Silver in the S14 men’s 100m butterfly in a time of 54:86.
Age: 18
Hometown: Beccles
On the silver:
“I didn’t think I would be happy with a silver medal, but as soon as I finished knowing Alexander Hillhouse won the gold, I’m really good friends with him. He came over after my trials in April so to see him win the gold and me the silver, and I’ve still got my main event the 200m free coming up on Saturday. It’s definitely a big confidence boost going towards that with a 0.6 second PB on the fly.”
On team morale after Poppy Maskill’s gold:
“It is a big thing for the team. This isn’t her main event either. This is her first event but the 100m backstroke at the end, that’s what she wants to go for the world record on. The world record on the fly as well is just a bonus.”
Louise Fiddes
Result: Sixth in the S14 women’s 100m butterfly in 1:06:91
Age: 23
Hometown: Welwyn Garden City
On the Paralympics:
“Such a good warm up, I really love the crowd. It’s the biggest adrenaline rush you have ever felt. Incredible I can’t believe Poppy’s world record, what a swim. I really hope she laps up all that atmosphere.”
Going into the rest of the week:
“A lot of confidence. I was really unsure about how I would feel about the crowd so now that I know that I love it, I’m really excited.”
Toni Shaw
Result: Fifth in the S9 women’s 400m freestyle in 4:48:44
Age: 21
Hometown: Aberdeen
On her performance:
"Obviously I'm a bit disappointed as it wasn't the swim that I wanted but I was injured at the start of this year and coming back from that has been hard so I've just got to be proud that I swum here.
"The 400m is my main event and the other two are a bit different so I just need to see what happens. I'm just hoping to just swim fast in the mornings and try to make the final in my other events."
On the atmosphere in Paris and the team:
"I still love swimming and being a part of the team, everyone is so nice and I'm going to be cheering on for the next few days and to see my best friends go and smash it will be really special.
"There's a lot more excitement at this one with the crowd and I saw my family when I finished my race which was really special. It's amazing."
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