Alice Tai lost for words as she wins her second gold of Paris 2024

Alice Tai was lost for words after winning her second gold medal of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games with victory in the Women’s S8 50m Freestyle.

The Ealing Swimming Club member went under 30 seconds for the first time since her amputation, to touch the wall just ahead of Brazil’s Cecília Araújo and Neutral Paralympic Athlete, Viktoriia Ishchiulova.

The victory took Tai’s medal tally in Paris to four after she completed the set yesterday with silver in the 400m Freestyle following 200m Individual Medley bronze and the 100m Backstroke title.

Speaking to Channel 4 after the win Tai said: “I can’t believe it, I’m still in shock, speechless. I can’t believe what just happened.

“I knew it was going to be a close race and I thought someone might duck under 30 (seconds) but I didn’t think it would be me.

“My starts have been so affected since my amputation so it was a real shot in the dark as I don’t have that power off the start anymore.

“I just thought I’ll go in there and see how it goes. My 50 free has been a bit hard, my strokes not been as balanced just because of the loss of my leg.

“I didn’t know I’d won until the girl next to me told me – I couldn’t see!

“I did not expect a 29, I did not expect to win it. The Neutral Para Athlete (Ishchiulova ) who came third said ‘that’s the exact time that I won in Tokyo with’ which is really cool. So history repeats itself.

“I’m just shocked and I’m not usually lost for words.”

“I’m loving swimming”

Despite the issues she’s admitted to having with her starts, Tai was more than in touch with the rest of the field as they got off the blocks.

The Brit was in close company with the leaders and used her speed to claw back the gap and power past the rest of the field.

Araújo was always close but Tai was stronger in the finish, clocking in at 29.91, just four tenths of a second ahead of the Brazilian.

The medal was ParalympicsGB’s third of the night following a gold for Rebecca Redfern and a silver for Iona Winnifrith which made it 26 medals and 16 golds for GB in the pool.

And despite it being an event that Tai has been struggling with since her amputation at the start of 2022, she thinks that she may have found her stroke balance at the perfect time.

“Going from 400 yesterday to 50 today is a real change in system as my whole stroke is different from when I swim 50 compared to 400.

“My 400 I think was a little bit easier balance. My strokes a lot longer and it’s just a lot easier to swim and stay controlled. The 50 for me I go straight arm as it helps me get a lot more power in the front of my stroke but it’s really hard to balance.

“But I think we’ve got there, I think we figured it out. If we haven’t then I can go faster which is also a positive. That was the most controlled that my sprint freestyle has felt since my amputation so good timing I guess.”

After winning her second gold in Paris, Tai had some special words for her coach Dave Heathcock, admitting that he’s helped her to enjoy her swimming more than ever before.

“If we’re going off PB’s that’s 0.60 off mine post amputation which is insane on a 50m freestyle. Over half a second – I’m so excited to go and hug my coach!

“Dave’s literally the best coach I could ask for. I’ve worked with so many coaches and they’ve all been a fundamental part of my journey and I’m thankful for each and every one of them.

“When I moved to Ealing, I said to Dave ‘I don’t really want to swim, I don’t like it, I want to quit but I don’t know what else to do with my life.’

“And he’s built me up from that 19-year-old that turned up on poolside to a 25-year-old that’s stood here today, enjoying every second and hitting a personal best. I’m just so grateful.

“I’m now enjoying my swimming more than ever, I’m loving swimming. I can’t believe how far I’ve come in the last couple of years. I’m mindblown.

“I want to start training for next season already and I’ve still got one race left, I just want to get back in the pool.”

Tai’s not done yet at the 2024 Paralympic Games as she takes to the pool once again on the final day of swimming with the 100m butterfly on Saturday 7 September.