Paris 2024 Paralympic Games highlights of 1 September: Team USA’s Matt Stutzman wins Para archery gold, while France’s Marie Patouillet wins an upset gold in Para cycling track
Sunday, 1 September saw incredible athleticism shine at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
The day featured the kickoff of blind football, with Brazil looking to continue their gold medal streak at the Paralympics. Play continued in wheelchair basketball, with Team USA's men’s team advancing out of group play with an undefeated 3-0 record.
The swimming pool at Paris La Defense Arena saw plenty of action with Great Britain dominating the women’s field. Brock Whiston won gold in the 200m individual medley SM8, followed by Alice Tai in bronze. Tai again stormed to the podium, this time for gold in the women’s 100m backstroke S8.
On the track, Guillaume Junior Atangana (guided by Donard Ndim Nyamjua) became the first male refugee athlete to win a medal at an Olympic or Paralympic Games. Atangana won the bronze in the men's 400m T11 final in front of thousands spectators at Stade de France.
"I'm very happy to have this medal," Atangana said. "This medal shows that the Paralympic movement for refugees galvanizes people. It's a great honour for me. I've written my moment in history."
Moment of the day: The ‘armless archer’ Matt Stutzman wins gold and sets a new Paralympic record
In a day that could not have been scripted more perfectly, Team USA’s Matt Stutzman displayed a mastery of his sport—including shooting a bullseye, consistently scoring perfect 30 ends, and setting a new Paralympic record of 149 (out of a possible 150) in the elimination rounds—to win the Para archery individual compound open gold medal.
His win came twelve years after he won silver at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. With this gold medal, Stutzman closes out an unprecedented, trail blazing Paralympic career. The ‘armless archer’ leaves behind an incredible legacy of inspiring so many current and future Para archers.
“My first match was against an armless archer who I was mentoring, and this is the first time in the Paralympics that two armless archers shot against each other," commented Stuzman. "That was amazing and history.”
Medal of the day: Roderick Townsend three-peats winning men’s high jump T47 gold
Team USA’s Roderick Townsend has done it again, this time at Stade de France, winning his third straight gold medal in the men's high jump T47 event. In a near repeat of Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Townsend went head-to-head with India’s Nishad Kumar, and once again the American won, this time with a clearance of 2.08m to Kumar’s silver medal worthy 2.04m.
Townsend continues to find the drive to win, saying, "When I first started, it was something that I just truly wanted to do and, in 2021, I decided that it was just really a matter of wanting to truly be the best and just be dominant. After that, I decided, 'Hey I just want to be the bad guy. I want to be the reason why nobody else gets to win'.”
Quote of the day: France’s Marie Patouillet wins gold in Para cycling track
September 1 marked the final day of Paralympic competition in the National Velodrome. France’s Marie Patouillet made it a day to remember for French fans. She won gold in an upset, stunning compatriot and two-time world champion Heidi Gaugain in the women's C5 3000m individual pursuit.
"In my head, I told myself I was the favourite. I told myself, 'Do what you can do, no regrets, it's your last laps of the course, push, push, push'. And that's what I did. My determination took me further, physically, and here's the result. But it'll take some time to sink in,” said the gold medallist Patouillet of the last track race of her career.
Ahmed Tidiane Diakite of Team France runs with the ball under pressure from Haifu Li of Team People's Republic of China during the Men's Preliminary Round Group A - Match 4 on day four of the Paris 2024 Summer Paralympic Games at Eiffel Tower Stadium on September 01, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Franco Arland/Getty Images for IPC)
Results of the day: Blind football kicks off with a win for France
The crowd went wild at a brilliant opening day of Paris 2024 blind football at the Eiffel Tower Stadium with four matches. Colombia defeated Japan 1-0, Argentina tied 0-0 with Morocco and the defending gold medallists, Brazil, soundly defeated Turkiye 3-0 to advance. But it was the final match of the night that drew the biggest cheers as France won 1-0 over the People’s Republic of China. Full results and schedule here.