29 August 2024
Dan Bethell made an impressive start to his bid to upgrade his Tokyo silver on an opening day of the Paralympics which saw all four British shuttlers take to the court.
The day started in Paris with the SH6 mixed doubles, as Rachel Choong and Jack Shephard lost their opening encounter to Indonesia’s Subhan Subhan and Rina Marlina 21-14, 21-12.
The pair will be back in action in their next group game on Friday, which is now a must-win affair to reach the knockout stages.
Choong’s classification was not included when badminton made its Paralympic debut in Tokyo, and the 30-year-old subsequently became the first British woman to compete in para-badminton this morning, an achievement she was proud of.
Choong said: “It’s nice that I’ll always be the first female to represent ParalympicsGB at para-badminton.
“I’m hoping what I do can pave the way. I’m proud to be the first but it’s more important that I’m not the last. I want to show women and girls that being a badminton player is possible, they can make a career from it.
“Being a Paralympian is something that I’ve always dreamt of and so many times in my career I thought it would never happen, let alone the possibility of winning medals. I would say that it would be the ultimate dream come true.”
In addition to her mixed doubles campaign, Choong will start her singles medal bid at La Chappelle Arena on Friday as third seed.
Bethell got off to a flying start in Group B of the SL3 men’s singles, beating New Zealand’s Wojtek Czyz in an emphatic victory; 21-5, 21-2.
The Tokyo silver medalist has put himself in a good position in the group and will be hoping to get another win under his belt tomorrow, when he plays Japan’s Daisuke Fujihara.
His time on court was made even more special with former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp watching on from the stands.
Bethell said: “I’ve had a really good start to the tournament which was the focus going into that match.
“I’ve just got to take it one game at a time, it’s a fierce competition out there, everyone is playing their best badminton, so I just need to make sure I’m really on it to make sure I’m there on Monday and in with a shot at a gold.
“I feel like I’ve come away from Tokyo with a lot of lessons learned. I feel much stronger, physically I’ve got much better over the last three years and that’s been a big help in helping me get the results I have done.
“I heard him [Klopp] yelling out ‘well done Dan’ and I got a thumbs up from him as well which was really special, a surreal moment. It’s another thing I’ll always remember about this Paralympics.”
Shephard was back in the afternoon for his singles match in the SH6 group stages.
He played China’s Lin Naili, and ultimately lost 21-17, 21-14, but he didn’t go down without a fight, and will hope to take the positives into his second group match tomorrow against Brazil’s Vitor Tavares.
Shephard said: “That match was great, I put in a good performance. I’m really happy with how I played. Not the result I wanted, but I still have two more matches in the group stage.
“I have got to keep focused, go back to the coaches, review how we played and prepare as best as we can for tomorrow’s game.
“Playing this morning, even though it was mixed doubles which was a great performance again by me and Rachel, being able to have that experience of the court was amazing, it helped me settle. I thought it was great being able to play two events today because they both influence each other.
“The atmosphere is brilliant. To be able to play in front of a crowd like that is a dream come true as well as being at the Paralympics as well as at the end of the week hopefully winning a medal. The crowd is brilliant. Thanks to all of them coming out, buying tickets, it’s amazing.”
Krysten Coombs closed out the opening day of action for the Brits in a tight match that went to a decider.
Coombs eventually lost 21-13, 19-21, 21-15 to Hong Kong’s Chu Man Kai, but the 33-year-old was delighted to have fought hard in front of a great crowd at La Chapelle Arena.
He said: “I’m buzzing really, just to be out here with that crowd was just amazing. The game was close and for that to be my first game out here in Paris was awesome. I’ve got another group game tomorrow and I can’t wait for that. It’s about being able to come back stronger for tomorrow and put myself into a good position to go through.
“To win gold here is my dream. I’ve still got two more group games which I feel really good and confident for. I’ll go back to the village now, reset and come out tomorrow stronger and better.”
All four players will be back in action tomorrow, including Choong taking on her first singles match in the SH6 category, playing Peru’s Rubi Milagros Fernandez Vargas.
