U
nlike some other
Paralympic sports,
wheelchair tennis is not
about setting records,
even if the quad doubles bronze
medal match did last a record
four hours and 25 minutes. It's
about raising the bar, figuratively
speaking, and in that respect the
sport succeeded wonderfully in Rio
on its seventh official appearance
at a Paralympic Games.
Wheelchair tennis has come a
long way since its first Paralympic
appearance as a demonstration
event at Seoul 1988. It became
a full medal sport at Barcelona
four years later. And to think that
its founder, Brad Parks, was once
advised by a leading figure in
wheelchair sport that wheelchair
tennis would never succeed.
Try telling that to gold
medallists Gordon Reid, Jiske
Griffioen, Dylan Alcott and all the
other Paralympians at Rio 2016
who kept large crowds enthralled
throughout the eight days of
competition at the Barra Olympic
Tennis Centre.
Images, left to right:
Dylan Alcott now has Paralympic gold medals in both wheelchair tennis and wheelchair basketball
Jiske Griffioen's gold continued Dutch domination in Paralympic women's singles
Gordon Reid won the battle of the Brits in the men's final
British supporters
