Paralympic Games: Breaking down barriers matters as much as medals to GB paralympians

The 300-strong British team will be the last of the 166 nations welcomed into the Paralympic Village in Stratford tomorrow as 4,280 athletes prepare to compete to win 503 gold medals across 20 sports from Thursday’s opening day of the XIV Paralympic Games.

Four years ago, Britain won 42 golds and 102 medals in all – finishing second in the medal table behind hosts China, who claimed 211 medals including 89 gold – and have been set a target of 103 medals for London 2012.

ParalympicsGB chef de mission Craig Hunter said: “We have two ambitions for this team - one is around medal targets and performance and the other is around perception.

“We want to use the power of sport to change the way people think, feel and behave towards disability and our athletes are absolutely determined that their performances will inspire young people to get involved in sport or get involved in something to enrich their lives. This is an absolutely amazing opportunity, not only here in the UK but around the world.”

Britain won six more gold medals than the United States in Beijing in 2008 and face competition from the likes of Ukraine, Brazil and Australia across 11 days of action this time round.

Hunter added: “It’s a tough target; it’s one more than we won last time. We absolutely hope we can surpass that, but we know the competition is going to be tough. Our aspiration is to win more medals across more sports.”

The British team will be complete once the remaining athletes from fencing and athletics arrive in London tomorrow from holding camps in Bath and Portugal, respectively.

Success across all sports is high on the agenda, but the British Paralympics Association (BPA) also hope to use the anticipated focus on a showpiece Paralympics to provoke further change.

Chief executive Tim Hollingsworth said: “We hope that these Games will inspire real change and real momentum. As the BPA, we now must seek to catch and build on this inspiration, we need to work with those responsible for delivering sport in communities and schools to make sure there are more opportunities for disabled people.

“I’m looking forward to our holding a Paralympic festival that we’ll look to hold within three months of the end of the Games, really looking to  maximise the impact of that stardust, really looking to  provide opportunities for people of all ages and all impairments, for them to see for themselves what Paralympic sport can offer and what might suit them.”

The Paralympic festival will likely feature opportunities to try a range of sports and will be similar to the Paralympic potential days where world record-holding athletes Jonnie Peacock and Hannah Cockroft were discovered. While the events could uncover members of the team for the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, there are other aspirations.

“It’s not just about the next generation of athletes, it’s about every disabled person finding sport and understanding how it can be for them and the role it can play in their lives,” Hollingsworth added.

“This is an opportunity for us as a nation to think differently, to challenge perceptions and the way people think, feel and  behave towards disability.”