Swimmer Tom Gallagher has made a remarkable comeback from a near-death bout with pancreatitis to win Australia's first gold medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Gallagher overcame final pains to win the men's S10 50m freestyle final in a time of 23.40 seconds at a packed La Défense Arena.
The 25-year-old Gallagher made a blistering charge down the final straight to hold off a chasing pack that included Australian teammate Rowan Crothers, who won bronze. Gallagher's gold and Crothers' third-place finish gave Australia four pool medals on the first day of the Paris event, following Lakeisha Patterson's silver and Brendan Hall's bronze medals earlier in the day.
The success was especially sweet for Gallagher, who won bronze in the 400m freestyle S10 in Tokyo but was unable to reach the podium due to pain caused by pancreatitis.
“Winning my first gold medal at this Games means so much to me,” Gallagher said. “I was a different athlete in Tokyo. I was having a lot of health issues with my pancreas, so after the 400m I was in hospital for about a month and almost died.
“I was lucky to have surgery a few years ago that cured everything and allowed me to become a sprinter. The pancreatitis was extremely painful, my heart rate increased to 240 beats per minute and all my internal organs stopped functioning.
“I didn't make the podium that night, but I'll make up for it tonight.”
Crothers, whose bronze medal was her fourth at the Paralympics, couldn't help but be impressed with her teammates' tenacity on the way to winning their first gold medal.
“I've won this race before, but for Tommy to win today and get the bronze medal is just amazing,” Crothers said. “What an incredible story… I think Tom is such a great athlete and he's overcome so many obstacles.”
Gallagher and Crothers' double medal win helped add spark to an afternoon that started with a flourish but threatened to end in heartbreak for many of Australia's medal hopes.
Several Australians just missed out on the podium, including Alexa Leary, who set a world record on Thursday (10 minutes later) to finish sixth in the women's S10 50m freestyle. Ben Hans had to settle for fourth in the men's S14 100m butterfly and Paige Leonhart was seventh in the women's S14 100m butterfly.
Hall won the bronze medal in the afternoon's opening race, the men's S9 400m freestyle, while Patterson surrendered a commanding lead to Hungary's Zsofia Konkoly on the final lap of the women's race to take the silver medal.
“I saw her coming up in the last 200m and I like to chase and I knew I could get there tonight,” Patterson said. “I can't complain. This is my third Paralympics and I've been on the podium in all three so it feels special.”
Hall had indicated this would be his final Games – a fitting end to a career that saw him win seven Paralympic medals – while Hall came back from a late charge to win bronze after missing out on a medal in Tokyo.
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The 31-year-old's race was made even more dramatic by local Frenchman Hugo Didier, who overtook Italy's Simone Barlaam in the final corner to take the gold medal.
“I wanted a little bit of revenge, and I just wanted to come home with a medal this time,” Hall said. “I didn't care what color it was, I just loved winning it in front of the people that matter most to me.”
Hall said winning the medal had special meaning for her two-year-old son, Bodhi, because it was the first time he'd ever seen him compete.
“Maybe he'll just have to wait another year to realize what he did really matters,” Hall said. “For now, he's just enjoying watching his dad swim, and that's what matters most to me.”
The Steelers' hopes of Paralympic wheelchair rugby glory are in jeopardy after a loss to Great Britain in the early hours of Thursday morning. Australia lost their opening Pool B match 58-55 at the Champ de Mars Arena on Thursday and now face an uphill task of reaching the semi-finals and competing for a medal.
The Steelers, ranked number one in the world and placed fourth in Tokyo, were neck and neck with the cash medallists before Great Britain pulled away early in the third quarter, meaning Australia must beat hosts France and Denmark to guarantee a medal and there is little room for error.
