Simon Patmore wins Australia's first gold at Winter Paralympics

Simon Patmore has claimed Australia's first Winter Paralympics gold medal in 16 years, winning the snowboard cross final in PyeongChang.

Paralympics

Simon Patmore has become Australia's first Paralympics gold medallist since 2002. (AAP)

Simon Patmore has become Australia’s first Paralympic snowboard medalist, after claiming the country's first gold medal in 16 years. 

The 30-year-old from Carseldine in Queensland has also become the first Australian man to win medals at both a Winter and Summer Paralympics, having won bronze in athletics at London 2012.
Patmore easily beat Italian Manuel Pozzerle in the two-man final of the upper limb disability class on Monday to win Australia's first medal of the Games.

The snowboarder has congenital Erb's palsy which affects muscle strength and movement in his left arm.

He was cheered on by Bunbury shark attack survivor Sean Pollard, who missed out on the snowboard cross quarter-finals by 0.13 seconds.

Australia's first Paralympic gold since 2002

Patmore becomes Australia's first Winter Paralympic gold medallist since Michael Milton won four and fellow alpine skier Bart Bunting and his sighted guide Nathan Chivers claimed two medals at Salt Lake City in 2002.

Jess Gallagher was the first and last Australian to win medals at both a Winter and Summer Paralympics.

She has bronze medals in alpine skiing from Vancouver 2010 and Sochi 2014 and cycling in Rio 2016.
Patmore's performance has erased fears Australia would go medal-less at a Winter Paralympics for the first time since Innsbruck, Austria in 1988.

Those fears were heightened one day ago when world number two snowboarder and team co-captain Joany Badenhorst was ruled out of competition with a knee injury.

London 2012

Patmore won bronze in the 200m T46 in London and 100m gold at the Commonwealth Games in the same class eight years ago.

He quit athletics to take up snowboarding in 2014 after hearing the Paralympics included an upper-limb disability category.

He is the 30th Australian to win medals in two or more Paralympic sports.


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