Why Australia have fallen behind on the Paralympics medal table

Paris: Australia’s position on the Paris Paralympics medal table has been attributed to tougher competition, as nations around the world ramp up their investment in para-sport.

With two full days of competition to go, Australia had 16 gold medals and sat behind nations such as the Netherlands, Brazil and Ukraine on the official table.

Australia’s Paralympic team at the opening ceremony in Paris, led by flagbearers Madison De Rozario and Brenden Hall.Credit: Getty Images

At 7pm AEST on Saturday, China led the table with 83 gold medals, followed by Great Britain with 42 and the United States with 31. Australia were in ninth spot on the medal table at 7pm AEST.

Australia are expected to win more gold medals in the final two days of competition, but have not finished lower than eighth spot on the Paralympics medal table since 1988.

At the Paris Olympics, Australia finished fourth on the medal table.

Paralympics Australia president Alison Creagh said more countries were focusing on para-sport and pulling the right levers to become highly competitive.

Paralympics Australia chef de mission Kate McLoughlin (left) and president Alison Creagh on Saturday.

“What we need to do is work our competitive edge,” she said.

“It’s getting tougher. Every country wants to succeed. Australia’s no different than that, and I think there’s a lot that we can do going forward to just be the best that we can be.

“This is elite sport. It happens in every sport, and we just need to gear our systems to support our athletes, our coaches, and make sure we deliver successes.”

Creagh said that as with every Games cycle, the Paralympic team would review its 2024 performance to prepare as best as possible for LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032.

The work had already started, she said, with specialists on the ground in Paris examining areas for improvement.

Australia were represented in 17 of the 22 sports at the Paris Games. Creagh said there would be a focus on fostering new talent and building teams for sports such as blind football and sitting volleyball.

Creagh said Paralympics Australia was fortunate the federal government had committed a record $283 million in funding for Paralympic and Olympic sport over the next two years.

“It’s not a short journey, though, so you don’t get immediate successes,” she said.

“You have to take time and effort to invest in your system, understand the system and how to gear your performances.”

In Sydney in 2000, Australia topped the Paralympics medal table. Creagh said it was too early to tell if the same would be replicated in Brisbane 2032.

“It takes time to grow these amazing elite athletes,” she said.

Creagh welcomed the rise in interest globally in Paralympic sport. “At the end of the day, that just starts to mean that we have a more inclusive and equitable world.”

She also stressed that despite the medal table result, there had been many successes worth celebrating, such as Australia’s best results in boccia and para-rowing.

Daniel Michel (centre) won the silver medal in boccia in Paris.Credit: Getty Images

“I’m absolutely proud of the Australian Paralympic team. I know Australians are as well. Every [athlete] has worked incredibly hard,” Creagh said.

“Regardless of how they’ve performed, they represent Australia so brilliantly.”

Paralympics Australia chef de mission Kate McLoughlin said no athlete got up in the morning and did not want to do their absolute best for a medal.

“Medals matter to individual athletes. We don’t focus on it as much because we know that athletes put enough pressure on themselves to win,” McLoughlin said.

“I want to focus on making sure we provide the best possible performance environment so athletes can do their own very best when it counts.”

For the latest results, news and analysis from the Paris Paralympics sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.