Paralympics Day 2: Irish in action and best of the rest as Ellen Keane begins gold defence

8am: Kerrie Leonard v Jiamin Zhou (Chn) (W2 Individual Compound Open Round of 16)
9.50am: Katie O’Brien & Tiarnán O’Donnell (Para Rowing – PR2 mixed double sculls, heat one)
10.22am: Ellen Keane (Para Swimming – SB8 100m breaststroke, heat two)
10.30am: Ronan Grimes (Para Cycling Track – C4-5 1000m time trial qualifying)
10.50am: Shauna Bocquet (Para Athletics – T54 5000m round one, heat two)
12.58pm: Josephine Healion & Katie George Dunlevy (Para Cycling Track – B 1000m time trial qualifying)
*1.52pm: Ronan Grimes (Para Cycling Track – C4-5 1000m time trial final)
*3.34pm: Josephine Healion & Katie George Dunlevy (Para Cycling Track – B 1000m time trial final)
6.51pm: Róisín Ní Riain (Para Swimming – S13 100m backstroke final)
*7.21pm: Ellen Keane (Para Swimming – SB8 100m breaststroke final)
*Depending on qualification
A slightly less densely packed day for the Irish on Friday, with nine athletes in action.
Kerrie Leonard will have the alarm set to sound earliest, as she’s back for the final 16 elimination round in the para archery W2 individual compound open event. The Meath woman placed 21st in Thursday’s ranking round, scoring a season best of 653, and will face China’s Zhou Jiamin.
On the waters, Ireland makes a grand return to para rowing, after having no boat in either Rio or Tokyo. Ending the hiatus will be two westerners – Katie O’Brien from Co Galway and Tiarnán O’Donnell from Limerick. The duo will compete in the first heat of the PR2 mixed double sculls at Vaires-sur-Marne Stadium, with the first two finishers qualifying directly for Sunday’s A final.
Next up is an emotional one, as Ellen Keane becomes a five-time Paralympian taking to the pool of the heats of the SB8 100m breaststroke heats. She’s the reigning champion in the event from Tokyo, but the race also marks the beginning of the end as this will be Keane’s last Games. If she qualifies, which she should, she’ll be looking to defend her title in the final on Friday evening.
Róisín Ní Riain has another chance at a medal after placing fourth in Thursday’s S13 100m butterfly. This time around it’s the S13 100m backstroke final, her preferred stroke.
Most of the Irish action on Friday is in the track cycling events, where three of our athletes will be on their bikes. Ronan Grimes is back for his second Paralympic Games and will be in action in the men’s C4-5 1,000m time trial qualifying round, while Josephine Healion and Katie-George Dunlevy compete in the women’s B 1,000m time trial later in the day. In each event, the six fastest riders in the qualifiers will proceed to the afternoon’s final.
And over at Stade de France, Shauna Bocquet lines out in the second heat of the T54 5,000m, a Paralympic debut for the Galway woman.
There’s just two sports at the Paralympics that are without an Olympic equivalent – boccia and goalball.
The latter is designed for those with visual impairments and is played in silence as the ball contains two bells which the attacking team attempt to roll into their opponents’ goal, which spans the entire width of the court, to score.
It’s three players aside and defending players can use their whole bodies to stop the ball going into their net.
The men’s reigning goalball champions from Tokyo, Brazil, are up against USA in Pool A on Friday having defeated France 8-5 in their first game on Thursday.
Boccia then is played by athletes in wheelchairs who have impaired motor function. It’s all about strategy and accuracy, with players throwing, rolling or kicking balls aiming to land them nearest to ‘the jack’ ball.
On Friday, it’s the turn of the men’s and women’s individual boccia events across four classifications.