Paris 2024 has been a resounding success for ParalympicsGB as the 215-strong squad rose to the occasion to make these games their most successful yet.

With 124 medals won (49 golds, 44 silvers and 31 bronzes), comfortably achieving their 100-140 medal target set by UK Sport, Great Britain finished second on the medal table behind China and ahead of the United States.

UK Armed Forces veterans played their part in ParalympicsGB’s wider success at these games, with four gold medals won across three different sports.

Great Britain’s first gold in the velodrome at these games came courtesy of Jaco van Gass, a former Parachute Regiment soldier and a veteran of Afghanistan.

A star of the Tokyo games three years ago, van Gass came to Paris to defend his title in his specialist event, the men’s C3 3000m pursuit.

It was there he powered his way to the gold medal over teammate and rival Finlay Graham, who had to settle for silver.

Two days later, van Gass also successfully defended the team sprint title, alongside Jadeena Cox and Jody Cundy.

With his track cycling campaign complete, van Gass then turned his attention to the road-cycling events, finishing eighth in the time trial and sixth in the road race.

It is uncertain whether we will see Jaco van Gass in the next games in Los Angeles, so two gold medals may well be the perfect way for the Army veteran to bow out if Paris is to be his last games.

Another Army veteran was competing in his first-ever Paralympic Games, former Royal Engineer and fellow Afghanistan veteran Gregg Stevenson.

Competing in para-rowing, Stevenson paired with then double Paralympic gold medallist Lauren Rowles in the PR2 Mixed Double Sculls.

Having paired up in 2022, Stevenson and Rowles came into the games on an undefeated run and with multiple world best times broken.

In the final of the PR2 Mixed Double Sculls, Stevenson and Rowles found themselves in a nail-biting race against the Chinese pair who were leading by a boat-length going into the final 500m.

After digging deep and leaning on their winning experience, the British pair prevailed and won the gold medal with a perfectly timed final sprint.

Their win means Stevenson wins his first-ever Paralympic gold medal at the first time of asking, and Rowles wins her third-ever gold medal to add to the two she won in Rio and in Tokyo, becoming the first-ever Paralympic rower to win three Paralympic titles.

Elsewhere, Royal Air Force veteran Luke Pollard, guide to visually impaired triathlete Dave Ellis, came into Paris looking for redemption.

The pair suffered heartbreak three years ago in Tokyo when their bike chain snapped mid-race, forcing them into a mechanical DNF.

But with multiple world, European and Commonwealth titles under their belts, the pair came into the games ranked number one in the world.

And, in Paris, the pair comfortably won the gold medal – finally becoming Paralympic champions.

But as one RAF veteran turned heartbreak into jubilation, the opposite effect happened to another RAF veteran at these games.

Stu Robinson, part of the GB Wheelchair Rugby team, was hoping to help his team defend their Paralympic title in Paris after the team won gold in Tokyo three years ago.

Things went their way in the group stages, winning their group over world number one Australia, Denmark and home favourites France.

That set up a tough semi-final with the USA – the most decorated wheelchair rugby side in existence. 

A mistake-riddled second quarter was what cost GB the win over the USA, losing 43-50.

With a chance to fight for bronze against Australia, a side they had already defeated in the group stages, they struggled to keep their momentum and fell short at 48-50.

And finally, returning to para-rowing, Erin Kennedy coxed the PR3 Mixed Coxed Four to Paralympic gold, extending their 14-year unbeaten run.

Kennedy, whose husband serves in the Army, says that the Armed Forces provided great support to her when she underwent cancer treatment.

As the 2024 Paralympics officially ended, Armed Forces veterans played a fundamental part in ParalympicsGB’s most successful games yet and further demonstrated how important para-sport is to injured, sick or disabled veterans.

Attention now turns to the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Milano-Cortina, with the 2028 Summer Paralympics scheduled to take place in Los Angeles.