Paralympics GB team celebrate at Birmingham homecoming event

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Paralympics GB team celebrate at Birmingham homecoming event

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Hannah Cockroft and Nathan Maguire were among those attending the event

A homecoming event has been held for Britain’s Paralympic stars in Birmingham.

The team finished second in the medal table at Paris 2024, ending with a total of 124 medals including 49 golds.

Acts including Craig David, Aitch, Sugababes and Jonas Blue performed in a concert at the Utilita Arena Birmingham to mark the team’s successes.

Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker, who host TV programme The Last Leg, attended the event which will be screened on Channel 4 at 17:30 BST on Saturday.

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Flag-bearers were on stage during the homecoming

Asked how she wore two medals at the same time, Jodie Grinham, who won gold and bronze in archery as she was seven months pregnant, said “with difficulty”.

She told BBC Radio WM: “Believe it or not, they are extremely heavy.

“So there’s a few times when I’m holding them and people are like…’look at her holding her medals’.

“And I’m like ‘no, I’m literally just taking the weight off the bump’.”

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Jodie Grinham said it was hard competing at seven months pregnant

Nine-time Paralympic gold medal winner Hannah Cockroft said she was “far from done” following more success at the Paris Games.

Cockroft finished in front of teammate Kare Adenegan, who is from Coventry, in the T34 800m final to claim her second gold title in Paris following earlier success in the T34 100m, taking her overall career tally to nine golds.

Speaking at the homecoming, she told PA Media: “The feeling of gold medals will never ever get old.

“I definitely want to try and get double figures. I feel I have so much to learn, I’ve got so many things I need to improve on so there’s definitely more to give.”

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Team GB Paralympians were on stage during the event at the Utilita Arena Birmingham

Following on from the successes of Paris,

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to call for disabled children to get equal access to sport in schools.

In response, a government spokesperson said it had launched a review into opening up access and how it could support the “Paralympians of the future”.

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There were performances from Craig David, Aitch (left and right respectively), Sugababes, Jonas Blue and choirs from Birmingham

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