British archer Jodie Grinham made history by becoming the first athlete to win a Paralympic medal while pregnant. She secured the bronze in the women's individual compound open event on Saturday, as confirmed by organizers.
Competing while seven months pregnant presented Grinham with a distinctive set of challenges. She had to navigate through obstacles such as asking her unborn child to stop kicking so she could maintain focus while lining up her shots.
“The baby’s kicking which is great – we got to the third end and I was like, ‘Not right now, mommy loves you but we’ll do kickies in a minute,” she said afterwards, per the Paralympic Games website.
“The baby hasn’t stopped, it’s like the baby is going, ‘What’s going on, it’s really loud, mommy, what are you doing?’ But it’s been like a little honor knowing that the baby’s there and just a reminder of the little support bubble that I’ve got in my tummy,” she added.
Grinham narrowly edged out her teammate Phoebe Paterson Pine to claim the bronze medal, following their close losses in the semifinals. The gold medal was secured by Turkey's Öznur Cüre Girdi, who defeated Iran's Fatemeh Hemmati in the final.
Grinham mentioned that her training for the Paralympics required adapting to shooting techniques and maintaining focus, despite the challenge of her bump constantly altering her usual stance and routine.
Grinham is poised to secure her second medal at the Paris Games on Monday as she competes in the mixed team compound quarterfinals alongside Nathan McQueen.
“I didn’t want people to see it as, ‘Oh, there’s a pregnant lady going to a Games,’” she said. “I want them to say, ‘Wow, a pregnant lady can compete at the highest level and medal,’ showing you anything is possible. Just go and do it. You want to do it? Then do it.”
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