UoM Sport at The University of Manchester is celebrating the outstanding achievement of student Grace Harvey, who captured gold in the 100m breaststroke (SB5) final at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

Grace, a master’s student in Dental Public Health and an immunology graduate, upgraded her silver medal from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games during a spectacular night for Team GB’s swimming team on 1 September.

In addition to Grace’s triumph, Team GB secured three more gold medals in the pool: Brock Whiston in the SM8 200m individual medley, Maisie Summers-Newton in the SB6 100m breaststroke, and the S14 mixed 4x100m freestyle relay squad.

Reflecting on her victory in Paris, Grace said, “I knew they were going to go out fast in the first 50m and I could see them. I’ve got a good turn, I’ve really worked on that and just stuck on my race plan. I knew that I didn’t want to breathe because if you breathe when you’re coming up. In that final five I was like ‘just don’t breathe, just keep going’. To touch first was a bit of a whirlwind.”

Grace, who has cerebral palsy, initially specialised in backstroke before switching to breaststroke in early 2021. Her swimming journey began as a form of physiotherapy, leading her to join her first swimming club at the age of 9.

James Marenghi, Head of Sport & Physical Activity at The University of Manchester, praised Grace’s hard work and dedication: “A huge congratulations to Grace on her Paralympic gold medal in the SB5 100m breaststroke. She has worked tirelessly in and out of the pool to reach the pinnacle of her sport, and we at The University of Manchester couldn’t be prouder. Grace exemplifies how excellence can be achieved in both sport and academics when balancing a dual career. She deserves all the success she has achieved. Well done, Grace!”

In addition, Paralympic cyclist Archie Atkinson, the youngest member of Team GB’s cycling squad, won a silver medal in the C4 4,000m individual pursuit final on 31 August. Archie, a member of the Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme (TASS) supported by The University of Manchester, made his Paralympic debut in Paris, following a successful season with gold medals at the UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships and the UCI Cycling World Championships – Para-track.