Aaron Shorten (St. Laurence O’Toole AC) finished seventh in his Paralympic debut in the Men’s 1500m T20 final at the Stade de France this morning.
The 21-year-old ran a season’s best time of 4:02.71 in the race won by Great Britain’s Ben Sandilands who set a new world record of 3:45.40. In second place was Sandro Baessa of Portugal while rounding off the podium was Michael Brannigan of Team USA.
Speaking afterwards, the Kildare native shared his delight at competing in his first Paralympic Games despite feeling slightly disappointed with the result. “I have mixed emotions to be honest, I was hoping for a little bit more. I would have liked to get under four minutes but all I can do is take it on the chin and keep my head up. I ran a season best in my first Paralympic Final and that’s something so I’m happy with that.”
“There’s no better feeling than racing out in that stadium. The crowd was so loud and I heard my name being chanted, it was unbelievable. The race was very quick. I knew Michael [Brannigan] was going to take it out very quick and the plan was to go with him but I didn’t think he was going to take it out that quick, it was like an 800m! But he’s a great athlete as is Ben Sandilands and it was great to race alongside them.”
“It’s an honour to get here, it’s always been a dream to become a Paralympian and now I have. I want to thank my parents, my brother, my friends, everyone at home for supporting me. Everyone in Castledermot and Carlow for everything they’ve done for me. I’m over the moon to be here.”
