Beijing Winter Paralympics: Neil Simpson wins Great Britain's first gold medal in Super-G . ski event

Beijing Winter Paralympics: Neil Simpson wins Great Britain’s first gold medal in Super-G . ski event

Posted On: March 6, 2022

Neil Simpson won Britain’s first gold medal at the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympics after racing for victory in the men’s Super-G event for the visually impaired.

Neil, 19, led by his brother Andrew, 21, took 1.08.91 to reach the finish line.

The brothers, from Banchory, Scotland, who made their Paralympic debut, finished 0.40 seconds ahead of Italy’s Giacomo Bertagnolli.

The Simpson brothers also made British sport history with the win, which was Britain’s first men’s snow gold medal at the Olympics or Paralympics, Paralympics GB said.

England’s Neil Simpson and his brother Andrew Simpson celebrate after the men’s super-G event for the blind at Yanqing National Alpine Ski Center (Photo: WANG ZHAO/AFP via Getty)

Neil said: “I’m so excited, it’s still not sinking in. This is our first season doing Super-G. At first, when we got off and Andrew said we made it to first place, there was a bit of anxiety waiting.

“I didn’t think it would be a winning performance, I just thought it would be a run. We risked everything and really did and I’m very happy with the performance, it felt good.

“There was a faint moment of reaching the bowl but we knew we needed to do it again and we really tried, so I’m really happy with that.”

The brothers, who have been skiing together since they were kids, finished seventh in Saturday’s downhill opening.

Neil said it was “very special” to win with his brother.

He added: “For me, having Andrew with me definitely helps, you can be very clear and concise in what you want, sometimes even direct and strong, so you can receive feedback more easily.

“You don’t have to beat around the bush, it definitely helps, we grew up together so we know what other people think.”

Andrew said he was “really happy” with the win.

The UK Winter Paralympics team medal table currently has three medals: one gold, one silver and one bronze.

Previously, blind alpine skier Menna Fitzpatrick became the most decorated British winter Paralympics in history when she took silver at the Super-G Vision Impaired in Beijing 2022.

The win brought the overall tally to five.

Fitzpatrick, who broke his leg just before the pandemic, said: “I am very happy to be the most successful British Winter Paralympics. That’s not what we did today, we skied well, so to come out with a silver medal and an amazing title means we’re happy too.”