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Paralympics Day 6: Whitley lands best-ever Paralympics result

The Men’s Giant Slalom ended with a sensational performance from James Whitley, debuts for Dan Sheen and Alex Slegg, and a top-5 finish for Neil and Andrew Simpson

Competing in his third Paralympic Winter Games, James Whitley took his career-best Paralympic result with a stunning sixth-place finish in the Giant Slalom Standing class. Sitting 12th after his first run, Whitley put down the second fastest run of the entire competition in his second run to propel him into sixth position just 2.5s off the podium positions.

For Whitley, the result marks the continuation of an already-successful Games having put down his previous best result in the first day’s Downhill races.

Excellent skiing by James Whitley sees him take 6️⃣th overall in the Giant Slalom Standing at @Beijing2022! ⛷

Brilliant work James, a performance to be proud of!#WinterParalympics pic.twitter.com/wH23DfEJAC

— GB Snowsport (@GBSnowsport) March 10, 2022

In the Visually Impaired class, Neil Simpson and guide Andrew Simpson continued their excellent Beijing showing, finishing up in fifth place. Amid tricky snow conditions, the brothers from Banchory safely navigated their way through both runs to finish 4.5s off the podium places.

In the Men’s Seated class, there were Paralympic debuts for Alex Slegg and Dan Sheen. In a packed field, Sheen’s efforts were good enough for 32nd place after the first run, but in tricky conditions skied out on his second run, while Slegg, sitting 30th after the first leg, delivered a technically sound second run which saw him improve his final standing to 26th.

BEIJING, CHINA – MARCH 10: James Whitley reacts after their run during the Men’s Giant Slalom Standing Run 2 on day six of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics at Yanqing National Alpine Skiing Centre on March 10, 2022 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)