Ski sensation Neil Simpson made Paralympic history on Sunday as the first Brit man to win gold at a Winter Games.
The 20-year-old triumphed in the men’s Super-G vision impaired class, with brother and guide Andrew Simpson, 21, by his side.
The pair clocked one minute 08.91 seconds, almost half-a-second clear of the rest of the field, at their first ever Paralympics in Beijing.
Reflecting on his victory, a jubilant Neil said: “This is our first season doing Super-G.
“Initially when we came down and Andrew said we had gone into first place, there was a bit of an anxious wait.
“I could tell it was quick but I didn’t know how special it was. I’m just really thrilled, it’s not really sunk in.
“Andrew was shouting and screaming. I said, ‘Yeah, maybe a podium’. It is such a high, it’s almost indescribable.”
He has Nystagmus, which causes involuntary eye movements. A skier since the age of four, he enjoyed ski trips with his elder brother.
The talented siblings, from Banchory in Aberdeenshire, have enjoyed a rapid rise to the top.
They joined Gordon Skiers, training in Scotland at The Lecht and Glenshee.
They broke through in international competition in 2018, winning slalom gold and giant slalom bronze at the Para Alpine World Cup.
Neil went on to be shortlisted for the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.
Andrew said: “I never thought this was going to happen when we first started. We called our family - they’re ecstatic.
“We spend all the time together, especially here - we share a room, go to meals together, but it means we know exactly what each other wants and needs.”
They are the first men to win a ParalympicsGB Gold on snow after successes for Kelly Gallagher in 2014 and Menna Fitzpatrick in 2018.
The siblings finished 0.40 seconds clear of Italy’s Giacomo Bertagnolli and his guide Andrea Ravelli.
It was the second medal of the day for Britain after Menna, of Macclesfield, and her guide Gary Smith, of Luton, took silver in the women’s race.
Visually impaired Menna, 23, won the fifth Paralympic medal of her career and is the nation’s most successful Winter Paralympian.
She had a challenging build-up to the Games, recovering from a broken leg in 2020, with her guide Katie Guest ruled out of the Games by Covid prior to her scheduled departure.
