Scottish brothers claim gold for Team GB at Winter Paralympics
Skier Neil Simpson from Banchory triumphs in Beijing
Last updated 6th Mar 2022
Scottish skier Neil Simpson has claimed Great Britain's first gold medal of the 2022 Winter Paralympics in the men's Super-G vision impaired class alongside his guide and brother Andrew.
The pair from Banchory finish nearly half-a-second clear of the rest of the field, topping the podium at their first ever Paralympic Games in a time of one minute 08.91 seconds.
The 19-year-old is the first British male athlete to win a gold on snow, and said the win had not yet sunk in.
Anxious wait for gold
"This is our first season doing Super-G. Initially when we came down and Andrew said we had gone in to first place, there was a bit of an anxious wait," he said.
"I wasn't thinking about it being a winning performance, I was just thinking that it was a good run. We put it all down on the line and really went for it and I'm just very happy with the performance - it felt good.
"There was a sketchy moment coming into the bowl but we knew we needed to get back on it and really went for it down the bowl, so I'm really happy with that."
His guide and brother Andrew said he had never expected to win gold when the pair began competing together.
"The race went as planned, at the race inspection we were like, this needs to be attacked from the get-go, and we went and did exactly that," he said.
Skiing brothers
Asked about sharing the winning moment with his brother, Neil Simpson said: "It's very special, we've been skiing together for quite a while, and growing up together, it just makes it really special.
"For me it definitely helps having Andrew with me, you are able to be very clear and concise in what you want, even direct and blunt sometimes, so you can get feedback across a lot easier.
"You don't have to beat around the bush, so that definitely helps, we grew up together so we know what each other is thinking anyway.
"We called our family earlier and they were absolutely delighted, they've got a few family and friends round and everyone's 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."