Paralympic star Dan Bethell on 'devastating' missed gold, 'bittersweet' silver and LA dream

How would you feel if you won a Paralympic medal? It's an experience few people will know first-hand, a symbol of excellence in your field on par with winning an Oscar or a Nobel Prize. Would you feel triumph, elation, disbelief?

Dan Bethell, 28, has achieved this not once but twice. The Bath-based sportsman won Silver in para-badminton at the 2020 Games in Tokyo and then again at the 2024 Games in Paris. He described it as "bittersweet".

Bethell had a gold-medal point against Kumar Nitesh of India in the men's SL3 singles decider, but went down 14-21 21-18 23-21 to finish runner-up for a second Games in a row. Bethell, the world number two, had not dropped a game on his way to his second consecutive final and beaten Nitesh in their nine previous encounters.

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"I came here for gold and after winning silver in Tokyo I wanted to go one better, but I just couldn't get over the line," said the 28-year-old at the time. "At the moment it feels pretty devastating.

The star athlete, who trains full-time at the University of Bath, spoke reflectively of the experience: "It's such a bittersweet moment in some ways- I got a Silver medal, and obviously winning a Silver medal at the Paralympics is amazing, it was definitely one of my dreams to be on that podium. But to get a Silver medal you have to lose the match."

Effortlessly brightening up a rainy November afternoon, Dan is friendly, thoughtful, and above all effusively grateful. But he's also a little self-critical, as many high flyers are. It perhaps doesn't help that he was just shy of grabbing the Gold in Paris: "I was one point away - it couldn't have been much closer.

"There was a bit of initial disappointment in a way, because I got so close to that goal of winning. But the more I reflect on it, the further I get away from that initial moment.

"I look back and think how proud I am of that achievement. So much work went into getting me on that podium from a lot of people."

But it's not over until it's over, and Dan has vowed to try his hardest to "go one better" at the Los Angeles Games in 2028. In the meantime, does he have any side hustles? I pointed out that Tom Daley is Olympic royalty but also has a knitwear line.

Dan laughed: "I'm definitely not very good at knitting!". While Dan's luxury knitwear collection might not be on the cards, he does have a Masters degree in Law from the University of Bristol: "I always wanted to keep my academics going alongside the sport, because going to the Paralympics is amazing, but being an athlete involves a very short career span where you can be in your prime and winning those medals.

"It can be even shorter if you get a serious injury that stops you being able to play, so I've always wanted to keep myself occupied in other ways".

When he's not working hard on the court, Dan is a devoted supporter of Bath Rugby: "I'm a massive Bath Rugby fan, I've got a season ticket- I go to every game that I possibly can."

Before we said goodbye, I had to ask: Bath or Paris? Dan hesitated for just a moment: "I've gotta say Bath because it is my hometown." However, Dan has a lot of love for Paris, too: "Paris was amazing and the whole experience of getting out to see the city was amazing.

"The French people were so welcoming to all the athletes. [...] We kept being stopped for photos. [The fans] were so passionate about sport and that really showed in the venues. It was so loud! We had 7000 people screaming, it was an incredible atmosphere."

Los Angeles awaits.