Paralympics day two: Lee Pearson wins 12th title as GB claim five gold medals

Sir Lee Pearson won his 12th Paralympic title as Great Britain claimed five golds medals and several world records on day two at Tokyo 2020.

The 47-year-old, who has tasted success at every Games since Sydney 2000, took the honours in the grade II individual dressage test thanks to a score of 76.265 on Breezer, with compatriot Georgia Wilson earning bronze on her Games debut.

Pearson is now third on Britain’s all-time gold medal list at the Paralympics, moving above David Roberts and Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, with only Mike Kenny and Dame Sarah Storey ahead of him.

Pearson’s was one of five golds claimed by GB on Thursday, taking the team’s overall tally to six, with Jaco Van Gass, Tully Kearney, Maisie Summers-Newton and Piers Gilliver also coming out on top.

Former soldier Van Gass smashed the long-standing C3 3,000m individual pursuit world record before storming to gold, beating team-mate Fin Graham in an all-British final – GB’s 1,799th and 1,800th summer Paralympic medals.

There were also triumphs – and places in the records books – in the pool for Kearney and Summers-Newton.

Kearney, who took silver in the 200m freestyle on day one, broke the world record en route to victory in the 100m freestyle, while Summers-Newton finished first in the 200m individual medley after setting another world best.

Gilliver, meanwhile, went one better than his silver medal from Rio 2016 when he became Britain’s fifth gold medallist on Thursday after defeating Russian Paralympic Committee’s Maxim Shaburov 15-9 in the wheelchair fencing individual epee final.

That came after Britain’s Dimitri Coutya, having narrowly lost his semi-final to Jovane Guissone, earned bronze in the Class B wheelchair fencing with a 15-11 win over Belarus’ Andrei Pranevich.

Earlier at the Izu Velodrome, three-time Paralympic champion Aileen McGlynn and pilot Helen Scott took silver in the B 1,000m time trial before Jody Cundy won silver in the C4-5 1,000 metres time trial, becoming the first man to win medals at seven separate Paralympics.

And Sophie Wells added to Britain’s medal tally, taking silver in the grade V individual dressage test.

Ireland were also celebrating their first medal of the Games as Ellen Keane clinched gold in the SB-8 100m breaststroke.

Picture of the day

Social media moment

TikTok star and world record breaker Anastasia Pagonis made a splash inside and outside the pool with her choice of eyewear.

Medal table

What’s coming up on day three?

The athletics gets under way on Friday, with Rio bronze medallist Maria Lyle competing in the T35 100m.

Cyclist Van Gass has the opportunity to secure his second medal of the Games in the 1000m time trial, while Kadeena Cox seeks to retain her 500m time trial gold.

Swimmers Hannah Russell and Bethany Firth each defend titles in the pool, and Natasha Baker goes for the sixth equestrian gold of her career.

Ali Jawad is in powerlifting action, while archery, rowing, judo and wheelchair tennis all begin.