Afghanistan war Veteran Jaco Van Gass wins Paralympic cycling Gold for GB

Jaco Van Gass has won his first Paralympic medal in the Men’s Track 3k individual pursuit.

The former Para lost his left arm at the elbow when he was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade in Afghanistan in 2009. He also endured a collapsed lung, punctured internal organs, a broken tibia, fractured knee, and shrapnel wounds.

After extensive rehabilitation, he rebuilt his life – taking on feats such as trekking to the North Pole with Prince Harry, becoming a first-class downhill skier and being a multiple marathon runner. But it was while attending the velodrome at the 2012 London Paralympics as a fan that he discovered his Paralympic dream.

His winning performance today followed a qualifying session in which he clocked 3 minutes, 17.593 seconds – creating a new world record nine seconds faster than previously held.

Tomorrow Jaco will compete in the Men’s 1k Time Trial and on Saturday, the Mixed team sprint followed by C1-3 Road Race and C1-3 1k events next week.

Blesma will be cheering him all the way. Congratulations Jaco!