Fortune retains World Championships shot put title

Fortune made her GB debut at the 2015 World Championships

Shot putter Sabrina Fortune put aside her Tokyo disappointment to retain her F20 title at the Para Athletics World Championships in Paris.

"It was an incredible experience and I'm over the moon to win," she said.

Tuesday's action also saw silver for wheelchair racer Sammi Kinghorn and bronze for sprinters Maria Lyle and Sophie Hahn.

Fortune put in a solid opening throw of 12.84m to lie third after the opening round of the final for athletes with intellectual impairments.

But she took the lead in the second round with 13.64 and then set a new championship record of 14.01 in the next to maintain an advantage which she never lost.

"It was good to get a good throw early on," she told BBC Sport. "The first two rounds are key. I have had some competitions where I've done badly early on and it never went right.

"It has been hell since Tokyo to get back, but no matter how hard it gets, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel and this gold medal is special.

"I struggle in hot conditions but we have worked hard and done it correctly this year. Even though it has been hot out here, I have an ice towel and an ice vest [so I have] been able to cool down and relax and that worked."

Kinghorn shows class over longer distance

T53 racer Kinghorn, who won 200m silver and 100m bronze in Tokyo, had finished fourth in the T53 800m in the Japanese capital but this time dug deep to finish second behind runaway winner Catherine Debrunner who claimed her second gold of the week.

"It's amazing," said the 27-year-old Scot. "Catherine is that little bit ahead but I know where she is at now so it is about training for next year and building on my strengths and weaknesses.

"It means a lot to get on the podium and have my friends and family there. I won my first Paralympic medal in Tokyo but that was in front of nobody, which was heart-breaking, so to have everyone here is the best."

Paralympic champion Hahn lost her T38 100m title to Colombia's Darian Jimenez with Hungarian Luka Ekler second while Commonwealth champion Olivia Breen was back in sixth.

"It would have been nice to come away as world champion but hats off to my rivals," said Hahn, 26.

"It makes me more hungry for next year to have people to chase. The main thing is I made the podium."

Lyle though was thrilled with her medal after she had to come back from foot surgery in February 2022.

"The last year or so has been really tough," said the 23-year-old, who finished behind Chinese pair Xia Zhou and Qiangian Guo but held off the fast-finishing Fatimah Suwaid of Kuwait.

"I'm not in the best shape and not running the sorts of times I did in Tokyo in 2021 so I was stressed coming here and it was running with the fear that got me around.

"I knew it would be a battle for bronze so I wanted to focus on my own lane. I knew I wasn't where I wanted to be but I had to believe in myself."

Elsewhere, double Paralympic champion Jonnie Peacock qualified safely for Wednesday's T64 100m final but saw Italian newcomer Maxcel Amo Manu equal his European record of 10.64 seconds.