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Johnson: Golden girl
This afternoon they were like 'Do it for your mum' and I was crying. I think she'll be happy.
Liz Johnson
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Swimmer Liz Johnson provided the icing on the cake at the end of another memorable day for Team Great Britain at the Paralympics on Friday.
The 22-year-old from south Wales went one better than in Athens to take gold in the women's SB6 100metres breaststroke on day six in Beijing.
Johnson took Britain's sixth gold medal of the day and 33rd overall following victories by cyclists Rachel Morris, David Stone and Sarah Storey, fellow swimmer Sam Hynd and the boccia team.
A further four silvers and two bronzes took Britain's total medal tally to 69, behind China who lead with 37 golds and 109 medals overall.
The win was especially emotional for world record holder Johnson, whose mother Bonnie, 53, died of cancer on the day the team arrived in Beijing from their holding camp in Macau.
"I've been fine all week," she said. "But it's been hard watching from the stands.
"This morning (for the heats) everybody let me get on with it, then this afternoon they were like 'Do it for your mum' and I was crying. I think she'll be happy.
"When I was in Athens and won a silver medal, it was a big motivation to go out and train harder. I'm over the moon."
World record
In the men's S8 400m freestyle Hynd beat the world record he set in the morning's heats to clinch gold in 4mins 26.25secs in the first final of the day at the Water Cube, while Heather Frederiksen won her second silver medal of the Games in the corresponding women's race.
Defending champion Gareth Duke took silver in the men's SB6 200m breaststroke despite undergoing kidney dialysis while at his second Paralympics.
The 22-year-old world record holder from Cwmbran, Wales finished second to Russia's Alexey Fomenkov, while Britain's Matt Whorwood took bronze.
Duke has been undergoing treatment every other day in Beijing and said he was pleased with his performance.
"If I wasn't on the treatment, I'd have been first, no problem," he said.
2007 London Marathon champion Woods bounced back from the disappointment of having to return her medal to clinch bronze in the re-run women's T54 5,000m at the Bird's Nest Stadium.
The result of the first race was annulled after a crash involving more than half the field but the 22-year-old performed well to stay amongst the medals.
She said: "It's my favourite event that I race and probably one of my strongest and to win a bronze medal in a 5,000-metres Paralympic final is just a dream come true.
"The first time being up on that podium with silver was amazing, but this one, no-one can take it away from me."
Dominating
Britain's cyclists took three out of the five races they entered at the Ming Tomb Reservoir when the focus switched from the Laoshan Velodrome to the road.
Morris, who rides a hand bike, took Britain's first gold of the day, completely dominating the women's individual time trial HC A/HC B/HC C to win by nearly three minutes.
Stone quickly added to her success, taking the mixed individual time-trial CP1/CP2 and Storey, a former swimmer and five-time Paralympian, won a second gold in her first Games on the bike with victory in the women's LC1/LC2/CP4 individual time-trial.
"I felt really strong," she said. "I'm ecstatic to have won, especially after how close it was on the track."
Multiple track champions Darren Kenny and Simon Richardson were beaten into silver places in their respective races.
Nigel Murray, Dan Bentley, Zoe Robinson and David Smith outclassed Portugal 8-4 to take gold in the boccia - a sport similar to boules for wheelchair users with cerebral palsy or related neurological conditions.
"It means absolutely everything to us," said Smith.
"GB are the best team in the world and finally we have shown we really are number one."
