Pregnant archer Jodie Grinham snatches Paralympic bronze in dramatic finish

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Pregnant archer Jodie Grinham delivered under pressure by snatching Paralympic bronze from fellow Briton Phoebe Paterson Pine.

The 31-year-old last weekend spent two days at a Paris maternity ward thinking she may be going into early labour after her baby stopped moving.

On Saturday evening, she grabbed the final podium place in the women’s individual compound event by a single point when defending champion Paterson Pine could only manage eight with the final arrow.

Grinham, who is 28 weeks pregnant with her second child, dramatically triumphed 142-141 at the Esplanade des Invalides.

“I’ve been in and out of hospital this week, it’s been really difficult,” she said.

“My partner’s got a baby bag ready in case he’s got to get over to Paris.

“It was really starting to worry me that the baby’s going to move and I’m going to be at full draw and it’s going to affect my shot.

“My coach and I spent a long time doing little pregnancies preps – of her moving me and moving the bump so I could get use to that feeling.

“I would be at full draw and would feel that sensation. You acknowledge it and go ‘I know you’re there, mummy loves you’ and you carry on with your process, so it wasn’t a distraction.”

Asked how she will tell the tale to the child, Grinham said: “It will be like ‘you were on the podium’. The youngest member to be on the podium!”

Paterson Pine had led the contest since the third end, before the late twist.

“I am so proud of her,” the 26-year-old Paterson Pine said of her team-mate. “She defied so many odds.

“To produce a performance like that is just incredible, especially as she has a little bubba on the way.

“Jodie is getting towards the end of her pregnancy. She has done fantastic and worked really hard for this.”

Haverfordwest-born Grinham, who lives in Crawley, was earlier denied a shot at gold by a 145-143 defeat to the eventual champion, Turkey’s Oznur Cure Girdi.

Paterson Pine lost her semi-final 146-143 to Iranian silver medallist Fatemeh Hemmati.