Tokyo Paralympics: Sarah Storey wins 17th gold to become Britain's most successful Paralympian

Tokyo Paralympics: Sarah Storey wins 17th gold to become Britain's most successful Paralympian
_97599093_breaking_news.pngVenue: Tokyo, Japan Dates: 24 August-5 September Time in Tokyo: BST +8Coverage: Follow on Radio 5 Live and on the BBC Sport website

Sarah Storey won her 17th Paralympic gold to become Great Britain's most successful Paralympian of all time.

The 43-year-old defended the women's C4-5 road race title she has held since London 2012 to put her one gold ahead of previous record holder Mike Kenny.

Britain's Crystal-Lane Wright finished seven seconds behind to take silver.

It was a GB one-two in the men's C1-3 race too, Ben Watson winning his second gold with Fin Graham claiming silver in atrocious conditions in Tokyo.

"I'm a bit overwhelmed, I feels like it's happening to someone else," Storey told Channel 4.

"I can't really explain or compute anything about the race, but crossing the line first felt so good."

Storey's gold was her third of this Paralympics, which is her eighth Games since making her debut at Barcelona 1992 as a swimmer.

She won the individual pursuit on the track before claiming time-trial gold to equal Kenny's record.

Storey now has 28 Paralympic medals in total and has not won anything except gold since making her cycling Paralympic debut at Beijing 2008.

_120352533_paralympiantable.jpgSarah Storey and Lee Pearson both added three gold medals to their tallies in Tokyo

Familiar conditions as Storey powers to title

In weather more akin to her home near Manchester, with rain and thick fog making visibility difficult at the start, Storey was in the front pack from the off, alongside Lane-Wright.

The British pair allowed German Kerstin Brachtendorf to make a breakaway towards the end of the second of the six laps, clocking a 25-second lead at the checkpoint.

The 49-year-old extended that lead to more than a minute at the halfway stage of the race, with Storey leading the chasing group with Lane-Wright constantly on her wheel.

As the rain got heavier, they were unable to reel Brachtendorf in, the gap opening up by another 10 seconds after four laps.

But Lane-Wright hit the front of the chasers with a significant injection of pace and her burst made all the difference as the pack quickly caught up with Brachtendorf to leave five riders in contention for the medals at the end of the penultimate lap.

It was at this point that the British duo found another gear, Lane-Wright and Storey breaking away to open up a comfortable lead coming into the finish on the Fuji International Speedway.

Storey punched the air in celebration as she crossed the line in two hours, 21 minutes and 51 seconds.

France's Marie Patouillet took bronze, almost two minutes after Storey finished, with early pace setter Brachtendorf fifth.

More to follow.

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