great_britain summer paralympics great_britain competed summer paralympics beijing great_britain sent delegation athletes compete eighteen sports games team athletes united_kingdom athletes northern_ireland elect hold irish citizenship article irish constitution able selected represent great_britain ireland paralympics additionally british overseas territories compete separately britain paralympic competition britain finished second medal table host nation china winning gold medals total medals team position medal table athens games number medals won increase medals athens team successful decades different athletes winning medal united_kingdom host holding games london disability classifications participant paralympics disability grouped disability categories condition sustained injury illness cerebral wheelchair athletes overlap categories visual including les physical disability fall strictly categories example multiple paralympic sport classifications dependent specific physical demands competition events given code numbers letters describing type event classification athletes competing sports athletics divide athletes category severity disabilities sports example swimming group competitors different categories separation based severity disability following british competitors won medals games dates september discipline sections names bold initially awarded silver medal athletics women run race ordered result protested multiple following competitors won multiple medals paralympic games targets july body responsible distribution funding elite sport published expectations games identified stretch medal target expected win including gold medals order finish second medal table athletes met expectations total medals gold medals medal table position finishing second hosts china gold total medals noted medals claimed ones targeted team fell short targets sports whilst exceeded sports set target succeeded meeting great_britain squad games included athletes medals gold silver bronze won british meant finished second medal table england disabled cricketer set new world record score ranking round route victory men individual compound open women event beat eventual bronze going win gold men women legend world record won lost round applicable event athletics paralympic team included thirty competitors sport athletics reigning champions failed attempts win gold medals games suffering virus win medals gold silver bronze pulling final event british participants involved number controversies medals games initially awarded silver medal women ordered australian swiss teams protested result competitors involved crash penultimate lap race woods won bronze medal believed won gold medal men race ordered discovered australian silver begun race wrong lane following letter australian authorities asked result overturned spirit cancelled medal reinstated originally awarded silver medal women classification challenged chin deemed ineligible event stripped medal results erased decision particularly controversial given chin assessed earlier games whilst competed women shot final men track men field women track women field originally awarded silver medal stripped medal results following challenge classification key wheelchair basketball britain qualified teams men women events women team finished eighth competing teams whilst men matching achievement athens games won bronze medal men pool legend points played games won games drawn games lost points points points difference qualified
Great Britain at the 2008 Summer Paralympics