UK Sport has congratulated ParalympicsGB on hitting all targets set for Sochi 2014 and achieving their best Winter Paralympic Games medal haul since Innsbruck 1984 by winning six medals.
Great Britain’s top Para-Alpine Skiers, Jade Etherington and Kelly Gallagher, along with their guides Caroline Powell and Charlotte Evans, delivered an exceptional performance hitting the top of the medal target range agreed with the sport of 2-5 medals, winning five in total.
In addition, there were eight top ten finishes for the ParalympicsGB Alpine Skiing team, including two fifth place finishes for 15-year-old Millie Knight and guide Rachael Ferrier.
The Wheelchair Curling team also surpassed their minimum target of reaching the semi-finals, beating China 7-3 to win the bronze medal.
Rod Carr, Chair of UK Sport, said: “Congratulations to the athletes and support staff of ParalympicsGB on an exceptional performance at Sochi 2014.
“This has been a breakthrough Paralympics, particularly for the British Disabled Ski Team, with Jade and Caroline becoming Great Britain’s most decorated female Winter Paralympians in history, Kelly and Charlotte our first ever Paralympic Winter Champions, and between them delivering our best ever results on snow.
“Meanwhile the Wheelchair Curling team had us on the edge of our seats and performed brilliantly to secure the bronze medal with an impressive victory over China.
“Witnessing our athletes delivering the best Winter Paralympic performance in 30 years has been truly inspirational. This continues to demonstrate the powerful impact our investment of National Lottery and Government funding can have in delivering success and championing sporting achievement at the highest level.”
Liz Nicholl, CEO of UK Sport, said: “The final ParalympicsGB medal won yesterday by the Wheelchair Curling team represents the 633rd Olympic and Paralympic medal won since National Lottery funding for elite sport began in 1997, when our athletes’ prospects were completely transformed; this is an achievement we as a nation, and National Lottery players in particular, should be extremely proud of.
“We must not rest on our laurels following the success we have seen in Sochi, both at the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Our planning with the sports for PyeongChang 2018 began last year, so we are well prepared to build on this momentum, with a view to delivering more inspirational Winter Olympic and Paralympic performances, to inspire and motivate the nation, in four years’ time.
“Sports that have met or exceeded their medal targets should feel optimistic about future funding and we’ll now work closely with them to explore their future medal prospects and will invest accordingly to realise this potential.”
Final business cases for PyeongChang investment will be submitted by Olympic and Paralympic Winter sports to the UK Sport investment panel in May, with decisions taken in July 2014 to allow sports to continue to build on their success from Sochi 2014.
UK Sport has invested more than £750,000 into British winter sport athletes who are competing at the Paralympic Games at Sochi 2014, in the sports of Para Alpine Skiing and Wheelchair Curling, and set a medal target of "at least two", after the combined range of medal targets agreed with UK Sport funded winter Paralympic sports came to 2-6.
Para Alpine Skiing had a target range of 2-5 medals with Wheelchair Curling targeting a range of top 4 - 1 medal.