What’s been happening in June 2026

Lauren Steadman claimed her seventh European title at the European Para triathlon Championships in northern Spain. The 33-year-old led from the start and finished over a minute clear of her rivals to win gold in the PTS5 class. 

In the men’s PTS3 class Henry Urand successfully defended his title, although there was a surprise in the men’s PTVI category as Paralympic and world champion Dave Ellis and his guide Luke Pollard were beaten into second place behind Serb Lazar Filipovic and his guide Strahinja Trakic. Oscar Kelly and his guide Malachi Cashmore finished in fifth place. Megan Richter won bronze the women’s PTS4 category, with Hannah Moore just behind in fourth. 

Days later Henry continued his impressive season with a dominant win at the World Triathlon Para Cup in Besancon, France – his third victory this season – while Dave and Luke returned to form in the PTVI class, finishing over two minutes clear of the field.

At the end of June the World Triathlon Para Series travelled to Montreal, Canada where Oscar Kelly, this time with guide Skip Nelson, won silver in the PTVI category after registering the fastest swim leg of the day. Josh Landmann claimed bronze in the men’s wheelchair race.

(Image credit: British Triathlon / Jon Cornish)

Charlotte Henshaw, Emma Wiggs, Hope Gordon and Dave Phillipson all topped the podium at the PEU Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe European Championships in Montemor, Portugal, with Charlotte setting a new world record along the way.

The three-time Paralympic champion claimed two gold medals, getting the better of teammates Hope Gordon in the VL3 200m and Emma Wiggs in the KL2 200m, where she also clocked a new world record time of 53.49 seconds. 

Hope and Emma also struck gold, winning the KL3 and VL2 events respectively to add to their silver medals, while Dave Phillipson held off the competition in the men’s KL2 200m to claim an impressive victory. Stuart Wood won VL3 silver – less than a tenth of a second behind the winner, but Rob Oliver found himself on the wrong side of a photo finish with Spain’s Juan Valle in the men’s KL3 200m, losing out on a medal by just 0.05 seconds. 

(Image credit: Gary Bowden)

Paralympic champions Sophie Unwin and pilot Jenny Holl retained their European road race title as Great Britain won 18 medals, including three golds, at the 2026 UEC Para-cycling Road European Championships in Italy to finish fifth in the medal table.

Sophie and Jenny had earlier claimed silver in the time trial race, just 0.75 seconds behind Ireland’s Katie-George Dunlevy and Linda Kelly, but they gained revenge two days later in the road race, edging out Dunlevy and Kelly and the other Irish tandem of Sinead Greenan and Alice Sharpe.

Crystal Lane-Wright got the better of team-mate Morgan Newberry to claim gold in the women’s C5 time trial, adding to her road race bronze, while there was gold too for Amelia Cass in the women’s C2 event.

Paris 2024 medallists Archie Atkinson, Matthew Robertson and Finlay Graham were also among those who also claimed podium finishes.

(Image credit: UEC)

Paralympic champions Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid sealed their seventh successive French Open men’s doubles title to take their tally of career Grand Slam titles together to 24. The world number one pairing extended their unbeaten record against Spain’s Martin de la Puente and Stephane Houdet of France to five matches after a 6-2, 6-3 victory.

Three-time singles champion Alfie finished runner-up in the men’s wheelchair singles final as world No.1 Tokito Oda claimed his fourth successive title at Roland Garros after a 6-3, 6-3 win.

Matthew Knoesen, 13, clinched both the boys’ wheelchair singles and doubles titles having finished runner-up in both the Australian Open boys’ wheelchair singles and doubles finals on his junior Grand Slam debut.

With Wimbledon nearly underway, Gordon also boosted his preparations with a men’s wheelchair singles win at the Eastbourne Open.

Stephen McGuire and Sophie Newnham climbed to the top of the world rankings in boccia’s BC4 Pair event after claiming gold at the Astana World Cup in Kazakhstan, progressing through the pool stages without a loss before beating China 6-4 in the final. The achievement marks the first time in nine years that a British BC4 pairing have held the coveted world number one spot.

World champion Will Bayley defeated China’s two-time Paralympic champion on his way to taking gold in the men’s class 7 singles at the ITTF World Para Elite Beijing in China. 

In a strong tournament that featured the best players in the world Chris Ryan, Martin Perry, Aaron McKibbin, Billy Shilton and Joshua Stacey all took bronze in their respective events, while there was a third consecutive gold medal for Billy and Martin in men’s class 14 doubles and silver for Joshua and Aaron in men’s class 18 doubles events.

Fliss Pickard meanwhile won bronze at the ITTF World Para Future Ostrava in Czechia. Fliss had started the tournament with an impressive win over reigning Paralympic champion Najlah Al Dayyeni from Iraq.  

Para rowing’s reigning Paralympic, World and European champion Benjamin Pritchard has broken his own 2000m PR1 indoor rowing world record, knocking more than four seconds off his previous best with a new time of 6:56.7 which he achieved at British Rowing’s training base in Caversham.

Later in the month the 34-year-old showed his brilliant form continues with PR1 men’s singles gold at the World Cup III in Switzerland.

(Image credit: Benedict Tufnell)

Paris 2024 Para taekwondo champion Matt Bush – who won European gold last month – has also continued to excel, this time winning men’s +80kg gold at the World Para Taekwondo Grand Prix in Rome, Italy.

Rachel Choong and Jack Shephard won silver at the French International Para badminton Championships, while there was bronze for Jack too in the individual event.

Next up there were five medals for the squad at the British & Irish Para badminton International in Dublin. Jack and Rachel and Krysten Coombs and his doubles partner Anya Butterworth picked up bronze in their mixed doubles matches, while Krysten won men’s doubles bronze with Frenchman Charles Noakes. Anya and Rob Donald also won bronze in their singles events.

Many congratulations to Head of GB Para Badminton, Rich Morris, who has been awarded an MBE for ‘services to sport and disabled people’ in the King’s Birthday Honours; to Krysten Coombs who was awarded an MBE for ‘services to badminton and to the Dwarf Sports Association’; and to Samantha-Louise Gough, an inaugural member of ParalympicsGB’s Lived experience Advisory Board (LAB), who was awarded an MBE for ‘services to Sport and to the Visually Impaired Community’.