Para sport has shifted, public perception needs to follow suit, says archer Kerrie Leonard

Archer Kerrie Leonard will be among the first Irish athletes to compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games.

Para archery, which takes place at Esplanade des Invalides, is one of the front-loaded events in Paris, with the action getting underway at 12pm Irish time on day one.

The sport is rooted in the fabric of the Paralympic movement, first used as a rehabilitation activity for injured veterans at Stoke Mandeville Hospital by Dr Ludwig Guttmann.

The Stoke Mandeville Games was the forerunner to the Paralympics, and when the first Games took place in 1960, it was one of the eight sports in the inaugural event.

On Thursday, the wheelchair user will take her place among 27 other competitors in the W2 compound event. The initial ranking round will see archers shoot 72 arrows over distances of 50m or 70m.

If she makes the top 16, Leonard will return the following morning, while day three will see the top-eight battle it out for medals.

Eyes on the prize!