Daughter Charlotte inspires Firth to bronze medal

Gold was the colour four years ago in Birmingham, but Bethany Firth was forced to settle for bronze in Glasgow this time round.

She finished third in the women’s S14 200m freestyle in a time of 2:07.63 as her Team GB compatriots English duo Georgia Sheffield and Poppy Maskill pipped her on the podium.

Still, a medal is a medal and there was little time for disappointment, if Firth felt any, to fester as she was swiftly reunited with her young daughter Charlotte after collecting the medal.

The bronze is a significant one in a personal sense as it is the 30-year-old’s first major medal since giving birth to Charlotte almost two years ago in August 2024.

Given Charlotte was in attendance in Glasgow, there is no doubt therefore that it will rank as the most sentimental of her impressive haul that includes six Paralympic golds.

Charlotte certainly looked to be appreciating a new medal to fidget with as she clung tightly to it while Bethany was interviewed.

What is more impressive is that Firth pushed through with her daughter at the forefront of her mind and made it on the podium after admitting the freestyle is an event she has struggled to find her rhythm in since making her comeback after giving birth.

“It was a real mental battle going into that and those girls are so good, so just to stand up there, give it my all and get a medal [is great],” she told BBC Sport NI.

“This is an event that hasn’t come back as quickly as the others after having Charlotte so to put it together and come away with a medal, I’m really chuffed.”

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Firth was delighted to make it on the podium on one of her less favoured events [Getty Images]

Charlotte may only be approaching her second birthday and learning how to speak, but she has inspired her mum at these Games more than she will ever know.

Firth was going through the motions right up until being summoned to the call room to go out and race in the final, but seeing her daughter in the crowd spurred her on to push aside the doubts and do what she does best – compete.

She started well at the Tollcross Swimming Centre before the “talented” Sheffield surged into gold and Maskill edged her out for second, but Firth’s smile on the podium showed that choosing to see the race through was a fruitful decision.

“I think she made me stronger, I really struggled and thought ‘is it worth going into this call room, coming and not getting what I want?’ But I kept thinking what would I say to Charlotte and she was there at the end of the lane cheering me on,” Firth added.

“I’m so glad I went out there and did it when it was hard.”

The 30-year-old has already emphatically defied those who “annoyed” her by assuming she would retire after having a baby by coming back strongly.

She broke her own world record in her stronger event the S14 100m backstroke at the Dutch National Championships in Eindhoven earlier this month.

The LA Olympics in two years time is a realistic target based on recent performances, but raising her daughter has now taken priority over swimming so it’s too early to look ahead to 2028 as she continues to navigate day by day balancing the two.

“I’m just taking every year as it comes, I don’t know what God has in store for me, we’ll just keep taking it year by year and try really hard.”