Fortnum & Mason has apologised for a “failure of communication” to Paralympians who were not invited to a party for Olympians after Paris medallists met the King at Buckingham Palace . Team GB and Paralympics GB athletes were jointly hosted at a reception at the royal residence on Thursday to celebrate Britain’s success in Paris this summer. But Zac Shaw, a Paralympic visually impaired sprinter, said he had trawled through his emails to find an invite to the after-party hosted by the luxury London department store after one of his friends, an Olympian, mentioned it to him.
Neither Mr Shaw nor his partner Ali Smith, also a Paralympic sprinter, could find an invite so the pair assumed it was an event for Olympians only. Mr Shaw, who won silver in the mixed 4x100m and bronze in the 100m T12 in Paris, told the PA news agency it was “hurtful” and “unfair” not to have been invited to Thursday’s after-party and it was an example of how the two sets of athletes are treated differently. He said: “It’s just hurtful and I mean you have situations like this honestly so frequently, whether it’s brands, prize money, even hosting a Paralympic race at a competition.
You have to pick your times to actually call it out. “For me yesterday being under the same roof as the King and all the Olympic and Paralympic medallists and in one place, but the Paralympic medallists have to get in the car and drive home while the Olympic medallists get to enjoy a four-hour after-party .