Pregnant Team GB Paralympics archer Jodie Grinham earns bronze and insists ‘stereotypes are completely irrelevant’ as she looks to inspire other mums

Archer Jodie Grinham took to the Paralympic stage Saturday night while seven months pregnant, saying she hopes her performance can be an inspiration to other expectant mothers.

Grinham, who took bronze when her British opponent failed to hit a final arrow, spent the weekend in a Paris hospital after worrying that her baby would not move.

But after closely monitoring the baby’s heart and a training regime that prepared her for any unexpected movements during the competition, she said last night that she could always tell her unborn baby that he was “the youngest child on stage”.

Grinham, 31, said her message to any other expectant mother is: “Just do what you want. If you’re happy and healthy and the baby is healthy and safe, then just keep doing it. There’s no stigma.”

“The stereotype of things is completely irrelevant. If you feel like you can go out and do it. If you want to go jogging or go to the gym, it doesn’t matter. It shouldn’t affect you or the baby. If your doctor says it’s okay, then go do it.”

The archer hopes her achievements at the Paralympics during her pregnancy can inspire others

The athlete lost three pregnancies before she and her partner had a son, Christian, now two, with whom she went into early labour at 28 weeks. The archer had felt the baby move during a tough afternoon of competition as she battled to a semi-final that she lost.

She said: ‘I started to get really worried that the baby would move and I would be at full strength and it would affect my shot. I’m really worried.

‘My coach and I spent a long time doing little pregnancy preparations – she would move me and move her belly so I could tap into that feeling. So even when I was filming on Saturday, I was in full swing and I was feeling that feeling. You acknowledge it and say, “I know you’re here, mommy loves you, I’m going to hug you” or whatever you want to say to yourself. At that point, you continue your process.’

The athlete was born with a short left arm and no fingers and half a thumb on her left hand, making it harder to hold the bow because of the pregnancy, she added.

‘You go through it like you’re standing really, really straight up and then all of a sudden you start moving. I do have a kind of sway, so I have to balance the arc to stop the sway. My shoes have to be really flat, otherwise I’m rocking and rolling. It changes daily. Baby might be in my back today, maybe all the way to the front. Like, “What are you doing?!”‘

Grinham’s hold on the bronze medal match against GB teammate Phoebe Pine Paterson was in the balance, with her opponent needing to score a 10 to take the medal, with her final dart, or a nine to draw. But Paterson managed just eight.

“I was shocked by Phoebe’s arrow,” Grinham said. “We’ve been shooting together for a long time. I didn’t expect her to shoot an eight. It wasn’t in my mind.” Paterson said of her rival, “I’m so proud of her. She’s overcome so much adversity.”

Grinham revealed how she’s been doing exercises to get used to the feeling of her baby moving while she’s struggling

Grinham revealed that she will take up archery again after giving birth and that she has no plans to retire

It has been a tough 12 months for the West Wales athlete, who contracted bacterial meningitis after a miscarriage last year, which left her in hospital for three weeks. But she says she has no plans to quit her sport.

‘She and her partner have already talked about a family trip to Brisbane, where the 2032 Olympic Games will be held.

She is competing in the mixed competition in Paris on Monday. ‘Then I’ll get the train back home and have our UK finals – so I’ll go back, do that and then I’ll go on maternity leave,’ she said.

“I’ll probably come back in February/March next year to prepare for the world championships. I knew if I shot as well as I could, baby or not, I could bring back a medal.”