The hard work paid off for alpine skier James Whitley after rounding off his second Paralympic Winter Games with another top-ten finish.

The Wilmington athlete started with a tenth place in the downhill and book-ended his time in PyeongChang with the same result, this time in Saturday’s slalom.

It marked what has undoubtedly been a big progression since a maiden Games four years ago for the 20-year-old, with a new-found consistency the most pleasing aspect of his competition.

Two 11th-place efforts also graced the pair of top tens, with Whitley already looking ahead to the next four years on the snow.

“It was a bit rough, in the first slalom run the conditions were really tough but I managed to bring it back again on the second run,” he said.

“I made a few mistakes, it wasn’t my best slalom day but I had really good fun and I felt like I did the best that I could on the second run.

“This is always the event that I have done the best at, it’s always the most intense and most fun to do so it’s one I always look forward to.

“I’m really pleased. I would have loved to have gone a bit deeper in the top ten but overall I am really happy to come out and have finished all five races and had some good results in the process so the hard work has paid off.

“I think these Games show where I can improve and what I need to do going forward in training looking ahead to Beijing 2022.”

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Had the stars aligned then thoughts of a podium could have entered Whitley’s mindset, though for him this was all about building on what came his way four years ago.

Finishing with a respectable slalom time of 1:44.41 means that development can keep on into the next few months and potentially years.

At 20, Whitley’s best years could still be ahead of him but it’s both the on- and off-snow experiences that have made PyeongChang a week he won’t forget.

"I’ve enjoyed these Games so much. Last time, although it was an amazing experience, I had to try and take it all in whereas this time I knew what to expect,” added Whitley, who was born without both hands.

“I’ve gone into the races not nervous and confident on what my plan is and I’ve been able to do as good as I can do.

“I’ve really liked being in village with all the other athletes and having people from other sports to talk to in the downtime.

“My plan is to take a bit of a break but to keep on training and skiing will always be a part of my life so I won’t be stopping any time soon.”

Sainsbury’s is a proud long-term supporter of the British Paralympic Association and a champion of inclusive sport for all. For more information on Sainsbury’s commitment to inclusive sport visit http://www.j-sainsbury.co.uk/