Medal-winning athletes from the French and Belgian Paralympic teams boarded their Eurostar train home earlier this week after 11 days of inspiring sporting competition.
France’s table tennis bronze medalist Maime Thomas and Stephane Houdet, who won silver and bronze in the wheelchair tennis, gathered with teammates on a platform in St Pancras to wave goodbye to London 2012.
Departing French and Belgian Paralympians also enjoyed a new cocktail, Gold Rush, exclusively created for them by London mixologist David Boyd.
The Belgium team leader Ellen Volckaert said: “It was a great experience. It was my first time as a Chef de Mission for Belgium, my first Paralympic Games and it was just amazing.
“Three weeks of pure fun excitement and everything was great.”
Two Eurostar trains have undergone a series of modifications, which have for the first time enabled the Paralympians to travel to and from the Games together as one team.
