Oksana Masters of the USA wins her 8th Paralympic gold and defends her title in the Para-Cycling Time Trial

Paralympic icon Oksana Masters took home her first medal of the 2024 Paris Games on Wednesday, winning gold in the women's H4-5 time trial in cycling.

The 35-year-old American athlete earned her place on the podium after racing to victory in the second half of the race on the streets of Clichy-sous-Bois in the suburbs of the French capital, the Olympic organization said. Masters was 30 seconds behind halfway through the race when she took the lead and crossed the finish line with a time of 23:45.20, according to Games officials.

Behind Masters in Wednesday's race was Dutchwoman Chantal Haenen, who won the silver medal with a time of 23:51:44. Sun Bianbian from China took the bronze medal with a time of 25:13:07.

Masters will continue her journey as defending champion in the H5 Para Cycling race in Paris on Thursday before moving on to the H1-5 Mixed Team Relay on Saturday.

This latest triumph was Masters' eighth Paralympic gold medal and her 18th medal overall. It was also her third gold medal in para-cycling, one of three sports she has competed in since beginning her Paralympic career at the 2012 London Games. She has also competed in para-rowing and para-skiing, winning two gold medals for the USA Para-Nordic team at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games and another gold medal and three silver medals at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games.

Masters has become a Paralympic legend since beginning her career over a decade ago. She was born with a multi-limb disability believed to be related to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Ukraine. According to Team USA, she was adopted by an American family and grew up in Louisville. Both of Masters' legs were later amputated.