Great Britain, China and Italy shared the glittering gold medal spoils at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games Rowing regatta on Thursday at the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park.

Great Britain started with a gold medal double in the first two A-finals of the day - the Women's and Men's Single Sculls - Arms.

Helene Raynsford of Great Britain made history by winning the first Paralympic Games gold medal ever awarded in the sport of Rowing with a runaway 12-second victory over Luidmila Vauchok of Belarus and Laura Schwanger of the United States.

Reigning world champion Tom Aggar, also of Great Britain, followed Raynsford's victory moments later by winning the Men's Single Sculls - Arms.

In attempting to claim the gold medal, Aggar found himself in the unfamiliar position of having a determined rival on his stern for the entire journey, Ukraine's Oleksandr Petrenko.

Petrenko had a great regatta through the preliminary races and pushed Aggar all the way to claim silver a mere 3.94 seconds in arrears. Israel's Eli Nawi took the bronze.

China's Tan Yeteng finished fourth, Ron Harvey of the United States was fifth while Australia's Dominic Moneypenny finished sixth.

Hometown excitement then bubbled over when China held off a fast-finishing Australia to take the gold medal in the Mixed Double Sculls.

Shan Zilong and Zhou Yangjing of China scored a popular and hard-fought victory by finishing 0.89 seconds faster than Australia's Kathryn Ross and John Maclean, with early leaders and eventual bronze medalists Brazil's Josiane Lima and Elton Santana 7.67 seconds further behind.

It was truly a race in two halves, with Brazil leading China and the rest of the field through the halfway mark by over two seconds. That early pace seemed to take its toll, though, as China's team noticeably lifted its stroke and work rates - an effort Brazil couldn't match.