Fortnum apologises after Paralympics GB athletes not invited to party after meeting King

Fortnum & Mason has apologised for a “failure of communication” to Paralympians who were not invited to a party for Olympians after medallists met the King.

British Olympians and Paralympians were at Buckingham Palace on Thursday to celebrate the country's success in Paris this summer.

But Zac Shaw, a visually impaired sprinter, said he was not invited to an after-party hosted by the luxury London department store.

He said he trawled through his emails to find an invite after one of his friends, an Olympian, mentioned it to him.

Neither Mr Shaw nor his partner Ali Smith, also a Paralympic sprinter, could find an invite so the pair assumed it was an event for Olympians only.

Mr Shaw, who won silver in the mixed 4x100m and bronze in the 100m T12 in Paris, said it was “hurtful” and “unfair” and an example of how the two sets of athletes are treated differently.

He said: “It’s just hurtful and I mean you have situations like this honestly so frequently, whether it’s brands, prize money, even hosting a Paralympic race at a competition.

“You have to pick your times to actually call it out.

“For me yesterday being under the same roof as the King and all the Olympic and Paralympic medallists and in one place, but the Paralympic medallists have to get in the car and drive home while the Olympic medallists get to enjoy a four-hour after-party with champagne bottles with their name engraved into it. It’s just unfair.”

According to a screenshot posted by Mr Shaw on Instagram, a spokesperson for Fortnum & Mason apologised and said there is a separate event for Paralympians “in the works”.

“There is a separate reception for Paralympians in the works here at Fortnum’s which will be announced soon,” the message read.

“We are really sorry that we could not do both of the planned parties together, which would have been our preference, but we are restricted on space and simply could not have fitted everyone in at the same time.

“However, there has been a failure of communication on our part here and we are truly sorry. We really hope to make it up to you when we get everyone together to celebrate.

“Thank you for your patience and we will get back to you personally with the details soonest.”

Mr Shaw said the response was “not good enough at all”.

He said he initially contacted Fortnum privately but went public on social media when they did not respond.

“I just put a tweet out and didn’t expect anyone to interact with it,” Mr Shaw said.

“It’s been nice to see how many people with disabilities or not have come to the same conclusion that it’s not equality.”

Fortnum & Mason was contacted for further comment.

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