This was a nice day in the realm of international sports for the UAE.

An Emirati shooter won gold and a wheelchair sprinter won silver in the London Paralympic Games today.

How big a deal is that?

The UAE has won one Olympic medal, ever (a shooting gold at Athens 2004), but the country won two Paralympic medals in one day.

So, yes, a big deal.

These are uplifting stories.

The shooter was in an automobile accident in 2001 that led to paralysis below the waist, and last week he told The National’s Amith Passela that he was very depressed after the accident but is grateful he could continue to shoot.

The sprinter apparently suffered a bout of polio when he was a child of 7 or 8, and also cannot use his legs. But he can move the chair like mad, winning the silver in the 200-meter final after earlier in the day setting a Paralympic record (which was broken in a subsequent heat).

We covered this with enthusiasm.

Here is the piece on Abdullah Al Aryani, 42, who won a particularly tight shooting competition. His Paralympic gold was the second won by the Emirates; the first was won by a weightlifter in 2004.

And here is our story on Mohammed Hammadi, 27, who won the silver at 10:53 p.m. UAE time — and got into our print product only because deadline was backed up 35 minutes in the anticipation/hope that he would win a medal.

In the latter story, Hammadi revealed that the president and vice president of the UAE sent congratulatory messages, which were gestures deeply appreciated by the athletes.

We are paying close attention to the UAE contingent in the final days of the Paralympic Games.

Another medal absolutely is in the realm of the possible, and would reinforce the London 2012 Paralympics as the UAE’s most successful international competition.