James Scully said he could hold his head high after he produced a terrific PB time of 2:51.45 to take sixth in the men's 200m freestyle final on Thursday night.
The Meathman turned in seventh after 50m but he clawed his way back to secure a top-six finish and give himself a huge boost ahead of the 50m and 100m freestyle events he has still to compete in.
Brazilian Daniel Dias cruised to gold in 2:27.88 to keep the locals happy, with the USA's Roy Perkins taking silver and Andrew Mullen of Great Britain settling for bronze.
"It's absolutely incredible to be part of this moment," he told RTÉ Sport afterwards.
"In London I swam a 2:53.0 and came fifth; 2.53.0 would have been the slowest time in this final and my heat time in London wouldn't have made the final so it's absolutely inspiring and amazing to be part of this.
"It's all I could have dreamed of. I can hold my head high. The atmosphere in this place... mother of God I've never seen the likes of it."
Scully returns to the pool for the S5 50m freestyle heats on Monday afternoon (4.0pm).
Natalya Coyle says James Scully will be 'over the moon' after his 200m freestyle final sixth #Paralympics https://t.co/6CLceliial
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) September 8, 2016
