Kent table tennis star Will Bayley has won a gold medal at the Paralympics in Rio.

The 28-year-old from Tunbridge Wells, who was a silver medallist at London 2012, celebrated his win by hugging the umpire.

He beat Brazil’s Israel Pereira Stroh 3-1 in the men’s class 7 table tennis final to take home the gold.

It was ParalympicsGB’s first medal on Monday after David Weir missed out in the first of his five events.

Bayley was bidding to upgrade the silver medal he won at London 2012 – which resulted in his friends decorating a post box with tin foil – at his third Paralympics.

The 28-year-old world champion was born with arthrogryposis, a rare congenital disorder that affected all four of his limbs.

He underwent numerous operations at Great Ormond Street Hospital from the age of three months old.

And he began playing table tennis after recovering from chemotherapy after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma at the age of seven.

Stroh, a journalist by trade who has cerebral palsy, won a group contest between the pair 3-1.

Bayley had a partisan crowd on his side four years ago, but this time it was Stroh who had the spectators’ backing.

The Briton initially upset them, winning the first set 11-9, but Stroh responded in a quick-fire second, taking it 11-5.

Bayley had regular discussions with the officials throughout, although it was unclear what his complaint was.

With the crowd against Bayley and trying to unsettle him, Stroh stumbled early in the third set as the pair crossed paths going to speak to their coaches. It was accidental.

The moment seemed to galvanise Bayley, who took the third set to move within one of victory.

And Bayley dominated the final set to claim a sensational win.