AHMED Kelly may have just missed out on a bronze medal, but it was gold in his mother's eyes when he hit the end of the swimming pool yesterday.

Moira Kelly boomed "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Oi, oi, oi" from the stands alongside Ahmed's brother, Emmanuel, as her son finished fourth in his 50m breaststroke final at the Paralympics in London.

"He's got a smile on his face as big as Australia," she said.

But his own excitement was dwarfed by his mum's, leading the Team Kelly cries from the grandstands.

"I was draped in the Australian flag and I had tears in my eyes," she said.

"You had to be here, and to feel it - he's really done this, it's happened, you can't help but feel so proud.

"As far as I'm concerned, he got the gold for me."

Ahmed, 20, was born with a severe growth disability that stunted his limbs, leaving him without forearms and hands, lower legs or feet.

It was the result of exposure to chemical weapons in his birth country, Iraq, where he was abandoned with his brother on the doorsteps of a Baghdad orphanage. Both were adopted by Moira and brought to Melbourne in 2000.

Emmanuel, 18, has also become a star in his own right, striking musical fame on television show The X Factor.

Moira said the "wow factor" was definitely there when Ahmed took to the pool yesterday after his tough journey.

She said his achievement only spurred him closer to Paralympic victory, as he prepared to compete in the 100m freestyle tonight before the 50m backstroke tomorrow.

It comes as Geelong athlete Kelly Cartwright is expected to add another track gold medal to her tally in the 100m sprint today.

Cartwright, 23, the 100m world record holder in her class, won Australia's first track gold medal in London, as well as a personal best and a world record in the F42/44 long jump on Tuesday night.

She leaped 4.38m.

Eight years ago Cartwright was forced to make the difficult decision to have her leg amputated when it was discovered that she had cancer. The promising netballer then turned to athletics and had never looked back.

"I can't express how happy and relieved I am at the same time," she said after her win.