Australian flag-bearer Madison de Rozario — who won two medals in Paris — says it was immensely challenging competing at the Paralympics after learning her father died on the eve of competition.

After winning silver in the women's marathon T54 on Sunday, De Rozario revealed her father died on the day of the opening ceremony last week.

De Rozario carried the Australian flag at the opening ceremony alongside teammate Brenden Hall.

She was informed by her mother — who was in Paris — of her father's death the morning after the opening ceremony.

"This week's been a little bit of a blur, we've just wanted to get to this point," de Rozario told the Nine Network.

"It's put a lot into perspective going into these Games.

"Not being able to defend that marathon would've broken me, I think. There was three years that went into that.

"It really throws things into perspective. I'm so much happier with a silver."

Speaking to reporters after her marathon silver, de Rozario said she considered returning to Australian and abandoning her Paralympics campaign.

"When you first get news like that the option is there to go home and it feels like the correct thing to do," she said.

"I feel so lucky that as I was having that thought, the first thing my family said to me was, 'Don't come home'. There was a very clear instruction to get this done.

"Turns out, I'd rather be in a Paralympic village with 160 of my best friends.

"I think, for a bunch of people who had no idea the week that I was having, they were the people I wanted to be around."

De Rozario said she was keen to return to Australia to see her sisters.

She said her father's character traits had a major influence on her maturity as an athlete.

"I'm like a lot of young women, where we have complicated relationships with our dad," de Rozario said.

"But I think the person that I am, I do credit a lot to him. We were homeschooled for a lot of years and he homeschooled us.

"I think as I've gotten older some of the parts I'm really proud of are a credit to him."

The defending champion in the marathon, de Rozario produced a strong finish to clock one hour, 46 minutes and 13 seconds, with Switzerland's Catherine Debrunner (1:41.50) winning gold.

The podium finish was the eighth of de Rozario's Paralympic career.

She also won bronze in the women's T54 5,000m early in the para athletics program.

The 30-year-old, who is a T53 athlete, said she adopted a different approach to these Games as compared to Tokyo.

"I was able to go into Tokyo with that real performance focus," de Rozario said.

"And over the next three years, we built who I am as an athlete, but we put so much focus into who I am as a person.

"And I think going into these ones, it was, 'How do I race as someone who I'm going to be proud of?'"

Susannah Scaroni of the United States took the bronze in the marathon with a time of 1:46.29.

Debrunner, a T53 athlete, had won golds in the 400m (T53), 800m (T53), 1,500m (T54) and 5,000m (T54), along with a 100m (T53) silver before the marathon.

ABC/AAP