Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Sports

Marathon golds decided as 'most important' Paralympics wrap up

Swiss wheelchair master Marcel Hug defended his marathon title on the final day of the Tokyo Paralympics on Sunday.

Marathon events were decided on the final day of the Tokyo Paralympics on Sunday. — © AFP
Marathon events were decided on the final day of the Tokyo Paralympics on Sunday. — © AFP
Andrew MCKIRDY

Swiss wheelchair master Marcel Hug defended his marathon title on the final day of the Tokyo Paralympics on Sunday, as organisers hailed the “most important edition” of the Games ever.

The last day’s action saw 14 gold medals up for grabs, starting with the early morning marathon events and another star turn from “silver bullet” Hug.

The 2016 Rio T54 champion opened up an early gap on the field, and moved away from silver medallist Zhang Yong over the last two uphill kilometres.

“I don’t know how to feel. I’m just tired. Empty,” said Hug, who won the sixth Paralympic gold of his career in a time of 1hr 24min 2sec.

In the women’s T54 marathon, Australian Madison de Rozario clung on to finish ahead of Swiss great Manuela Schaer, winning the gold by just one second.

“That was the longest 500 metres of my life,” de Rozario told reporters after finishing in a Paralympic record of 1:38.11.

'Silver bullet' Hug completes golden Paralympics sweep in marathon

“Silver bullet” Marcel Hug crosses the finish line to win the men’s marathon T54 – Copyright AFP/File YURI CORTEZ, Juan BARRETO

“That finish line couldn’t have come quick enough.”

The 27-year-old was adding a second gold to her T53 800m title in Tokyo. She also took bronze in the T54 1,500m.

There was also gold for host nation Japan in the women’s T12 marathon, with Misato Michishita coming home in a time of 3:00.50.

Morocco’s El Amin Chentouf won the men’s T12 marathon, while China’s Li Chaoyan took the honours in the men’s T46.

Japan's Kunieda strikes gold as pandemic Games lauded

Japan’s Shingo Kunieda won the men’s wheelchair tennis singles title at the Tokyo Paralympics on Saturday – Copyright POOL/AFP Mark Mitchell

Organisers had urged local residents to stay home and watch the action on TV, but sweet shop owner Atsushi Nishimura told AFP in Tokyo’s Asakusa district that he was glad he saw it live.

“We could have enjoyed the Olympics and Paralympics differently if they weren’t during a pandemic, but I think it was good for us that we could host the events,” he said.

– ‘Stronger than ever’ –

With the Games almost at a close, International Paralympic Committee chief Andrew Parsons declared the Tokyo Paralympics the “most important edition” in history.

China’s Deng Peicheng celebrates his win in the men’s 100m (T36) athletics final on Saturday. — © AFP

He pointed to the participation of 163 delegations — one less than the London 2012 record — with 86 teams winning medals and 62 claiming at least one gold.

“I don’t have any doubts that this was the most important edition of the Paralympic Games, because of the pandemic, because we gave a voice to 1.2 billion persons with disability,” he said.

“The Paralympic movement is stronger than ever before,” he added.

USA’s Nick Mayhugh strikes a Usain ‘lightning’ Bolt pose after his 200m world record Saturday. — © AFP

The delegations included two athletes from Afghanistan, who made a dramatic arrival with the Games already in progress after being evacuated from Kabul.

IPC spokesman Craig Spence said taekwondo athlete Zakia Khudadadi and sprinter Hossain Rasouli, who competed in long jump, had been offered the chance to carry Afghanistan’s flag at the closing ceremony.

But there was still plenty of sporting action to get through, with medals decided in four other sports.

Medal rush as Tokyo Paralympics enters home straight

Women’s goalball champions Turkey defended their title – Copyright AFP Aamir QURESHI

The United States beat China 3-1 to take gold in women’s sitting volleyball, with the two teams meeting in the final for the fourth straight Games.

The Americans had ended China’s run of three consecutive golds five years ago in Rio, and they got the upper hand again after establishing an early two-set lead.

Japan were set to take on the United States in the men’s wheelchair basketball final later in the day.

In shooting, Slovakian Veronika Vadovicova won the mixed 50m rifle prone SH1 final, edging out Sweden’s Anna Normann and Spain’s Juan Antonio Saavedra Reinaldo.

There were also finals in badminton, which was making its Paralympic debut in Tokyo.

From rescues to romance: Top moments at Tokyo's Paralympics

Tokyo’s Paralympic mascot Someity was plastered across the city during the Games, which end Sunday – Copyright AFP/File YURI CORTEZ, Juan BARRETO

AFP
Written By

With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

You may also like:

Tech & Science

CMG is integrating advanced simulation tools with NVIDIA hardware and high-performance computing software to accelerate time-to-decision for energy leaders.

Entertainment

Fabian Arnold, David Millbern, and Meredith Thomas star in the new movie "Big Rage," which premiered on November 1st on Here TV.

Entertainment

Alison Victoria, interior designer, Emmy-nominated producer, and social influencer, chatted about her latest endeavors.

Tech & Science

Identity and credential misconfigurations represent a staggering 80% of security exposures across organizations.