The last three years have been full of change for American Judoka Liana Mutia. After competing in her first Paralympic Games in Tokyo in 2021 she has found herself as a college graduate, in a new job, and a new town and those things have helped her come in to her second Games more relaxed.
Those changes have created some security in her life, for many para athletes winning at the Paralympics is a must to earn money. This perhaps speaks to the discrimination that people with disabilities face every day. For Mutia that security gives freedom.
“That’s the biggest change between my first Paralympics when I was a student and I had no money,” said Mutia. “Now I have a job, it’s disposable income. I am extremely happy to represent my country on the world’s biggest stage and then going back to my regular day job instead of going back and having to do all this work to survive.”
Not every athlete has that luxury and that is something the American doesn’t take for granted.
“This isn’t there for other athletes. If they don’t get a medal or they lose they lose their job, their resources, their home. I’ve been able to mitigate failure, I’m not worried about losing my home.”
That doesn’t mean that those changes don’t come with challenges. Even couch warriors know that it’s hard to work 40 hours a week and compete at a sport, that increases infinitely for an elite athlete like Mutia where it’s essentially two full-time jobs.
“I work a regular nine to five and I train 30 to 40 hours a week,” explains Mutia. “There’s a gym literally a few floors above where I work so I train all morning right before work. It’s very meticulous and organized. I majored in project management so it’s just management skills and resources.”
The other thing elite athletes have to deal with is time off of work and fortunately her employer has been understanding. Much like other workers, she just has to line up her calendar and request the time off but she says she feels comfortable doing so.
Beyond her personal changes much has changed around the Paralympics in the last three years. Judo has changed how it works, with weight class changes and for the first-time classifications.
“I feel more natural in this weight class. Instead of feeling undersized or oversized or whatever I feel natural at 57 kilos rather than 63 which is great,” said Mutia. “When I was younger I felt a bit undersized. From 21 to 25 (years-old) I feel like my body has only got better and I feel like physically I’ve adapted to the sport.”
Mutia is currently ranked number one in the world, that may heighten expectations, she’s certainly expectant, but for her that doesn’t equate to pressure.
“If anything the ranking takes a lot of pressure off. Qualification isn’t as stressful and so I can be more confident going in to Paris, and not stress about dropping out early, I know what I can do. Gold is my goal.”
Mutia will compete in the women’s B1 57kg classification in Paris coming in after winning silver at the 2023 Para Pan American Games.
WALSALL, England, United Kingdom — The IBSA World Games are fast approaching in Birmingham, a crucial step on the road to Paris 2024. One man competing and looking to build is Christopher Hunt Skelley, Paralympic Champion and newly European Championship silver medalist. The years after Tokyo 2020 have been full of change for Hunt Skelley and that’s been a good thing for his preparation.
Japan was somewhere the Judoka returned to as he looked to get ready for Birmingham and Paris and his preparation went well.
“The preparation is going really well for Birmingham. We had a very busy few months in Japan between May and June. We were out there for about 6 weeks training and working out,” said Hunt Skelley. “And then we’ve just been back in Walsall, making sure we get the best preparation before the World Games next week and the preparation for Paris – we’re not getting too far of ourselves head of ourselves.”
Returning to his native England and Walsall doesn’t mean the training drops off, far from it. Hunt Skelley is working hard to get ready for both competitions, he’s a very busy man.
“My typical day looks very busy. We have randori which means sparring every morning at 10:30am and then in the afternoons we have our strength or technical work. And in the evenings, if we want to do any extra stuff like wrestling, we go to clubs around Walsall that have us and we train really hard. It is between 2 to 3 sessions a day, which is very tough on the body so you also have to do extra recovery protocols, making sure your body is in the best possible shape it can be.”
He may have spent a lot of time in Japan, but that doesn’t mean having two events close by isn’t helpful. “It’s just a short hop to Paris on the Eurostar” he explains. Being close to home, makes life easier. Travel is difficult for anyone, and keeping things close minimize the complications. Jetlag has been shown to have a significant impact on performance due to an increased burden on the body, reports from the US National Institutes of Health revealed.
Change has been a big word in recent years for Hunt Skelley. Two of these are very positive, his marriage to former Paralympian Louise Hunt Skelley “ I’m very lucky to have someone in my life like that,” he beams; and becoming an MBE.
Any marriage is a partnership and Hunt Skelley is boosted by his wife.
“It is really helpful having a spouse who’s a Paralympian because she also understands the dedication and the commitment I have to put into the sport. She was a very successful in her right and to have her and her knowledge and to have her sometimes kind of question me and push me to be the best version of myself is really helpful.”
An MBE is one of the highest honors that someone can earn and for Hunt Skelley it’s a vindication of all that he went through.
“To have an MBE my name is surreal. I never thought I’d have any letters after my name, to be where I am, if you said to me 12 years ago where I would be, I would just have bitten your hand off because I was in a really dark place about 12 years ago and I didn’t see a way out of it. So then to know that I’ve had an MBE and you know to know that I’ve been recognised for that is really special and it’s a bit of a dream come true for me really.”
But not all change is positive and one big thing that has come up for the British Judoka is a new medical diagnosis, coeliac disease. Those with coeliac disease have issues processing gluten but true to Hunt Skelley’s style, he puts a positive spin on it.
“I was recently diagnosed with coeliac disease. I’ve had it for quite a long time, but not realised I’ve had it. To be fair, it hasn’t really changed much in my life. Suddenly I can’t have Greggs or McDonald’s anymore but that actually makes me eat a little bit healthier. I have to think about what I put into my body, so I can’t now just go to restaurants and eat off the menu. I have to kind of explain that I’m gluten free, but to be fair, since finding out that I did have coeliac disease, I have felt so much better in myself and my health is a lot better. “
A final change has been a new classification, the 100kg classification has been removed and that has pushed Hunt Skelley down to a new +90kg classification. That means that despite being the Paralympic Champion he’s not the top dog.
“The pressure is not on me anymore. My category which was 100 kilos, has been got rid of so now I’m a new category of plus 90, so I become the hunter again. I now chase down the top lads in this category, making sure I train really hard and push them which pushes me so for me, I’m just like the hunter again and I really like that,” said Hunt Skelley. “There’s no one who’s an easy fight there. You have to really push yourself to be the best and you really have to turn over every stone to become the best version of yourself, so everyone’s threatening this new category and you just have to be in the best shape and best mindset possible.”
As expected there’s one goal for Hunt Skelley in Paris, win his second Paralympic gold medal.
“My goals for Birmingham and Paris are, you know, to try and win it. I’m there to go and win. I’m a fighter. I’m an athlete. I’m a competitor, so you know anyone who says “I’m not going there to win” is a liar, so I’ll be honest, I’m there to go and win it and try and put my best performance on the day.”
The +90kg classification is looming as a big battle in Paris and it will be fascinating to see how it plays out. Hunt Skelley, fresh off a European silver medal is bound to be a serious contender.
BONN, Germany – The International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) announced on Monday and Tuesday two significant decisions that will boost the voice athletes have in the organization. On Monday the executive board announced the founding of the Athlete’s Council and on Tuesday announced a new position within the organization, a Director of Sport.
Monday’s announcement was a significant step for the organization. It has been a goal of IBSA for many years to create such a board and Monday saw that take a vital step with the creation of a working group to begin a formal body.
The first step will be looking to leverage the process followed by goalball, which formed a committee and is also under the auspices of IBSA. As a result, the initial members of this working group will be Sally Wood-Lamont the general secretary, and Pedro Figueiredo the communications officer, who were both involved in that process for goalball along with IBSA board member Mads Baulund.
One key focus for IBSA in this process is clear and transparent elections to the Athlete’s Council. This will be an interesting objective as most Athlete’s Councils exist just to rubber-stamp things that the governing body wants to be done. Perhaps transparency from IBSA signals something different, but it will be hard to tell.
A barrier to that transparency is a push for speed with IBSA targeting the IBSA World Games, which begin August 18th as the place to get votes in for the members of this committee. That said, everybody involved in building the council would be ineligible to participate in the council so cannot operate in their own interests on the council.
The other idea put forward by IBSA in board meetings this week was the creation of a new position within the organization, a Director of Sport. Currently, there isn’t a single person who oversees all competitions of IBSA but rather each sport has a chairperson, and the seven of them meet together in committee. This decision will allow one leader to oversee all the sporting elements of IBSA and allow the President to focus on more pressing concerns. There is no insight yet into how this recruitment will occur or when an appointment will be made.
TOKYO — Sunday started with a stunning finish in the triathlon and the excitement continued all day on day five of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, a phenomenal day for Great Britain.
Sprint finish for gold in triathlon
Kendall Gretsch (USA) is now a summer and winter Paralympic Games gold medalist after she won a thrilling finish in the women’s PTWC triathlon for her third gold medal in either season.
Coming into the finish straight Gretsch trailed Lauren Parker (AUS) and seemingly didn’t have enough course to get the win but she powered past Parker, both in their first summer Paralympic Games to claim a thrilling gold medal.
Lauren Steadman (GBR) upgraded her silver medal from Rio in the women’s PTS5 powering away from Grace Norman (USA) just enough on the run leg to claim the gold that alluded her five years ago. The men’s event saw several lead changes but Martin Schulz (GER) did just enough to win, claiming gold by 45 seconds.
The other event in the last day or triathlon competition was won by the undefeated Jetze Plat (NED) claiming the PTWC again. He trailed coming off the bike and it seemed like his record may have been under threat but he came back in the run to claim gold and keep his undefeated record intact.
Dominant performances see rowing medals awarded
Several favourites showed why they were so heavily fancied in the rowing regatta as they dominated to claim gold medals in the medals day at the Sea Forest Waterway.
Brigit Skarstein (NOR) started things off with a perfect row in the women’s single sculls PR1 pulling away from the very start to win the first time the Paralympic Games extended the distance to 2000m. Having come close to the podium in both summer and winter Paralympics before the emotion came out for the Norwegian who finally got the medal she had been seeking. The men’s race was claimed by Roman Polianskyi (UKR).
British rowers won two gold medals the first coming in the mixed double sculls PR2 as Laurence Whiteley and Lauren Rowles defended their title. The mixed coxed four PR3 crew then won gold, as expected, but not without being made to work for it, trailing at 1500m but overcame the American crew to claim the gold medal.
Great Britain wins first wheelchair rugby gold
Photo: Naomi Baker
Having never won a medal in wheelchair rugby it would have been easy for people to think that making the final was a big enough achievement for Great Britain. But that wasn’t the case for the team, having spoken about coming to Tokyo to win the gold they did it, beating the USA convincingly 54-49.
Team GB got off to a perfect start, stealing on the first possession to open the scoring and taking out a 15-12 lead at the end of the first quarter. But the USA was determined to come back and a crucial Chuck Aoki steal in the second closed the gap and gave the Brits nightmares of the group stages when they failed to hold on to the lead.
In the fourth quarter, Britain took it well and truly away from the Americans scoring 17 times and clinching a first gold medal and a first win against the United States at any event.
In a replay of the 2018 world championships final Japan again managed to defeat the Australians, winning the bronze medal in the day’s other match, delighting the crowd of school children in attendance.
Australia never looked in the match, Japan taking control of things early and getting a lead they would never relinquish. Japan would power out to the win 60-52 as the lead just kept stretching out giving the hosts something to cherish.
Despite the result, both teams seemed disappointed afterward, as the world champions many had the hosts down as the gold medal winners before the tournament started and for Australia, it was its first tournament without a medal since 2004. With just one win it was the worst tournament the Australians had in the history of it being a competitive sport in the Paralympic Games, only 1996’s exhibition tournament proving worse.
Despite being unfancied Great Britain claimed gold in the team test to music with their inexperienced horses proving good enough to get the job done. Britain finished with a combined score of 229.905 finishing less than a point ahead of the Netherlands on 229.249 for silver.
A stunning 80% score from the Americans in the grade I team test had things wide open at the end of the first day but the Brits came out for day two in the higher classes and got the job done for a memorable gold medal.
Hannah Cockroft continued Britain’s phenomenal day with a phenomenal performance of her own, smashing her world record to win gold in the women’s 100m T34. She overpowered the field pushing down the track in a time of 16.39 to lead a British double with teammate are Adenegan coming in second.
A day of close finishes continued in the women’s F44 discus with Yao Juan (CHN) winning by one centimeter. She broke her world record with the throw finishing just ahead of teammate Yue Yang. China won another gold in the women’s 200m T36 with Yiting Shi equaling the world record in a time of 28.21
Another world record fell in the men’s shot put F40 when Denis Gnezdilov (RPC) also won by one centimeter throwing 11.16m to just beat Garrah Tnaisah (IRQ). The day’s other record came in the men’s shot put F53 when Elvin Astanov threw 8.33m for a new Paralympic record.
It had been five years of battles between Valentin Baus (GER) and Cao Ningning (CHN) since Ningning’s win in the men’s individual class 5 gold medal match in Rio and it seemed inevitable that the pair would meet up again in Tokyo. Baus lost in straight games in Rio and was determined to do better five years later. Not only did he do better he avenged that loss beating Ningning in a five-game thriller. Forced to win the final two games he did so coming back to win 11-4, 7-11, 9-11, 13-11, 11-7.
The dream run of Bhavinaben Patel (IND) couldn’t end in a fairytale gold medal, but it was still historic as Patel won India’s first table tennis medal with silver in the women’s individual class 4. Facing off against Zhou Ying (CHN) for the second time in the tournament she couldn’t reverse the result from the group stage with Ying claiming an 11-7, 11-6, 11-6 straight games win.
There was more joy for China in the men’s individual class 7 as Yan Shuo came from a game down to beat Will Bayley (GBR) 4-11, 11-9, 11-2, 11-8.
Maldonado overcomes Rio disappointment for Judogold
Photo courtesy IBSA
After missing out on gold in her home games Alana Maldonado (BRA) worked hard for five years to make sure that disappointment didn’t’ happen again. She used that disappointment as fuel and dominated the final rarely looking troubled in the final against Ina Kaldani (IRN). Despite recording an early waza-ari she continued to attack looking for an ippon but somehow couldn’t score more but it didn’t matter as she claimed her long-awaited gold.
Iran won two gold medals, the country’s first in the sport. The first came from Vahid Nouri in the men’s 90kg with an impressive leg sweep ippon on Elliot Stewart (GBR). Moments later Mohammed Kherollahzadeh overcame Revaz Chikoidze (GEO) to claim the men’s +100kg gold.
Great Britain got its first gold since 1996 in the men’s -100kg after Chris Skelley rode an early score to overcome Benjamin Goodrich (USA).
Chinese team dominance continues in archery
Photo: Bruna Prado
Chinese archers made it two from two in the team events as they claimed gold in the team compound event, beating Turkey 153-152, defending the title won in Rio five years ago with a completely different team.
Needing to hit a 10 to win the gold medal Lin Yueshan held her nerve calmly hitting a near-perfect shot to claim the gold medal, adding to her individual silver from Rio.
Boki remains perfect
Photo: Buda Mendes
Coming into the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games seeking six gold medals Ihar Boki’s (BLR) quest remained on track as he won his fourth on Sunday. He won his 15th career gold medal by winning the men’s 50m freestyle S13 in a time of 23.21.
Italian Simone Barlaam lived up to the hype in the men’s freestyle S9 to win his first Paralympic gold medal with a 24.71 swim. Having been nervous during the games Baralaam overcame the jitters to win well.
China sealed two more gold medals on Sunday with the women’s 50m freestyle S11 re-swim going the same way as the original. With two swimmers colliding (S11 is a vision-impaired classification) in Saturday’s swim, the organizers called for a re-swim but it didn’t matter to Ma Jia who claimed gold in a world record time of 29.20 leading home teammate Ma Jia. Liankang Zou won the other Chinese medal-winning the men’s 50m backstroke S3 in 45.25.
Brazil also claimed two gold medals, first through Maria Carolina Santiago in the women’s 50m freestyle S13 in 26.82 before Gabriel Araujo won the men’s 200m freestyle S2 in 4:06.52
Three more world records fell in the pool on Sunday with Michelle Alonso Morales (ESP) setting new ground in the women’s 100m breaststroke SB14 with a 1:12.02 swim. The hosts saw a record fall in the men’s equivalent as Yamaguchi Naohide swam 1:03.77. The final world record fell in the men’s 400m freestyle S7 as Mar Malyar (ISR) won his second gold of the Games swimming a time of 4:31.06.
McKenzie Coan (USA) defended her title in the women’s 400m freestyle S7 just edging out Giulia Terzi in 5:05.84.
The day finished with a shock in the women’s 4x100m freestyle 34 points. After finishing first the USA was disqualified elevating Italy to the gold and Australia to silver which in turn pushed Canada up to bronze following Great Britain’s disqualification. The Americans protest meant that the medal presentation had to be delayed
D’Andrea makes history in powerlifting
Photo: Koki Nagahama
Mariana D’Andrea became the first Brazilian to win a powerlifting gold medal as she stunned the competition in the women’s 73kg. She nailed her final lift of 137kg to claim the gold upsetting Xu Lili (CHN) who only managed 134kg.
Abdelkareem Mohammad Khattab (JOR) never looked like losing the men’s 88kg gold medal managing a Paralympic record with his third lift of 231kg continuing his stunning form.
Bose Omolayo (NGR) defended her title in the women’s 79kg lifting 141kg to do so, unable to break the world record with her final lift.
China won its sixth powerlifting gold in Tokyo 2020 as Yan Panpan won the men’s 97kg on debut lifting 227kg in his second lift. In third place, Fabio Torres made history by winning the first powerlifting medal for Colombia.
China sweeps team foil events
Photo: Carmen Mandato
It was a record-breaking day for Chinese fencing as the team claimed its 20th medal of Tokyo 2020 thanks to winning both foil events at Makhari Messe Hall B.
The women’s team overcame Italy 45-41, with Beatrice Vio almost single-handedly carrying Italy scoring all but one of the points. By comparison, it was a strong team performance from the Chinese that led to the win.
It was then over to the men who dominated their match against Great Britain claiming a 45-38 win controlling the bout from beginning to end.
Japan wins first Paralympic football match
Photo courtesy IBSA
History was made from the very start in the football tournament at the Aomi Urban Sports Park as Japan dominated France to win its first football 5-a-side match at a Paralympic Games. Braces from Ryo Kawaura and Tomonari Kuroda gave Japan a memorable 4-0 victory over France. The match was really over at halftime as the hosts ran out to a three-goal lead in the first half and never looked troubled.
Brazil extended its unbeaten run to 23 matches with a 3-0 win over China to send a message to the competition. The highlight was a stunning free-kick from Raimundo Nonato who continues to be a specialist of the skill.
Argentina was forced to work for a 2-1 win over Morocco. Taking the lead through Maximiliano Espinillo an equalizer from Zouhair Snisla forced it level before the break. Argentina came out from halftime determined with Espinillo managing a brace to seal the match.
The final match of the day was a thriller and it took a penalty for Spain to overcome a determined Thailand side 1-0.
Australian goalball revival continues
Photo courtesy IBSA
After a difficult start to the competition, the Australian women’s goalball team could be marching into the quarterfinals managing a stunning 4-1 win over the RPC. A clean sheet in the first half boosted the Belles who have gone from scoring one goal in the first two games to now nine in the tournament. Should China beat Canada on Monday Australia will qualify for its first quarter-final.
Japan only needed one half to beat the Egyptian women and seal passage to the quarter-finals with a 10-0 demolition of the Africans. The hosts’ men’s side wasn’t so lucky suffering their first loss of the Games falling to Brazil 8-3. Brazil’s win came on the back of a hattrick from Josemarcio Souza.
China can take confidence into their final match as they overcame Israel 4-1, in a surprise turnaround for an in-form Israeli side.
The USA men overcame their loss to Japan from a day ago demolishing Algeria 13-5 thanks to a big eight-goal second half. Belgium advanced to the quarterfinals despite a 4-2 loss to Ukraine which also secured Ukraine’s passage.
TOKYO — The busiest day of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games saw Triathlon join with an early morning start, the longest day of these Games with more records falling all over the city on Saturday.
Hanquinquant wins on debut
At 35 years old Frenchman Alexis Hanquinquant had a phenomenal debut winning the first triathlon event of Tokyo 2020. It was an impressive performance as he came over the top of more fancied opponents in Uda Hideki (JPN) and Alejandro Palomero (ESP) to claim the PTS4 gold.
The USA’s domination of the women’s PTS2 as Allysa Seely and Hailey Danz finished well in front of the rest of the field. Danz led after the swim and bike but her teammate reeled her in on the run to take gold. The good day for the Americans would continue in the men’s PTVI as Brad Snyder claimed his third Paralympic gold, proving he could get it done out of the pool winning his first triathlon gold medal.
Spain got its first triathlon gold at the Paralympics with Susana Rodriguez powering away from the field to claim a strong gold medal. Anna Barbaro (ITA) came third but there was a sprint finish for third with Alison Peasgood (GBR) closing down on Annouck Curzillat (FRA) but there wasn’t enough course and Curzillat finished with a bronze medal that she was very delighted with.
Team Fachie breaks world records
The unquestionable power-couple of para-cycling, Britain’s Neil and Lara Fachie claimed double gold breaking world records in their events at the Izu Velodrome.
Neil (and pilot Matthew Rotherham) claimed gold in the men’s B 1000m time trial, breaking his own world record with a time of 58.038. The win saw him recover from his disappointment in Rio coming back from the silver medal won five years ago.
It was then Lara’s turn as she came up (with pilot Corrine Hall) to win the women’s B 3000m individual pursuit. She came through in a time of 3:19.483 to set a new world record.
It’s been 17 years of Poland’s Natalia Partyka winning gold medals in the women’s singles class 10 but that will come to an end in Tokyo as she found herself on the wrong end of a surprise result.
Australian Qian Yang was the woman who ended Partyka’s reign, winning an absorbing contest in five games 11-7, 4-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9. Having to come back and win the final two games would have been enough excitement but Yang even came back from being down in the fifth. At 5-2 down Yang took some quick points to come back, getting it to 9-7 and that would be enough, she would hold on to that lead to claim the match and get to the final.
She will be playing Bruna Alexandre (BRA) who also had to come from behind in her semi-final, winning in four 12-14, 11-6, 12-10, 11-7.
The men’s class 7 also saw a five-game thriller. Will Bailey (GBR) saved match point in the fifth to come back and beat Keli Liao (CHN) 11-6, 11-9, 8-11, 6-11, 11-8. He will meet Yan Shuo (CHN) who continued his strong performance with a 3-0 win.
Bhavinaben Patel made history as she became the first Indian to make a table tennis final as her incredible run continued. She overcame Miao Zhang (CHN) in five, winning 7-11, 11-7, 11-4, 9-11, 11-8.
Japanese dreams shattered in wheelchair rugby
Coming in as the world champions Japan was the favourites to win the wheelchair rugby competition at home but those hopes were dashed on Saturday as they fell to Great Britain 55-49.
It was close in the first half but in the third quarter, a flagrant foul from Daisuke Ikezaki pushed Japan into a difficult situation. Coming back from the penalty behind, Ikezaki committed another defensive foul which saw Britain push out to a 35-29 lead, much too high for the hosts to come back. Jim Roberts was the star for the winners scoring 30 to push his side to the win.
The United States will be waiting for Britain in the final after getting some revenge over the Australian team that had eliminated them on the way to gold in the last two Paralympic Games, winning 49-42.
The first quarter was tight but Australia gave up the ball late allowing the Americans to score and take a two-goal lead and get possession to start the second. In the second the USA really got away from the Steelers, taking advantage of a high amount of turnovers from the Australians to take a seven-try lead. From there Australia could never recover, falling to the defeat and ending their three-peat dreams. It highlighted what had been a poor tournament from Australia, again just failing to pressure opponents into the mistakes with some poor defense making it too easy for the USA to score.
Azerbaijani judo success continues
Photo courtesy IBSA
Azerbaijan claimed three gold medals on the judo mat at the Nippon Budokan on Saturday with an especially impressive performance from Sevda Valiyeva headlining the night.
Up against the more fancied Parvina Samandarova (UZB), Valiyeva managed a waza-ari in the early stages of the bout. She then fought hard to run out the clock and get the win in her debut Paralympics, vindicating her decision to move up to the women’s 57kg weight class.
There was another first Paralympic gold for another Azerbaijani judoka as Khanim Huseynova won the women’s 63kg gold. The other Azerbaijani gold came in the men’s 81kg as Huseyn Rahimli won the final.
The legend that is Tatyana McFadden (USA) continued on Saturday as she claimed bronze in the women’s 5000m T54 for her 18th medal, completing her comeback from a life-threatening blood clot. The winner was her teammate Susanna Scaroni who attacked early and held off the field to win in a time of 10:52.57. The silver went to another legend of the sport, Manuela Schaer (SUI) who came in eight seconds behind Scaroni.
There were seven other athletics finals at the National Stadium with especially stunning performances in the women’s long jump T64. Fleur Jong (NED) claimed gold with a leap of 6.16m with the silver medalist, Marie-Amelie Le Fur (FRA) also going past six meters just five centimeters back.
Spain won two gold medals with Kim Lopez defending his title with a new world record in the men’s shot put F12 throwing it 17.04m. The other was a shock as Yassine El Ataby ran 14:34.13 to win the men’s 5000m T13 ahead of the world champion Jaryd Clifford (AUS).
Uzbekistan also claimed a double with Nozimakon Kayumova throwing 42.59m to win the women’s javelin F13. The field events proved successful for Uzbekistan with Mokhigul Khamdamova claiming the other gold, the women’s discus F57 thanks to a 31.46m throw.
The other two gold medals on the day were won by Cuiqing Liu (CHN) in the women’s 400m T11 in a time of 56.25 and Aleksandr Iaremchuk (RPC) in the men’s 1500m T46 in 3:52.08.
Korea Republic shocked in team archery
As the individual events in archery continued to progress the first medals were awarded in the mixed team W1 event. That saw Korea shocked twice, losing the semifinal to the Czech Republic before compounding that disappointment and falling to RPC in the bronze medal match 132-127.
The gold medal in the event was one by China, crushing the Czech dreams of gold with a 138-132 win. After trailing in the first end, China came back hitting 35 in every other end to claim the win, taking it away from the Czech pair.
Australia seals first goalball win
Photo courtesy IBSA
A stunning performance from Meica Horsburg, scoring four has driven Australia to a 4-3 win over Canada to keep the Belles quarter-final hopes alive. Canada came back late in the match but it wasn’t enough as they could only manage two of the three goals needed.
Japan also managed its first win of the women’s tournament as they stunned the defending bronze medalist USA side 3-2. It was a clinical performance, boosted by Japan not giving away a single penalty all match.
Turkey remained perfect in the women’s group stage easily beating Brazil 8-4 to seal their place in the quarter-finals. Going into halftime with a 5-2 lead it was just easy to hold off Brazil in the second half and take the win with Fatma Gul Guler scoring six goals to stay on top of the top scorer charts.
By contrast, the RPC couldn’t remain undefeated as Israel shocked them winning 8-3, boosting their own chances.
It was a double of shocks for the hosts as the men not only stunned the defending champions, Lithuania but did so convincingly. Japan won 10-2 to put Lithuania on the verge of not advancing to the quarter-final, facing a must-win match against the USA.
Turkey won its first match on the men’s side with a 6-3 win over China, it was on the back of two hattricks with Tuncay Karakaya and Ebubkir Siddik Kara netting three. Germany managed the first shutout on the men’s side as they beat Belgium 2-0 with a heavily changed side.
The women’s 61kg weight class lived up to expectations with a thrilling contest claimed by three-time defending champion Amalia Perez (MEX). She managed to complete her final 131kg attempt to clinch gold under pressure. After Perez’s lift Lucy Ejike (NGR) came out to attempt a 135kg lift but couldn’t do so forcing her to settle for bronze behind Ruza Kuzieva (UZB).
Bonnie Gustin (MAS) proved his win at the 2019 world championships was not a fluke as he claimed gold in the men’s 72kg. He took the lead in his very first lift and never looked back, claiming gold with a Paralympic record of 228kg, he attempted to break his world record with a 231kg lift on his fourth attempt but failed to do so.
Tan Yujiao (CHN) won her second straight gold in the women’s 67kg with a lift of 133kg. Roohallah Rostami (IRN) led in the men’s 80kg from the first lift and pushed out to win with a lift of 234kg just missing the world record as he couldn’t complete his 242kg lift.
Defending champions get off to winning starts in sitting volleyball
Photo: World Para Volley
Iran and the USA managed comfortable 3-0 wins to start their campaigns in the men’s and women’s sitting volleyball. Germany kept things close with Iran in the first set but from there the Iran men pushed away winning both of the other two sets by 10. The USA women made light work of Rwanda in their opener with Rwanda getting no closer than 11 points.
The other two matches of the day were tighter. Brazil’s men traded two 28-26 sets with China before getting stronger and winning the last two sets 25-19 and 25-13. The Chinese women had more luck, after being pushed in the first set 25-20, they got stronger as the match went on to win 25-16 and 25-14.
After her stint in a commercial during the Olympic Games gave Beatrice Vio (ITA) more notoriety her big summer continued as she defended her women’s foil category B title. It was a tight bout with Jingjing Zhou (CHN) who put up a good defense. Zho kept it tight but at 4-2 received a red card and fell away from there to claim the gold 15-9. The bronze medal was claimed by Ludmila Vasileva (RPC) who won a tight bout 15-12.
By comparison the A category saw a brand new podium with three new medal winners. Hiyan Gu (CHN) came from behind, after conceding the first two points to Natalia Morkvych (UKR) to go 4-2 up and never looked back. Jing Rong (CHN) claimed the bronze medal-winning a thriller that went to a deciding point for a 15-14 win.
Gang Sun continued the good performances for China as he upgraded his bronze from Rio into a gold in the men’s foil category A. Gang scored the first six points in the final bout against Richard Osvath (HUN) allowing for a big 15-7 win. Nikita Nagaev (RPC) managed an identical start in the bronze medal bout before winning 15-11.
The category B title was defended by Yanke Feng (CHN) who beat his compatriot Daoing Hu in a final point 15-14. Dimitri Coutya (RPC) recovered from his semifinal disappointment to win 15-2 in the bronze medal bout.
Seeded players all advance in wheelchair tennis
Photo: ITF
There were no upsets on offer at the Ariake Tennis park as every seeded player advanced to the next round.
Joachim Gerard (FRA) has come to Tokyo in form and the number three seed used all of that form to ease past Casey Ratzlaff (USA) 6-1, 6-1. It was a similar story for the other men, barely dropping a game as Shingo Kunieda (JPN), Gordon Reid (GBR), and Alfie Hewett (GBR) all advanced barely breaking a sweat.
On the women’s side the top two seeds, Diede De Groot (NED) and Yui Kamiji (JPN) both dropped only one game each in convincing wins. A rivalry of 18 years had another chapter as Aniek Van Koot (NED) defeated Katharina Kruger (GER) 6-3, 6-1.
Dylan Alcott (AUS) continued his quest for a golden slam in the quad singles event as he managed a straight sets 6-0, 6-2 win over Mitsuteru Moroishi (JPN). The number two seed, Sam Schroder (NED) came through 6-1, 6-2 while the other seeded player Andy Lapthorne (GBR) won 6-3, 6-3. David Wagner (USA) came back from a set down to beat Ymanitu Silva (BRA) 3-6, 6-2, 6-2
USA loses two one-point games in wheelchair basketball
Two thrillers came in wheelchair basketball on Saturday, first, in the morning China held on to manage a one-point win over the USA 42-41. After China built up a strong lead the Americans fired back, draining several three-pointers but left themselves too much to do as China held on to win the women’s group B match.
There was another one-point win in the men’s group B and yet again the USA was on the wrong side of the result. Great Britain pushed out to a big 20-15 lead at the end of the first quarter and that left far too much for the Americans to do, despite clawing back six points in the fourth there just wasn’t enough time.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, the pain continued for the Algeria women falling to a 72-point defeat to Spain 80-8. The men also fell losing 81-47 to Iran in a somewhat closer game while the Spanish men managed a win as well, falling just short of the men’s score beating Turkey 79-61.
Great Britain managed double wins with their women finding it easier to beat Australia 75-38. The Australian men managed to win, however, remaining perfect with a 64-53 win over Germany. Germany’s women did manage to win, getting past Canada 59-57, which completed a tough day for Canada with the men also losing, falling to Japan 62-56.
The other game of the day saw Korea Republic manage a 66-54 win over Colombia.
TOKYO —Athletics, and Judo joined the party on day three in Tokyo on Friday with seven sports handing out medals on a hot day and evening which saw some domination from Azerbaijan and a shock in the powerlifting.
Athletes live up to expectations
Tunisian Raoua Tlili continued her domination in the women’s shot put F41 winning her fourth straight gold medal in the event. With her second throw, she broke her own world record launching it 10.55m, and never looked troubled.
Petrucio Ferreira (BRA) was also able to defend a Paralympic title, winning the men’s 100m T47 in 10.53 for a new Paralympic record. Japan also saw expectations met, finally winning its first gold at the National Stadium with Sato Tomoki winning the men’s 400m T52.
Azerbaijan dominates judo
The women’s 52kg saw a thrilling final with Azerbaijani judoka Shahana Hajiyeva claiming the gold over Sandrine Martinet (FRA). Both fighters went hard at the bout trying to find an ippon but none came, forcing the bout to golden point. It was then that Jajiyeva finally got Martinet to ground to claim a memorable, and emotional win.
Azerbaijan’s other gold of the day came in the men’s 60kg contest when Vugar Shrinli managed an Ippon to get gold. Algerian Cherine Abdellaoui claimed gold in the women’s 52kg while a Waza-Ari was enough for Uchkun Kuranbev (UZB) to claim the men’s 66kg.
Legend shocked in powerlifting
Photo: Herbert Aceituno
For 13 years one name has dominated the men’s 59kg powerlifting category, Egyptian Sherif Osman. He came into these Paralympic Games looking for his fourth straight gold, but it wasn’t to be. Pushed all the way to 187kg by Chinese lifter Qi Yongkai he couldn’t get a heavier lift in giving Yongkai the gold for having a lower body weight.
There was further history in the same weight class when El Salvador secured its first medal in a Paralympic or Olympic Games when Herbert Aceituno claimed the bronze medal.
It was a strong day for China managing to win three of the four categories on offer on the day. Hu Dandan claimed the women’s 50kg and Liu Lei won the men’s 65kg.
The only other category, the women’s 55kg saw China had to settle for silver as Xiao Cuiuan finished just one kilogram behind Mariana Shevchuk (UKR).
Records continue to fall in the velodrome
Photo: IPC
Kadeena Cox (GBR) defended her title in the women’s C4-5 500m time trial with a world record of 34.433 seconds. That allows Cox to shift her focus to the athletics track where she’ll look to defend her 400m T38 title.
In the C1-3 of the same event, Australian Amanda Reid continued her team’s stunning performance on the track, breaking the world record with a time of 35.581 to keep herself as the preeminent competitor in the classification.
China’s good day extended to the velodrome as Li Zhangyu claimed the men’s C1-3 1000m time trial gold. It was an event where all three medalists broke their classification’s world record, Li getting the C1 mark with a time of 1:08.347, smashing his own mark. Alexandre Leaute (FRA) finished second and set a new C2 world record with 1:09.211 and Jaco van Gass (GBR) set a new C3 mark of 1:05.596, finishing third due to the factoring of the heavier impaired classifications.
Jozef Metelka (SVK) was dominant in the men’s C4 4000m individual pursuit qualifying fastest and winning the final by overlapping his opponent. Dorian Foulon (FRA) also managed a strong win in the men’s C5 4000m individual pursuit as he pulled away in the last lap for the win.
Trunnell’s dominance pays off
Photo: Alex Pantling
Roxanne Trunnell (USA) finished her equestrian individual test Grade I with the highest score yet in the dressage ring managing an 81.464 to get past Rihards Snikus (LAT) and Sara Morganti (ITA).
The other equestrian event came in Grade III with Tobias Thorning Jorgensen (DEN) claiming gold on the back of a strong performance finishing ahead of Natasha Baker (GBR) and Rixt van der Horst (NED).
Boki stays on track
Belarusian legend Ikhar Boki remained perfect in his quest for six gold medals, now halfway there as he won the men’s 400m freestyle S13, the only swimmer under four minutes with a 3:58.18 swim.
Azerbaijan also found success in the pool, winning a third gold medal of the day when Raman Salei claimed the men’s 100m backstroke S12. Great Britain also had a successful night in the pool, winning two gold medals. Hannah Russell defended her title in the women’s 100m backstroke S12 and Reece Dunn broke the world record in the men’s 200m freestyle S14 with a time of 1:52.40, his second gold of these Games.
Records continued to fall in the pool with another coming in the men’s 100m backstroke S8 when Robert Griswold (USA) swam 1:02.55. Mark Malyar (ISR) also set a new mark in the men’s 200m individual medley SM7 becoming the first man to go under 2:30 with a time of 2:29.01, the silver medalist Andrii Trusov (UKR) would also go under that bar with a 2:29.99.
There was also a stunning result in the men’s 50m butterfly S5 where China managed a sweep. The Chinese trio of Zheng Tao, Wang Lichao, and Yuan Weiyi claimed all three medals finishing over three seconds ahead of the rest of the field.
Danish hopes dashed in wheelchair rugby
Denmark’s dreams of a wheelchair rugby medal on debut came to an end on Friday following a 52-50 loss to France. To compound things, the result saw Denmark finish bottom of the group so they will play on Saturday to avoid last place.
The win for France wasn’t enough to aid them in their passage, with the tiebreaker being goal difference in matches against the three teams tied, Australia’s +1 compared to France’s 0 meant that Australia had snuck into the semi-finals before their match against Japan. That was just as well for the Steelers who were outplayed by the world champions falling to a 57-53 loss.
The United States managed an incredible comeback to finish on top of Group B defeating Great Britain 50-48. Trailing 8-13 at the end of the first quarter the match already seemed all but over only for the Americans to come back. The gap was closed to two at half-time and then to one going into the final quarter, the diversity in the middle classifications helping the USA share more time around between their middle and lower point players which helped to get to the win.
In the other match of the day, Canada defeated New Zealand 51-36. With these results New Zealand will face Denmark in the last-place playoff, France and Canada will play off for fifth meaning Canada misses the semi-finals for the first time in Paralympic Games history. The semi-finals will see a replay of the 2016 final between the United States and Australia while the hosts will meet Great Britain who will be in its first semi-final since 2008.
Japan men’s goalball keeps marching
Photo: IBSA
Japan claimed the first mercy-rule win in the men’s goalball competition cruising to a dominant win over the United States. Yuto Sano starred scoring six goals in the 11-1 win as the USA was mercy-ruled for the first time since Beijing.
Belgium followed Japan to be the only other men’s side to start two-for-two managing an impressive 6-4 win over Turkey. The Vanhove Brothers scored four goals between them with a late goal clinching the win.
Brazil came from behind to deny Algeria what would have been a memorable victory. Trailing 4-1 Brazil scored eight unanswered goals, half coming from Josemarcio Souza to clinch the win.
After a tight first half that saw China only lead 1-0, they came out from the break determined and overpowered Ukraine for a 7-3 win. Three goals came in the final 30 seconds to get China its first win in the competition.
After yesterday’s draw in the men’s competition, Brazil came back from 3-0 down at half-time to force Japan to settle for a point in the women’s match between the two sides. Australia’s debut continues to be tough, but the improvement was there as the side avoided a mercy rule loss falling to a 6-0 defeat to China, but the country has a young side, having won the Under 19 World Championship.
Things haven’t been as good for Egypt which lost its second straight mercy-rule match as the USA overpowered Egypt 10-0. The Americans scored nine goals in the first half so it didn’t take long in the second for the win to come with Amanda Dennis scoring four.
Volleyball starts with blowouts
The sitting volleyball got underway on day three with all but one of the matches being won in straight sets. On the women’s side, Italy beat Japan 3-0 while both men’s matches had the same score, Japan falling again to RPC and perennial favourites Bosnia and Herzegovina downing Egypt.
It was a close one in the other women’s match as extra points were needed for Brazil to beat Canada 3-2. After dropping the first set Brazil came back to win the next two, missing out after having match points opportunities in the fourth. Canada held on but it only prolonged Brazil’s wait, claiming a 17-15 win in the decider.
Table Tennis sees another upset
Photo: Remy Gros/ITTF
Another defending champion has suffered a loss in table tennis, this time in the women’s singles class 4 as Bhavnaben Patel (IND) defeated Borislava Peric Rankovic (SRB). It wasn’t just that Patel won but it was how she did it, she didn’t look too bothered in the win, claiming straight games 11-5, 11-6, 11-7 win to stamp her credentials as a real contender.
It got worse for Serbia as Nada Matic would fall in the same classification. Zhou Yu (CHN) claimed the win, needing four games to win 11-4, 11-7, 8-11, 11-9. That ended the hopes of both Serbians of repeating a double podium in Tokyo.
Other defending gold medalists found things smoother. Fabian Lamirault (FRA) won in straight games in the men’s class 2 as did Cao Ningning (CHN) in the men’s class 5 to march on to the semi-finals.
The Netherlands send a strong message in wheelchair basketball
Photo: IWBF
After being shocked by China one day ago the Dutch women’s wheelchair basketball team came to take on Algeria and showed no mercy winning by 91 points in a 109-18 blowout to show that they are still a force to be reckoned with in Tokyo.
Germany’s men were determined to bounce back from a disappointing loss and did so with a shock result, taking down the World Champions. Thomas Bohme was the star with a double-double as Germany beat Great Britain 71-59.
Algeria’s suffering extended to the men’s side of the draw as Australia won its second straight match by more than 40 points to lead the group. The Rollers claimed the win 83-37 taking the opportunity to give more time to more players in the squad.
Most matches today weren’t close but the best was saved for last. Japan saw Reo Fujimoto top score with 21 points to push the hosts to a 59-52 win that all but seals his team’s place in the quarter-finals.
China get two team fencing medals
Photo: Naomi Baker
It was a good day for China on the piste with the team claiming the women’s epee making light work of Ukraine in the final to win 40-17. That was a perfect response for the team after watching the men fall to a 45-39 defeat in the final to RPC.
Weather doesn’t stop hosts from perfect day on the tennis court
It was another hot day in Tokyo which led to six hours of play being delayed but that didn’t do much to stop the hosts from having a successful day. That started with Takashi Sanada who claimed a 6-1, 6-1 win over Carlos Anker (NED).
There were dominant wins for Ji Zhenxu (CHN) and Ezequiel Cascao (ARG) who only dropped one game between them. Niels Vink and Sam Schroder (NED) won in straight sets against American pair David Wagner and Bryan Barten in the quad doubles.
Only visually impaired athletes compete in the Paralympic Games, there’s not as much movement around the mat, it’s a lot of grappling for throws compared to battling for control.
Classification
There is no classification, athletes have to have a general vision-impairment classification and will play with blindfolds. They are further divided into weight categories.
Schedule
From the 27th to the 29th of August, multiple medals will be awarded every day.
Venue
Nippon Budokan- Hosted Judo in the 1964 and 2020 Olympic Games along with Karate’s Olympic debut last month.
2016 Results
Judo was very hotly contested with only three countries winning multiple gold medals. Uzbekistan led the way winning three gold medals as part of 10 total medals. China won two gold along with Mexico. Expect very diverse winners in Tokyo. 18 countries medaled in Rio.
Favorites for Tokyo
M -60 – Alexandru Bologa (ROM) leads the way with a commanding lead over the rest of the field in the world rankings. Expect challenges from the Kazakh pair of Olzhas Orazalyuly and Anuar Sariyev.
M -66 – Davyd Khorava (UKR) and Namig Abasli (AZE) will fight out this classification like they have been doing the past five years since Khorava won the bronze medal.
M -73 – Nikolai Kornhass (GER) will go in as the favorite here with a big lead at the top of the rankings but may see a challenge from Feruz Sayidov (UZB).
M -81 – The most competitive of the categories for the men with the top five in the world rankings all in with a chance of claiming gold here. There’s a good chance of a repeat of Rio’s final with Jung Min Lee (KOR) and Eduardo Avila Sanchez (MEX) still on top of the world rankings. They’ll face a challenge from the chasing pack of Davurkhon Karomatov (UZB), Huseyn Rahimli (AZE), and Dmytro Solovey (UKR).
M -90 – Another Ukrainian looms as the favorite here, Oleksandr Nazarenko, looking to go one better than Rio but he will face a tough challenge from Vahid Nouri (IRN).
M -100 – Christopher Skelley (GBR) has been dominant in this classification over the last few years, the biggest challenge he will face is from Zviad Gogotchuri (GEO).
M +100 – A three-way battle looms between Mohammedreza Kheirollahzeadeh (IRN), Shirin Sharipov (UZB), and Revaz Chikoidze (GEO) who have a big lead over the rest of the field.
W -48 – Sandrine Aurieres Martinet (FRA) has been almost unbeatable the last five years, only a major upset will stop her from winning gold in a second category after going down a weight class after Rio.
W -52 – With Martinet’s departure the pair of Inna Sych (UKR) and Priscilla Gagne (CAN) have been battling for this weight class, that battle will be settled somewhat in Tokyo.
W -57 – Zeynep Celik (TUR) leads the way in the world rankings but could well be stopped by a resurgent Parvina Samandarova (UZB).
W -63 – Three athletes have a very strong chance at claiming gold here. Iryna Husieva (UKR) won silver in Rio and will be looking to improve that, coming in as the world number one but will face a tough fight against Yue Wang (CHN) and Khanim Huseynova (AZE).
W -70 – Alana Maldonado (BRA) will be the clear favorite to go one better than her home games five years ago. She might see a battle from Lenia Fabiola Ruvalcaba Alvarez (MEX).
W +70 – Carolina Costa (ITA) has been the star in this weight class and it would be stunning if she didn’t win gold. She’ll face competition from Meg Emmerich (BRA) and Hongyu Wang (CHN).
Classification: All athletes are visually impaired
Venue: Carioca Arena 3 – Barra Olympic Park
Athlete Quota: 132 (Across ten nations)
International Federation: International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA)
Preview
Ukraine won the medal table in 2012, but they had a number of Judokas retire after London, leading to a fairly light four years. Their best chance at a medal will likely be Inna Cherniak, entering her first Paralympic Games, but coming in as the world champion and favorite to win her gold.
Despite losing the World Championship title Shirin Sharipov of Uzbekistan will be a big favorite for the -100kg category. He won at the IBSA World Games in 2015, and so returns well from his big upset in 2014.
America’s best hope is world champion Dartanyon Crockett who will be entering his first Paralympic Games with a strong chance at a medal. Another North American confident of a medal is Eduardo Avila Sanchez of Mexico who comes in with two straight medals, a gold in Beijing and a bronze in London.
Nikolette Szabo will be returning after her bronze medal four years ago in London, but has had a strong four years, winning the World Championship, so will be a strong favorite in the -70kg, following Carmen Herrera’s retirement. Brazil’s big hope will be Antonio Tenorio in the men’s 90kg category looking to end his career with another medal, his sixth.
China’s Yanping Yuan will be hoping to continue her domination in the +70kg category, looking to win her third straight gold medal. Veteran German twins Ramona and Carmen Brussig will be looking to repeat their gold success in Rio in the women’s -52kg & -48kg categories.
Jon Margier Sverisson celebrates his gold medal in London (Source: Iceland Government)
Despite clouds surrounding travel funding to the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games two more nations have announced their delegations. Kazakhstan and Iceland announced their squads on Tuesday with Kazakhstan sending 10 and Iceland sending five athletes to Rio.
Kazakhstan are sending four swimmers, three powerlifters and one each in athletics, archery and judo. One of those swimmers, Zulfiya Gabidullina, is a strong medal hope, competing in the S4 category she won two European Championships in May in the 50m and 100m freestyle, setting a world record in the 50m.
After making his major event debut four years ago in Rio Anuar Akhmetov returns after four more years of experience. That included competing in the World and European Championships in the last two years that should see him a bigger competitor in Rio.
Outside of the pool, Kazakhstan’s best hope comes in Judo with Anuar Sariyev flying the flag. Sariyev will be competing in the men’s -60kg category where he is currently ranked fifth in the world.
Iceland’s team is also heavy on swimmers with three of their five strong team competing in the pool. The star of that team is Jon Margeir Sverrisson who looks to defend his 200m freestyle S14 title, coming in after coming second at the world championship last year.
In athletics Iceland will have hopes of a medal with Heigl Sveinsson in the javelin F44, competing in his second Paralympic Games and comes in having won bronze at the 2015 World Championships. The final member of the team is archer Thorsteinn Halldorsson who will make history, the first Icelandic archer to compete in the Paralympic Games, he will shoot in the men’s compound after qualifying in the very last qualification tournament in June.
Para Sports 