2024 Paralympics: China Sees Athletes Medal in 5 Events in Strong Pool Showing on Day 7

06/09/2024 02:06

By Charlotte Wells on SwimSwam

2024 SUMMER PARALYMPIC GAMES

• August 28 – September 8, 2024
  • Swimming: August 29 – September 7, 2024
• La Défense Arena – Paris, France
• LCM (50 meters)
• Meet Central
• Full Schedule
• How To Watch
• Finals Recaps: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7

The exciting races continued on Day 8 of swimming at the 2024 Paralympic Games, with another four world records and four Paralympic records being broken across the 13 events of the evening.

Women's 100 Breaststroke – SB7 Final

• World Record: Mariia Pavlova (NPA) – 1:26.86
• Paralympic Record: Ellie Marks (United States) – 1:28.13

1.   Mariia Pavlova (NPA) – Gold – 1:26.09 (WR)
2.   Iona Winnifrith (Great Britain) – Silver – 1:29.69
3.   Tess Routliffe (Canada) – Bronze – 1:31.58

Mariia Pavlova kicked off the finals session in style, getting the excitement going early by breaking her own world record in the women's SB7 100 breaststroke and setting a new Paralympic record in the process. Her winning time of 1:26.09 shaved .77 off the previous world record time, which Pavlova had posted just a few months ago in early June.

Claiming silver in her Paralympic debut was Great Britain's 13-year-old Iona Winnifrith, who threw down a lifetime best time to secure the runner-up spot in a tremendous performance.

Men's 50 Freestyle – S5 Final

• World Record: Guo Jincheng (China) – 29.78
• Paralympic Record: Guo Jincheng (China) – 29.97

1. Guo Jincheng (China) – Gold – 29.33 (WR)
2. Yuan Weiyi (China) – Silver – 30.80
3. Wang Lichao (China) – Bronze – 31.23

China turned in yet another podium sweep early on this session, dominating the competition in the 50 freestyle right off the start. The sweep was led by Guo Jincheng, who, after breaking the Paralympic record in the preliminary heats of the event, shattered his own world record in finals, lowering the standard by .45.

Racing into the wall behind Guo were teammates Yuan Weiyi and Wang Lichao, who claimed silver and bronze, respectively.

Men's 100 Freestyle – S6 Final

• World Record: Antonio Fantin (Italy) – 1:02.70
• Paralympic Record: Antonio Fantin (Italy) – 1:03.67

1. Antonio Fantin (Italy) – Gold – 1:03.12 (PR)
2. Talisson Glock (Brazil) – Silver – 1:05.27
3. Laurent Chardard (France) – Bronze – 1:05.28

Continuing the record-breaking streak in this finals session, Italy's Antonio Fantin broke his own Paralympic record in the men's S6 100 freestyle. Just a few tenths off of his world record time, Fantin took over half a second off of the Paralympic record to win gold and become the back-to-back Paralympic champion in the event.

In what proved to be a nail-biting fight for silver, Talisson Glock and Laurent Chardard stayed dead even all the way to the wall, where Glock managed to outtouch Chardard by just .01. Glock's silver medal finish marks a step-up from Tokyo, where he won bronze in this event, while Chardard's bronze medal marks his second medal of the Paris Games.

Women's 400 Freestyle – S10 Final

• World Record: Aurelie Rivard (Canada) – 4:24.08
• Paralympic Record: Aurelie Rivard (Canada) – 4:24.08

1. Aurelie Rivard (Canada) – Gold – 4:29.20
2. Alexandra Truwit (United States) – Silver – 4:31.39 (AR)
3. Bianka Pap (Hungary) – Bronze – 4:35.63

In an exciting race, the women's S10 400 freestyle final saw two of the medalists from the Tokyo Paralympics make it back onto the podium, with Canada's Aurelie Rivard defending her title as Paralympic champion in the event. Hungary's Bianka Pap, who won silver in 2021, secured bronze in Paris to stand next to Rivard on the podium again.

Team USA's Alexandra Truwit won her first medal in her debut Paralympics and gave Rivard a run for her money as she claimed silver in the event, breaking the American record in the process. Truwit pushed Rivard throughout the race, even taking the lead at one point, before falling back to the runner-up position and taking second in a time of 4:31.39.

Men's 100 Breaststroke – SB11 Final

• World Record: Yang Bozun (China) – 1:10.08
• Paralympic Record: Yang Bozun (China) – 1:10.08

1. Rogier Dorsman (Netherlands) – Gold – 1:11.07
2. Yang Bozun (China) – Silver – 1:12.26
3. Danylo Chufarov (Ukraine) – Bronze – 1:12.72

The SB11 100 breaststroke proved to be a tight race as 2021 gold medalist Rogier Dorsman fought to defend his title against 2016 champion Yang Bozun. After a very close opening 50 (Dorsman split 32.83 and Yang split 32.93), Dorsman managed to lengthen his lead to win by over a second. Yang held on to claim silver, touching just half a second ahead of Danylo Chufarov, who swam a great closing 50 to narrow the gap between him and Yang.

Women's 100 Breaststroke – SB11 Final

• World Record: Daria Lukianenko (NPA) – 1:17.65
• Paralympic Record: Karolina Pelendritou (Cyprus) – 1:19.78

1. Daria Lukianenko (NPA) – Gold – 1:18.31 (PR)
2. Ma Jia (China) – Silver – 1:19.24
3. Karolina Pelendritou (Cyprus) – Bronze – 1:21.64

Daria Lukianenko has been having a tremendous meet in Paris, as she broke her second Paralympic record of the competition today in the SB11 100 breaststroke. Her gold medal-winning time of 1:18.31 knocked nearly 1.5 seconds off of the previous record and brought the time below the 1:19 mark for the first time.

Also of note was the performance by China's Ma Jia, who's runner-up time of 1:19.24 was also below the previous Paralympic record standard. Ma's performance earned her her second silver medal of the Paris Paralympics (she also has one gold), while the defending Paralympic champion from Tokyo Karolina Pelendritou took bronze.

Men's 200 Individual Medley – SM9 Final

• World Record: Timothy Hodge (Australia) – 2:12.03
• Paralympic Record: Matthew Cowdrey (Australia) – 2:13.60

1. Timothy Hodge (Australia) – Gold – 2:13.31 (PR)
2. Ugo Didier (France) – Silver – 2:15.98
3. Hector Denayer (France) – Bronze – 2:17.34

Current world record holder Timothy Hodge secured his second gold medal in Paris with his winning performance in the SM9 200 IM. The Australian broke the Paralympic record in a time of 2:13.31, shaving just under three tenths of a second off of the previous standard, as he claimed a definitive victory over runner-up Ugo Didier.

Posting a 2-3 finish in front of their home crowd, Didier and teammate Hector Denayer brought home two more medals for France to continue building on the host country's energy.

Women's 200 Individual Medley – SM9 Final

• World Record: Sophie Pascoe (New Zealand) – 2:25.22
• Paralympic Record: Natalie Du Toit (South Africa) – 2:27.83

1. Zsofia Konkoly (Hungary) – Gold – 2:33.31
2. Nuria Marques Soto (Spain) – Silver – 2:34.19
3. Anastasiya Dmytriv (Spain) – Bronze – 2:37.64

The women's SM9 200 IM was a close battle between Hungary's Zsofia Konkoly and Spain's Nuria Marques Soto until the final 50, when Konkoly managed to pull ahead to claim the victory. Her win brought home only the second gold medal in swimming that Hungary has won at the Paris Paralympics. Behind her, Spain posted a 2-3 finish as Soto and Anastasiya Dmytriv secured silver and bronze respectively.

Men's 100 Breaststroke – SB13 Final

• World Record: Taliso Engel (Germany) – 1:01.84
• Paralympic Record: Taliso Engel (Germany) – 1:01.84

1. Taliso Engel (Germany) – Gold – 1:01.90
2. Nurdaulet Zhumagali (Uzbekistan) – Silver – 1:04.83 (PR – SB12)
3. Vali Israfilov (Azerbaijan) – Bronze – 1:05.35

Continuing his successful Paralympics campaign, Germany's Taliso Engel turned in a top swim to win gold in the 100 breaststroke by almost three full seconds. His time of 1:01.90 was just .06 off of his own world and Paralympic records, which he just set in the preliminary heats of the event in Paris.

This final featured a mixture of SB12 and SB13 athletes, with the silver and bronze medalists both falling in the SB12 class. Uzbekistan's Nurdaulet Zhumagali claimed silver in record-breaking fashion with his time of 1:04.83, just narrowly slipping under the previous Paralympic record time of 1:04.86 for the SB12 class.

Women's 100 Breaststroke – SB12 Final

• World Record: Elena Krawzow (Germany) – 1:12.71
• Paralympic Record: Elena Krawzow (Germany) – 1:13.19

1. Elena Krazkow (Germany) – Gold – 1:12.54 (WR)
2. Maria Carolina Gomes Santiago (Brazil) – Silver – 1:15.62
3. Zheng Jietong (China) – Bronze – 1:20.03

The women's SB12 100 breaststroke final was full of record-breaking performances. Gold medalist Elena Krawzow of Germany broke her own world record and Paralympic records, throwing down a time of 1:12.54 to shave .17 off of the previous world record. China's Zheng Jieton broke the Asian record in the event, setting a new standard of 1:20.03 as she brought home the bronze medal.

Additionally, South Africa's Alani Ferreira broke the African record with a time of 1:21.36, placing 5th overall, and Australia's Jenna Jones broke the Oceania record in a time of 1:22.04, finishing 6th overall.

Women's 100 Breaststroke – SB13 Final

• World Record: Fotimakhon Amilova (Uzbekistan) – 1:09.57
• Paralympic Record: Fotimakhon Amilova (Uzbekistan) – 1:12.45

1. Rebecca Redfern (Great Britain) – Gold – 1:16.02
2. Olivia Chambers (United States) – Silver – 1:17.70
3. Colleen Young (United States) – Bronze – 1:18.52

After winning silver at the Tokyo Paralympics, Rebecca Redfern came back to win the gold medal in the 100 breaststroke in Paris. The British swimmer earned her first medal of the Games with her winning performance in the event, touching first in a time of 1:16.02.

Team USA put two more athletes on the podium, as Olivia Chambers and Colleen Young won silver and bronze, respectively; the results marked a repeat for Young, who took 3rd in Tokyo as well.

Women's 50 Freestyle – S8 Final

• World Record: Alice Tai (Great Britain) – 28.97
• Paralympic Record: Maddison Elliott (Australia) – 29.73

1. Alice Tai (Great Britain) – Gold – 29.91
2. Cecilia Jeronimo de Araujo (Brazil) – Silver – 30.31
3. Viktoriia Ishchiulova (NPA) – Bronze – 30.79

Narrowly missing the Paralympic record,Alice Tai won her second gold medal of the Paris Paralympics in the S8 50 freestyle. The world record holder in the event, Tai was the only competitor in the field to post a sub-30 time as she raced into the wall in a 29.91.

Brazil's Cecilia Jeronimo de Araujo claimed her first medal of the Games, winning silver in a time of 30.31, while Viktoriia Ishchiulova's bronze-winning performance marked her fourth medal so far in Paris.

Mixed 4×50 Medley Relay – 20 Points Final

• World Record: China – 2:27.45
• Paralympic Record: Record Mark – United States – 2:35.81

1. China  – Gold – 2:24.83 (WR)
2. United States – Silver – 2:31.01 (AR)
3. Ukraine – Bronze – 2:31.53 (ER)

The 2024 Paris Paralympics mark the first time this event has ever been contested in the Paralympic Games, and it did not disappoint. The United States posted the fastest time in the prelims this morning and held a massive lead at the 100-meter mark in finals, but China's Jincheng had a tremendous closing 50, splitting a 29.23 to overtake the lead.

China's team of Lu Dong, Zhang Li, Lichao and Jincheng smashed the world record in the event, throwing down a time of 2:24.83 to claim gold by over six seconds. Their performance also sets the Paralympic record in the event.

The American team of Ellie Marks, Morgan Ray, Abbas Karimi and Leanne Smith held on to secure the silver medal and set a new American record in a time of 2:31.01. Coming in just behind them was Ukraine, whose team of Yaroslav Semenenko, Anna Hontar, Oleksandr Komarov and Iryna Poida broke the European Record with a time of 2:31.53.

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