Key events
Henshaw powers away from the field, Varga losing it and Wiggs second…
Back on the water, we’re away in the final, Henshaw zooming in front! Varaga is second, Wiggs third!
Now then! Medeiros attacks 156, a new Olympic record, if she bangs it she takes the gold-medal position … and she does! she’s overcome, her team mobbing her, and what an effort!
Chippington tells Channel 4 she’d like to get to LA in four years; of course she would. Incredible behaviour.
Meantime, Feifei is trying to break her own world record of 159kg … and she cannot. But she and Medeiros will now go into the extra round of powerlifts wth the gold still not quite settled; the Brazilian is going for 156kg.
Back to the women’s T12 marathon, El Idrissi finished time ago in a world-record time, and we can now confirm that Meryem En-Nourhi of Morocco takes siolver and Elena Congost of Spain bronze.
Henshaw, by the way, is the defending champion. But Wiggs is also an Olympic champ, and though Susan Seipel of Australia will have something to say, those two could easily contest the gold.
Back to the powerlifting, Zhang still leads on 155; I can’t see Medeiros, now on 142, bettering that, so the gold is almost decided.
Not long to go now! At 10.41, Wiggs and Henshaw will go in the final of the KL2 200m.
Katherinne Wollermann of Chile wins gold in the women’s KL1 200m kayak single
Maryna Mazhula of Ukraine takes silver and Edina Mueller of germany bronze. Chippington is seventh.
Mazhula of Ukrainie passes Wollermann who comes back at her!
They’re on the line … and off they go! Wollermann of Chile leads, Chippigton off it.
Just to give you a sense of her ridiculousness, Chippington won swimming golds in … 1996. I was 17 then, I’m 45 now, which I say just to give some scale to dedication and excellence that’s so immense it can be hard to grasp.
At 54, Jeanette Chippington is the oldest athlete in the GB team, and she will shortly go in the final of the KL1 canoeing – they’re scheduled to go off two minutes from now.
Fatima El Idrissi of Morocco wins the women’s T12 marathon in a world record time of 2:48.36
She has taken the field apart.
Fatima El Idrissi comes around the final corner on the verge of tears and rightly so. She’s going to win gold for Morocco and she’s going to devastate the world record too. She punches the air, and what a moment this is!
Also going on:
We’re just watching Jack Eyers go in the second semi of the men’s VL3 Va’a 200m sprint; he’s paddling like billy-o and he comes from behind to win in a Paralympic Games best of 48.59. The final is at 11.41.
Fatima El Idrissi will soon be the women’s T12 marathon champion. She’s eight or so minutes ahead of her teammate, Meryem En-Nourhi.
Back at the powerlifting, Zhang Feifei of China now leads with 150kg, ahead of Brazil’s Tayana Medeiros, on 137.
Then, in the KL2 final at 10.41, Charlotte Henshaw – the defending champ and VL3 200m champ – goes, likewise Emma Wiggs, who won the VL2 event. That should be a race.
Jeanette Chippington, the queen of the para-canoe, had a disappointment in yesterday’s VL2 200m, but she goes again in the KL1 final at 10.25am; stand by for that one.
Wajdi Boukhili of Tunisia wins gold on the T12 men’s marathon
Alberto Suarez Laso of Spain takes silver and El Amin Chentouf of Morocco the bronze.
Here comes Boukhili and he’s got a finger aloft, now a full arm! He’s going to win the T12 men’s marathon in fantastic style!
We’ve had almost two rounds of the 86kg powerlifting. Randa Mahmoud of Egypt leads on 128, miles ahead of Mayagozel Ekeyeva of Turkmenistan who managed 107.
Look at Walid Boukhili! He’s absolutely storming to the line now while, behind him, Suarez Laso of Spain has overtaken Cehntouf of Morocco.
Back at the La Chapelle Arena – now there’s a name to evoke memories for anyone who did the congress system as part of history A-level – the final of the women’s up to 86kg powerlifting is away.
In the men’s T12 marathon, Boukhili of Tunisia leads Chentouf of Morocco by roughly 4os. He looks in rhythm here, focused and strong, with six or so kilometres to go.
Edward Clifton has qualified for the final of the VL2 men’s Va’a single 200m; I’m not sure he’s a medal threat, but we’ll find out at 10.49am.
El Idrissi has broken away from En-Nourhi in the women’s T12 marathon and looks strong. But she’s only at 30km, so isn’t safe yet.
Emma Wiggs of GB, who won 200m gold yesterday, goes in semi-final two and she eases through to the final behind the Australian, Susan Seipel. Those two will surely contest the gold medal in what should be a serious tussle – it’s coming up at 10.41.
Righto, it’s off to the water and the KL2 para canoeing. LEXI say:
KL2 is for paddlers with moderately affected movement in the hips and legs, the absence of two legs above the knee or one leg entirely.
These paddlers have good control of the upper and lower body providing good balance. They propel the boat using the arms and trunk.
Debrunner is amazing. She’d already won the T53 400m and 800m along with the T54 1500m and 5000m, taking silver in the T53 100m; now she’s the marathon champ too and at 29, I’m sure there’s lots more to come.
Catherine Debrunner of Switzerland wins the women’s T54 marathon
Madison de Rozario of Australia takes silver and Susannah Scaroni of USA the bronze.
Aliakbar Gharibshahi of Iran wins gold in the men’s up to 107kg powerlifting
Setting a Paralympic record of 252kg in the process. Sodnompiljee Enkhbayar of Mongolia takes silver and Jose de Jesus Castillo Castillo of Mexico the bronze.
Three red lights, so not this time – though he doesn’t love the judges’ call. But all things considered, not a bad morning for the Iranian.
Back at the powerlifting, the defending champ, Enkhbayar, will go for 260kg; if he sorts it, it’s a new world record … but he can’t! He has to settle for the silver medal and Gharibshahi takes gold; here he comes, the crowd going wild, and he’ll now have a go at bettering the mark he set. There’s 262 kg on the bar and here he goes … come on Aliakbar!
David Weir, six-time Paralympic gold medalist, retires from international competition
David Weir, six-time Paralympic gold medalist, finished fifth in the T54 marathon, and in interview with Channel 4 as we speak, he announces his retirement from international competition. He’ll continue to compete in the big marathons around the world, but his time in the GB vest is over – and hasn’t he made the most of it. What a total hero.
Coming up later: we’ve got some canoeing, in which Charlotte Henshaw and and Laura Sugar will be defending their titles won in Tokyo, while Jack Eyers will fancy himself a medal too; those finals come at 10.41, 11.07 and 11.41 respectively.
In the women’s T12 marathon, Fatima El Isrissi of Morocco, already a silver medalist in the T13 5000m, leads by a way from Meryem En-Nourhi also of Morocco; she’s just passed the halfway mark but is she tiring a little?
But back to the powerlifting, Gharibshahi is going for 252 … and look at that! It’s easy for him, and he retakes the gold-medal position with another PR; let’s see what happens next.
In the men’s T12 marathon, El Amin Chenntouf of Morocco and Wajdi Boukhli of Tunisia have broken away from the field.
Here comes Enkhbayar to try and improve the Games record one kilo to 248 … and he bangs it out! Now then. Ghaaribshahi to go next…
Jose de Jesus Castillo Castillo, sitting third. noises up the crowd as he addresses 231 … and he can’t quite get it up.
Also going on is the men’s up to 107kg powerlifting. Aliakbar Gharibshahi of Iran leads with 247kg, a Paralympic record, and given we’re in round three, it’ll take something significant to stop him claiming gold. But Sodnompilkee Enkhbayar of Mongolia will shortly attack 248; if he nails it, he’ll move in front.
Jin Hua of China has gone by Tomoki Suzuki of Japan; they take silver and bronze respectively.
In the women’s race, another Swiss legend, Catherine Debrunner, leads by a way; Susannah Scaroni of USA lies second with Madison de Rozario of Australia third.
Marcel Hug of Switzerland wins men’s T54 marathon gold for the third time in a row!
Yet another terrifyingly, affirmingly brilliant performance. What a man!
Hug comes around the final corner and the line awaits him! He’s destroyed the field!
Hug rides over cobbles, and that must be horrible – I know how eager people in regular chairs are to avoid them, but on these racing affairs it must be something else. He’s nearly there, though – the gold will soon be his.
Marcel Hug, who took four golds in Tokyo but so far here has had to satisfy himself with two silver and one bronze, is well in front in the T54 men’s marathon. Second is Tomoki Suzuki of Japan with Jin Hua of China third and David Weir of GB fourth, but none have a prayer of catching the leader.
As per LEXI, T12 classification “is for runners with a visual impairment. Their vision is constricted to a radius of less than five degrees and/or the ability to recognise a moving object at a distance of one metre.”
And T54 “is for wheelchair track athletes who have full function in their body with moderately or highly affected movement in the legs or the absence of legs. All generate power through the full range of body and arm movements, providing good acceleration from the start and highly responsive manoeuvring during the race.”
Preamble
Salut! It’s been an incredible Games … and it’s not quite finished yet. Before we have to contemplate what we might do tomorrow, we’ve got one more day of intense and moving competition.
The T54 and T12 marathons are already under way and we’ve also got some powerlifting and basketball for you – most particularly the women’s gold-medal match between the Netherlands and USA – so let’s get on with it. On y va!