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By Hishan Welmilla in Dubai
The Sri Lankan contingent completed the World Para Athletics Championship in Dubai with one Silver medal to their credit.
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Brazil's Elizabeth Gomes set a new F52 world Record in Discus Throw |
The last Sri Lankan in action was Buddika Indrapala in Men’s High Jump T42/T63 finals, held yesterday. Indrapala had previously recorded 1.55m as his personal best in this event.
It was a hazy morning in Dubai as Day 8 of the World Para Athletics Championships opened, with three competition sessions left, and 10 sets of medals on offer: Men’s javelin F57, Women’s discus F53, Men’s shot put F40, Men’s 5000m T11, Women’s long jump T20, Men’s 400m T44, Women’s 800m T34, Men’s 400m T36, Women’s shot put F35, and Women’s 1500m T13.
World records
As the morning session started an early world record was established in the women’s F53 discus. Ukraine’s Iana Lebiedieva, whose previous world best was 14.93, added over a metre to her own record with a 16.26 m throw.
Ukraine’s Ihor Tsvietov broke his own T35 100m world record in the morning’s heats. He won his race comfortably in 12.19 to take 0.03 off his old mark. Meanwhile, in the F40 shot put, Russia’s Denis Gnezdilov equalled Garrah Tnaiash’s world record of 10.88m in what is a massive Personal Best for the Russian.
In Women’s F51/F53 discus throw, Ukraine’s Zoia Ovsii set another world record. Zoia Ovsii, competing in the F51 class, moved into second with an F51 World Record of 13.52m.
In addition to the F51 and F53 world records set earlier in the women’s discus, Brazil’s Elizabeth Rodrigues Gomes won gold in a new F52 world record throw of 16.89m in her final attempt.
The world record holder, Evgenii Shvetsov of Russia, went out strongly early but ran out of steam coming down the home straight in the T36 800m. He was overtaken by Australia’s James Turner, who stormed home in 51.71, absolutely obliterating Shvetsov’s mark from London 2012.
Brazil’s Cicero Lins Nobre has won the men’s F57 javelin with a new world record distance of 49.26m.The previous WR holder, Amanolah Papi of Iran, came second and Syria’s Mohamad won bronze.
Universal Relay
The most important events of the day were Universal Relay. Relays for each of the different set of disability classes have been scrapped for the universal relay, which sees two men and two women in each team from across the range of impairment classifications compete together, hence the name.
For the first time at a Paralympic Games or Para Athletics World Championships, a Universal Relay 4x100m was contested.
Four teams ran in each of four heats with no automatic qualifiers for the final. The four fastest times overall made the final. Each team featured two men and two women, and must have one visually-impaired athlete who begins the race. The second athlete must be from the T42-47 or T61-64 classes, the third leg T35-38, and the final leg T33-34 or T51-54 in racing wheelchairs. There is a maximum limit of two athletes from the T13, T46-47, T38, and T54 categories. There is no set order for the gender of the athletes. There is no baton; the ‘handover’ is done by touching the next athlete on any part of their body (or a wheelchair athlete’s helmet). The world record is held by China at 47.57 seconds. There is no Championship Record yet, as this is the event’s debut.
Germany broke the Universal Relay world record in the third heat, coming home in 47.05 seconds. They were just ahead of USA (47.08) in a sprint to the line. China then broke the record again to regain their world record in the final heat with 46.35 seconds. France are the last team in the final.
