Hunter Woodhall wins Paralympic sprint title to join his wife as a gold medalist
PARIS (AP) — One month after Tara Davis-Woodhall’s Olympic title in the long jump, her husband Hunter Woodhall, a double amputee, won his own Paralympic gold medal Friday at the Stade de France.
Davis-Woodhall’s rush into the stands for a celebratory hug from her husband became a viral moment during the Olympics, and the roles switched this time in the Paralympics.
Woodhall won the T62 400 meters in 46.36 seconds, leaving Germany’s Johannes Floors the silver in 46.90 and the Netherlands’ Oliver Hendricks the bronze in 46.91.
Woodhall, who raced for the able-bodied track team in college at Arkansas, also won a bronze medal as part of America’s 4x100 universal relay team. This comes a year after he didn’t make it to the starting line at Para world championships because his prosthetics were malfunctioning.
“This is like a fever dream,” Woodhall said. “I am so full of emotions right now. It is so incredible. I have been waiting so long and gone through so much stress and worry about achieving this. When I crossed the line, I was like, ‘Am I really first this time or am I still dreaming?’”
An end to Dutch dominance in wheelchair tennis
Yui Kamiji swept the women’s wheelchair tennis competition at the Paris Paralympics.
She won the singles final over Dutch favorite Diede De Groot 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 at Roland Garros.
The day before, Kamiji won her first gold medal in the doubles with Japan teammate Manami Tanaka. They beat De Groot and Aniek Van Koot.
“I just can’t describe how big this is,” Kamiji said. “Yesterday, after the doubles match ended, I wasn’t satisfied. I started to think about the singles.”
Wheelchair tennis officially joined the Paralympics in 1992. Since then, only Dutch players had won the women’s singles and doubles.
De Groot was the defending champion in both.
“I’m just really sad that I couldn’t get the gold medal,” she said. “The expectations are high. Unfortunately I couldn’t live up to it.”
Jincheng earns 4th swimming gold
Star Chinese swimmer Guo Jincheng won a fourth gold medal at these Games.
Guo claimed the S5 50-meter butterfly in 30.28 seconds, a world and Paralympics record.
Two countrymen completed the podium, Yuan Weiyi and Wang Lichao.
The 23-year-old Guo, who doesn’t have arms, has gained online recognition for his dolphin-like swimming style, which relies on the strength of his legs.
“I don’t pay much attention to the Internet, especially international websites, so I feel very happy to be talked about on the Internet,” Guo said. “I feel proud that the websites are paying attention to me.”
Overall, Guo has six medals from these Games and set two world records.
Storey wins her 19th gold
British cycling star Sarah Storey claimed her 19th gold medal in the women’s C4-5 road race.
The 46-year-old Storey finished just ahead of French teenager Heidi Gaugain in a sprint to the line as both completed the 71-kilometer course in the Paris suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois in 1 hour, 54 minutes, 24 seconds.
“I knew we had a great breakaway, we built up a good lead,” Storey said. “Then Heidi Gaugain attacked with a lap and a half to go. Fortunately I speak a bit of French so I understood what she was told. So I was ready to attack with her.
“I’m just delighted that my wheel was in front at the finish.”
Colombia’s Paula Andrea Ossa Veloza was 20 seconds behind for bronze.
Storey won the C5 individual time trial for her 18th Paralympic gold on Wednesday.
She also won the time trial and road race at the Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro and London Games, while she won a women’s LC1/LC2/CP4 time trial in Beijing in 2008.
She has five more Paralympic gold medals from the track, and yet more from swimming since she won her first gold in the pool in Barcelona in 1992.
The Paris Games are her ninth Paralympics.
China sets world records in relay
China set a world record in the 4x100 universal relay, clocking 45.07 seconds in the final.
It beat its own previous record of 45.09 from the heats.
The 4x100-meter universal relay is a mixed-gender and mixed-disability race featuring two men and two women with different disabilities.
Each team begins with a visually impaired athlete, followed by an amputee sprinter, then an athlete with cerebral palsy, and finishes with a wheelchair racer.
China’s team was Zhou Guohua, Wang Hao, Wen Xiaoyan and Hu Yang.
Britain was second and the United States third.
Iran wins sitting volleyball
Iran defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 3-1 in the sitting volleyball final for a second successive gold medal.
Iran has won eight Paralympic golds in sitting volleyball since its first at the 1988 Seoul Games.
In the final, Iran’s Morteza Mehrzadselakjani was the top scorer with 27 points. Mehrzadselakjani is the world’s second-tallest man at 8-foot-1 (2.46 meters). Even when he’s sitting, he’s more than 6 feet (1.8 meters) with his arms raised.
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AP Paralympics: https://apnews.com/hub/paralympic-games
