A 50-year-old Kazakh woman on Friday won her country’s first-ever medal at the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Zulfiya Gabidullina set a new world record in the 100m freestyle swimming. China has won most gold medals at the Games so far with seven, followed by the UK with five and Uzbekistan with three.
The Games had a rocky start, with Brazil’s president being booed at the opening ceremony on Wednesday.
A Belarussian official has also been banned for holding a Russian flag, his action being weighed against the background of the fact that Russia has not been allowed to compete.
However fears that budget cuts and low attendances could affect the event have been allayed following a cash injection from government and a last-minute surge in ticket sales.
Gabidullina took nearly a second off the previous world record in the S3 class, for athletes with amputations, no use of their legs or severe coordination difficulties.
She finished in 43.22 seconds.
Previously a wheelchair racer, she only took up swimming in her 30s.
Meanwhile, host nation Brazil has won two gold medals, including Ricardo Costa’s win in the long jump T11 class, for athletes with total blindness.
Costa jumped 6.52m on his last jump, beating Lex Gillette of the U.S. who had jumped 6.44m and had to settle for his fourth straight Paralympic silver medal.
“I like R&B,’’ Gillette said in an interview. “I guess I’m going to be playing the blues for a little bit right now.’’
Costa follows in the footsteps of his sister Silvania Costa, who won gold in the T11 category at the World Championship in Doha in 2015.
She is due to compete in the Paralympics later.
The siblings suffered Stargadt disease, an inherited eye condition that affects part of the retina.
Uzbekistan, currently third in the country ranking, won the first of three gold medals when 29-year-old Khusniddin Norbekov smashed the discus world record in the F37 class.
source: http://punchng.com/50-year-old-woman-sets-new-swimming-record/
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