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Paralympians raise their game

Peerless Rahman

Iranian powerlifter Siamand Rahman is the strongest Paralympian in history.

The 28-year-old lifted an astonishing 310kg in the men’s +107kg category to win gold and obliterate the world record.

Rahman finished an unprecedented 75kg clear of his nearest rival.

Born without the use of his legs, Rahman’s winning total was a full 30kg heavier than it was four years ago and his latest performance adds credence to the notion that he is the most dominant strength athlete in the world.

Showing Olympians a clean pair of heels

When Algeria’s Abdellatif Baka crossed the finish line in the men’s T13 1 500m at the Paralympics last Sunday, he not only broke the T13 world record, but he also ran a time that would have won the same distance at the Rio Olympics last month.

Not only did Baka beat Olympic gold medallist Matthew Centrowitz’s time, but so did the second-to fourth-place finishers in Baka’s race.

Not ready to die – yet

Belgian Paralympian Marieke Vervoort, who suffers from an incurable degenerative muscle disease, says she will choose euthanasia, but not yet.

The wheelchair racer, who won a silver medal in the 400m, said she signed euthanasia papers in 2008.

The Belgian press had reported she might take her life after Rio, but she rejected the speculation at a news conference after her victory.

“When the moment comes when I have more bad days than good days, then I have my euthanasia papers, but the time is not there yet,” she told journalists in Rio.

The Paralympic powerlifters of Nigeria

While Nigeria has not won Olympic gold since the turn of the millennium, its Paralympic powerlifters are in a class of their own.

Josephine Orji became the ninth Nigerian to win a medal in Rio, breaking the world record (154kg) in the women’s +86kg division.

Not only have they all won gold, but they have also broken world records. By yesterday, they had 12 medals – eight of them gold.

Sword fighting your future father-in-law

Polish fencer Adrian Castro is thanking his lucky stars that he won the approval of his future father-in-law before the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games.

But winning a bronze medal is likely to sting Castro thousands in wedding costs after his victory came at the expense of his fiancée’s old man.

His father-in-law-to-be, team-mate and defending Paralympic champion Grzegorz Pluta took the 15-8 defeat in his stride.

Well, that was until the small matter of who was paying for the wedding came up.

“Today, before our bout, I told him: ‘The loser will pay for the wedding,’” Castro said.

That’s when things got awkward.

Pluta, the London 2012 wheelchair sabre champion, insisted it would be the younger man picking up the bill.

“Not at all, I don’t agree,” Pluta said.

“I lost the bronze medal, he will earn money from winning it, so he has to pay now.” – CNN, The Advertiser

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