Team South Africa’s Mpumelelo Mhlongo celebrates after winning gold in men's T44 100m final at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. Team South Africa’s Mpumelelo Mhlongo celebrates after winning gold in men's T44 100m final at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. Picture: Ulrik Pedersen / NurPhoto via AFP
Track and field superstar Mpumelelo Mhlongo powered his way to the gold medal in the men’s T44 100m final to open Team South Africa’s account at the Paris Paralympics on Sunday evening.
Mhlongo, who holds world record in the 100m, 200m and long jump, ran a time of 11.12 seconds to finish ahead of Cuba’s Yamel Vives Suarez.
But Mhlongo’s gold medal was never in doubt after a fast start. He was gunning for his own record, but is more than happy with the win on the fast the Stade de France track.
“I didn’t execute the race perfectly and at 60 metres I told myself that I have to wake up,” Mhlongo told the Team SA website.
“But it’s job done! We got the gold and hopefully now the floodgates will open,” said the 30-year-old, who added “I can’t wait to sing Nkosi sikelel’iAfrika” at the medal ceremony.
🥇 GOLD for Mpumelelo Mhlongo! 🥇
— Team South Africa (@OfficialTeamRSA) September 1, 2024
Mpumelelo takes the Men’s 100m T44 Final in a season-best time of 11.12 seconds! ⚡️ A brilliant race for a brilliant athlete. Let’s celebrate this incredible achievement together! 💥![CDATA[]]>🇿![CDATA[]]>🇦#TeamSA #ForMyCountry #MpumeleloMhlongo #Gold pic.twitter.com/jWpPlqIbXo
Elsewhere, veteran Team SA archer Shaun Anderson bowed out of the Paralympics after he went down to No 1 seed Tianxin Zhang of China 136-134 in the quarter-finals after earlier upsetting Turkey’s No 6 seed Yigit Aydin 133-132.
EARLY TEAM SA RESULTS FOR SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 1
ARCHERY
Men’s individual W1, 1/8 stage: 9-Shaun Anderson beat 6-Tigit Aydin (Turkey) 133-132 (26-23, 51-50, 77-80, 104-106, 133-132)
Men’s individual W1, quarter-final: 9-Shaun Anderson lost to 1-Tianxin Zhang (China) 136-134 (28-27, 56-55, 80-80, 108-107, 134-136)
ATHLETICS
Women’s 1500m, T11 round one: Louzanne Coetzee finished 2nd in her heat in 4:45.25, a season’s best, to qualify for the final 2nd fastest.
Women’s discus, F64 final: Yane van der Merwe didn’t measure a distance
Men’s 100m, T44 final: Mpumelelo Mhlongo won the gold medal in 11.12sec
WHEELCHAIR TENNIS
Men’s singles, second round: Alwande Sikhosana lost to Daisuke Arai (Japan) 6-1 6-0
Quad Doubles, semi-finals: Daniel Ramphadi and Lucas Sithole lost to *1 Sam Schroder and Niels Vink (Netherlands) 6-1 6-1.
@JohnGoliath82