There were two African records in the pool but no medals for Team SA on Tuesday at the 2024 Paralympics. They remain on two medals heading into Wednesday, following Mpumelelo Mhlongo’s T44 100m gold and Louzanne Coetzee’s T11 1500m silver. There were three sports represented by Team SA on the day – swimming, athletics and boccia.
PARA SWIMMING
Men’s 100m Backstroke – S7
Team SA’s Christian Sadie finished 5th in the evening final after placing 3rd in his morning heat, recording one of the eight fastest times in the heats.
Women’s 50m Backstroke – S5 – Heats
Team SA’s Kat Swanepoel finished 6th in her morning heat, setting a new African record. Unfortunately, her time was outside the top eight fastest finishers, which would have qualified her for the final.
Men’s 200m Individual Medley – SM13
Team SA’s Nathan Hendricks finished 7th in the evening final, setting a new African record in the process. This was Nathan’s 4th final of the Paralympic Games, having qualified in 4th place in his morning heat with one of the eight fastest times.
PARA ATHLETICS
Women’s 200m – T64
Team SA’s Tezna Abrahams finished 5th in her morning heat, achieving a personal best. However, her position and time were not enough to advance her to the final.
Women’s 400m – T37 – FINAL
Team SA’s Sheryl James and Liezel Gouws finished 4th and 5th, respectively, in the Women’s 400m T37 final, a race in which two of the top three finishers (1st and 3rd place) achieved personal best times to secure their positions.
BOCCIA
Mixed Pairs – BC3 – Preliminary Round – Pool D
Team SA’s Elanza Jordaan and Karabo Morapedi lost 7–0 in their opening pool match against their Brazilian competitors, followed by a 10–0 defeat against the duo from Greece.
