Para-Athletics Worlds: China finish 1-2 in women's discus throw F11; dominate universal 4x100 relay

Kobe (Japan), May 25 Chinese para throwers Xue Enhui and Zhang Liangmin claimed the gold and silver medals in the women's discus throw F11 final at the Para Athletics World Championships here on Friday. China also dominated the universal 4x100m relay with a record-breaking victory in the evening session.

In the women's discus throw F11, Xue, 41, recorded a personal best throw of 40.24 metres in her very first attempt at the Universiade Memorial Stadium in the central Japanese port city of Kobe, while Zhang took silver with a season-best result of 38.62m. The 38-year-old Zhang is the current world record holder of the F11-class event for athletes with visual impairment. Brazil's Izabela Campos claimed the bronze with a throw of 36.84m.

"I'm basically satisfied with my throws today, which lined up with my previous training results," Xue told Xinhua after the game, highlighting her hope to further stabilize her performance through more exercises in the future.

Her coach Li Xiuqing also looks forward to more advancements of the athlete in the upcoming phase, reports Xinhua.

Later, Team China wowed the Universiade Memorial Stadium in Kobe with a record-breaking victory in the universal 4x100m relay. Zhou Guohua, Wang Hao, Wen Xiaoyan, and Hu Yang teamed up for a storming victory, clocking 45.54 seconds in the evening session to win the final, refreshing both the championship record and the Asian record.

In the morning session, the same Chinese quartet won the first heat by setting a new Asian record of 45.66s. Zhou, a visually impaired female sprinter who ran the first leg of the race, expressed confidence and pride in the lineup after the triumph.

"Our teamwork and mutual trust better our relay performance each time. Although we didn't break the world record this time, we surpassed ourselves. I have great confidence in our team," she said. "I think we performed quite well today. The wind was strong, but our teamwork was very smooth," said China's fourth-leg wheelchair racer Hu, who cheered at the top of his lungs when passing the finish line.

Noting the team was just 0.02 seconds short of the world record, the athlete noted there is still room for improvement. "We will give it our all to compete in Paris," he said. "We will continue to improve and work together to achieve better results in the upcoming 100 days," added Wen, a T37 athlete who just won her third gold medal during the championships, adding that encouraging words among the teammates always turn into motivation.

In the universal 4x100m relay, each team is required to include athletes of four different classifications, with one visually impaired, one with limb impairment, one with coordination impairment, and a wheelchair racer from the lead to close.

Other Chinese silver medalists of the day included Hu Yang in the men's 100m T54, Zhao Yuping in women's shot put F12, and Lan Hanyu in women's 800m T34.

The Kobe Para Athletics World Championships, held in East Asia for the first time, serves as a crucial qualifier for the Paris Paralympics, having attracted over 1,000 athletes from 100 countries and regions competing in 168 events.

A total of 73 Chinese para-athletes are competing in the championships, which runs until May 25. Originally scheduled for 2021, the tournament was postponed twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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