Paralympics: China takes 1st gold while records tumble

Britain cyclist sets the tone for the rest of the event.

LONDON: World records tumbled in the pool and on the cycling track as the first day of competition at the London Paralympics got under way and China won the Games’ first gold medal.

At the Velodrome, seven-time Paralympic champion Sarah Storey, who won five swimming titles before taking two more when she switched to cycling in 2008, clocked a new world best three minutes and  32.17 seconds in the women’s C5 3-km individual pursuit.

The 34-year-old’s time was quicker than the winner of the same event for non-disabled athletes at the UCI Track Cycling World Cup event held at the same venue in February. Joanna Rowsell, who was a member of the British women’s team that won gold in the team pursuit at the Olympics earlier this month, won that race in 3:32.364.

Storey, who was born without a functioning left hand, now races against Anna Harkowska of Poland in the final and said the crowd had spurred her on to the record.

“I know we heard our colleagues say this during the Olympics but it’s so hard to explain the energy they give you, I just can’t explain it really,” said Storey. “On the last lap I could hear I was on for the record. This is everything. I’ve been working on this in training so hard. I’m so chuffed.”

Meanwhile, two other world records were set in qualifying for the women’s C1-2-3 3km individual pursuit — Zeng Sini, a C2 rider from China, broke the world best to book a place in the gold medal race against Australia’s Simone Kennedy.

Australia’s women then posted a new world record in the C4 3km individual pursuit, with Susan Powell qualifying quickest in four minutes and 3.306 seconds.

At the Aquatics Centre, Britain’s Jonathan Fox signalled his intent to upgrade his 100m backstroke S7 Paralympic silver four years ago, lowering his own previous world best by 59 seconds to one minute and 9.86 seconds.

Earlier, Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the Games at a showpiece ceremony involving more than 3,000 volunteer and professional performers, many of them with a disability, combining music, dance and aerial acrobatics.

British scientist Stephen Hawking, described by organisers as ‘the most famous disabled person anywhere on the planet’, narrated parts of the ceremony, which was aimed at challenging perceptions about disability and changing attitudes.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 31^st, 2012.